BLACK RIVER-MATHESON - Prompted by a taillight mishap at a nearby gas station, a famous Canadian auto enthusiast paid a visit to a small Northern Ontario automotive parts store last week.
Mike Hall, best known for his role in Rust Valley Restorers featured on the History Channel and Netflix, stopped by Matheson Auto Parts on Friday (Aug. 2).
“He just so happened to have a taillight go out at the gas station across the street, and one of my employees was there getting a sandwich and got his picture taken with him, and he ran over here to say hi,” said store owner Max Michaud.
“Everybody was excited. I mean, he's a big personality. So, I mean, when he walks in a room, you definitely know he's there. But he was really, really nice and friendly, and definitely didn't try to brush us off. He was here and took an extra minute to get more pictures taken with us and everything.”
Hall, who has over 900,000 social media followers, posted a video on his Facebook that shows the taillight mishap and his interaction with Michaud’s employees.
Michaud said he and his workers knew Hall from his show. During his 10-minute visit, Hall told them he’s on a coast-to-coast road trip and that he was planning on having dinner in Ottawa later that night.
“He told us he’s on his way to Fredericton. He dipped his tires in the Pacific in Vancouver, and he’s going to dip his tires in the Atlantic in Fredericton. That’s his plan,” Michaud said.
According to Hall’s Instagram, he’s attending a car show in Fredericton from Aug. 9 to 11.
After Hall’s visit, Michaud made a post on Facebook to share a photo of them which received hundreds of comments, reactions and shares from fans.
“I figured we'd have three of our hardcore car guys kind of just giggle about it and be jealous that they weren’t in the store at that time and that would be it. That's pretty much what we expected. And it just kind of snowballed in a hurry from there,” Michaud said.
“But, I mean, he's a well-known guy, and he definitely makes a presence. And, you know, for him to walk into a store like this, I mean, it kind of fit. Most of our customers, obviously, are car guys.”
