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Olympic Haul
by Steve Macleod
Leonard and Bruce Magill have two lifetimes of trucking between them, but they say nothing compares to their most recent gig. The brothers are part of the Vancouver Winter Olympic torch relay celebration and have been trucking alongside the Olympic flame since it began its journey on Oct. 30 in Victoria. During its 106-day journey, the Olympic torch will visit 1036 communities and travel more than 45,000 km.
"We've been part of it the whole way from the arrival, except for the northern route when it traveled by plane," explains the 54-year-old Leonard. "We'll be right there to Vancouver on Feb. 12 for the opening ceremonies." Traveling the far corners of North America is nothing new for Leonard. He's been all over the continent and even lived in New York for 10 years, experiencing the trucking life south of the border. Even a cross-continent jaunt isn't exactly a new experience. Back in 2000, Leonard toured with KISS for the North American portion of their 142-city farewell tour, but even that doesn't compare to this pre-Olympic trip. "It's a privilege to do it on Canadian soil. It's magic," Leonard says on a Jan. 5 stop in Winnipeg. "It's amazing to watch Canadians unify themselves in a way I've never seen before. There's a lot of pride to be Canadian and I see it in every celebration we go to, and I'm lucky to be a part of it." And to think he stumbled upon this job by accident. The Grimsby, Ont. resident was laid off last spring and was down at the town's Employment Help Centre getting a little help with his resume. Once he got it updated and online, a job popped up for a four-month tour in Canada. That was basically all the information Leonard had at the time. After a couple of interviews it was revealed that the job was to be part of the Olympic torch relay celebrations and Leonard eagerly signed on. About a month after he was hired, there was still an opening for another driver, so Leonard called his brother Bruce and put him in touch with the company. Then it became a family affair. It's not the first time Leonard and his older brother Bruce have worked together. Bruce, who resides in Armstrong, Ont., is involved in the pulp and paper industry hauling heavy equipment. The older brother used to own some trucks and in the late 1980s hired his younger brother as a driver. They have another brother who has owned trucks in the past and their father was a master mechanic, so they were pretty much born with diesel in their blood. But even with that lengthy family history in trucking, this is the first time the brothers have driven team. "It's definitely an adventure. You can't really expect brothers to get along 365 days a year," Bruce says with a laugh. "We're having a lot of fun; it's great." The brothers were hired by GMRMarketing to take turns piloting a 2006 International truck. The rig is owned by RBC and its special paint job matches the specialized trailer. As a partner of the Vancouver Olympic Games, RBC is helping to present the Olympic torch relay across Canada. For the community celebrations, the national bank has created an Eco-Home trailer, specially built on a 40-ft dropdeck . The mobile display is designed to raise awareness on how Canadians can ęgreen' their homes, live off the grid, and have carbon-free homes. The interactive display has a 20-point presentation inside, and it's run off solar panels and wind generators. Another identical truck-trailer combo is also on the road and the two exhibits leapfrog each other at community celebrations, with one setting up for the daytime celebration and the other setting up for the evening affair. "It's an interesting piece of equipment and the engineering is a marvel," says Bruce. "It still works when it's minus-30. Even at minus-42 with the wind chill it still worked. Somebody did their job right." The brothers end up visiting two communities each day, but the longest drive they've had to make is the eight-hour trip between Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. and Thunder Bay, Ont. Leonard and Bruce also help set up the Eco-Home display, and interacting with people along the way is what's making the trip memorable for Bruce. "We have these promotional tools to give out to kids and it's like Christmas for them the way they light up," he explains. "I'll be 61 on Jan. 14 and meeting all these people along the way has been amazing. Especially the young people, they have so much energy and really believe in what they do. You can really feed off of it and it's very refreshing to associate yourself with these kind of people." Both Leonard and Bruce were even given an opportunity to step out of the background and participate in the relay as torch bearers. Bruce had the first opportunity on Nov. 30 in Rimouski, Que. when it was discovered the day before that the relay would be one runner short. "I was totally elated to run with the torch; it was very special," he recalls. Little brother Leonard got his chance on Jan. 6 in Winnipeg and despite the minus-40 wind chill, he says it was an amazing experience. "After that was done I got a chance to meet and have my picture taken with Eddie the Eagle," says Leonard. "It was awesome I got to do it, absolutely wonderful and a great privilege. And to meet the biggest icon in ski jumping was pretty awesome." The brothers are hoping for warmer temperatures for the rest of the torch relay, but regardless, they'll be right alongside the torch until it reaches Vancouver for the Winter Olympics opening ceremony on Feb. 12. After that, they'll head back to Ontario. Leonard isn't exactly sure what he'll do next, and it's unlikely his next gig will be as unique as traveling Canada with the Olympic torch, but he's hoping it will come close.
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