March 26, 2014

Hank the “Bigfoot” Revealed

Hank the sasquatch

In recent weeks, Rick Dyer and his Team Tracker crew have been touring Texas with the remains of “Hank” a Sasquatch (or “Bigfoot”) that Rick shot and killed in a bait-and-ambush attack in the outskirts of San Antonio, Texas, in Sept. of 2012. At the time of his death, Hank was a 70-year old grandfather who was co-existing peacefully with the homeless people in the area, and no threat whatsoever to humans. The nature of the Team Tracker’s touring company’s exhibit is much like a traveling circus sideshow: A trailer with a glass case bearing the purported “Bigfoot Body”. (The remains are basically the poorly taxidermied, stuffed hide of Hank.) Team Tracker also books auditorium shows in various venues in major cities and their suburbs. The shows are amateurish, with very little scientific documentation to verify the nature of the remains. The shows are monetarily successful, none-the-less.

However, there reportedly have been several comprehensive scientific studies and procedures performed on the deceased Sasquatch, prior to the release of the remains to Team Tracker. These studies include a filmed autopsy, CT and MRI scans, and some degree of genetic sequencing. At present there is no publicly announced date or location for the full scientific revelation of these studies.

The author of the article “Hank the ‘Bigfoot’ Revealed” ( David A. Claerr) together with the featured illustrations that are posted here with permission, is a Sasquatch researcher based in Texas. He notes that:

“In forays in Central Texas, I perceived that many of the Sasquatch in that region have traits that are often associated with recessive genes in humans, such as auburn, red and light-haired coats. (I often thought of these Sasquatch as “Scotsmen” whom they reminded me of.) When enhancing still frames from Rick Dyer’s slightly obscured “Tent Video” (shot from inside a screened pup tent door-window, with a mobile phone), I could see the similar traits resembling the more human-like Sasquatch typical of this region. By comparison, toward the Northeast quadrant of Texas, there are more of the black- or dark-coated Sasquatch, which have more simian traits, like gray-black skin, as does the famous “Patty” type of the Pacific Northwest. (refer to the Patterson-Gimlin film.)” The illustration below is of a younger Sasquatch from Central Texas, in the prime of life, similar to the individual featured in the “Tent Video”.

CentralTxSasq1

It is important to note that the author is neither endorsing nor supporting Rick and Team Tracker’s actions or activities. Mr. Claerr states:
“As an “editorial” comment here, I personally feel considerable regret and dismay that a Sasquatch has been shot and killed, if, as Dyer’s report maintains, that is true. However, I am also cognizant of the fact that it is not possible to undo the past. So if there has been or will be a documented and verified “Specimen Type” of the Sasquatch or “Bigfoot” it is now imperative to call a moratorium on future hunting or killing of what are likely to be considered as an indigenous people. If so, they should be granted full rights under the United States Constitution, which guarantees life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to all. But whether or not Sasquatch will be classified as fully human, they are a sentient species with all the emotions and feelings that humans have. They deserves our respect, and protection from wholesale slaughter. Think of Sasquatch in terms of families- mothers, fathers, boys and girls that love and support one another as the best of humans also do. Empathy and understanding should be the basis for a moral or ethical regard for the Sasquatch, and for future legislative efforts to protect them.”

In the article, the author cites the lore of Native American tribes who maintain that they considered the Sasquatch as another tribe of indigenous peoples, with whom they often traded and bartered for goods and services including knowledge of nature and physical healing and herbal remedies.

Currently, there is an attitude among hunters based on exploitation, that advocates Sasquatch slaughter for fame and fortune. The author also notes other motivations for the killings:

“There is often an undercurrent of hostility in humans, due to often exaggerated tales depicting all Sasquatch as savage beasts, that many people are using as justification to actively hunt and kill them. Some justify the hunt in the name of scientific discovery. However, a vastly greater sum of knowledge can be gained by an approach such as those pioneered by Jane Goodall and Dian Fosse in their long-term studies of the chimpanzee and gorilla, respectively. As far as further study into their genetics, far more in-depth sampling and data can be obtain from LIVING family groups of Sasquatch than from one isolated, dead individual… There is now a growing opportunity for those of like mind to join together for the protection of the Sasquatch and the preservation of their way of life. If just one family of Sasquatch will be spared the grief, distress and loss of having a family member shot and killed, it will be worth the effort.”

The full text of David Claerr’s article can be found at this link.

The illustrated full-length figure of a Sasquatch is featured on the cover of David A. Claerr’s recent book Sasquatch Genesis: the Origins and Nature of Bigfoot which is available online as an e-book for Kindle readers from Amazon. This folio has many of David’s fascinating articles and is replete with full-color illustrations and photographs.

claer

LEGAL NOTICE: the quoted contents and illustrations in this article are filed under REGISTERED COPYRIGHT with the US Library of Congress. They have been reprinted here with the exclusive permission of the author and illustrator, David A. Claerr. Any unauthorized publishing, reprinting or internet postings are illegal and subject to prosecution under 17 U.S.C. Section 101 et seq. and could be liable for statutory damages as high as $150,000 as set forth in Section 504(c)(2) therein.

About Craig Woolheater
Co-founder of Cryptomundo in 2005. I have appeared in or contributed to the following TV programs, documentaries and films: OLN's Mysterious Encounters: "Caddo Critter", Southern Fried Bigfoot, Travel Channel's Weird Travels: "Bigfoot", History Channel's MonsterQuest: "Swamp Stalker", The Wild Man of the Navidad, Destination America's Monsters and Mysteries in America: Texas Terror - Lake Worth Monster, Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot: Return to Boggy Creek and Beast of the Bayou.

Filed under Bigfoot, Bigfoot Report, Books, Cryptozoologists, Cryptozoology, Evidence, Eyewitness Accounts, Guest Blog, Pop Culture, Sasquatch