Burchett "finds" Bigfoot in Knox

The rest of you folks can go look for the next president. Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett is on his own mission: To find Bigfoot.

Yup, the Sasquatch aficionado and well-known conspiracy theorist (I think he also believes in Nessie) and some members of various local Bigfoot clubs have worked out a deal with Animal Planet to bring the show “Finding Bigfoot” to Knox County.

I'm not kidding.

You see, I'm required to get an election brief for the ol' rolling blog over on the KNS website, so I figured I'd call the mayor. That's when he told me what he was doing on Election Day.

“Well, I’m just being the mayor,” Burchett said with a laugh. “But we’re also bringing the Bigfoot show to town.”

He added that the show’s producers will meet with the public during a Nov. 16 shindig at Powell Auction from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

“This is not going to hurt Knox County or East Tennessee one bit – not with the exposure we’ll get of the local beauty,” the mayor said.

I assume he is referring to the landscape – not the hairy and elusive ape-like creature that no one has ever taken a non-grainy picture of.

“The show has 1.5 million to 1.7 million viewers – it’s international, so everyone will see Knox County,” he said.

Burchett added that when the show’s production crew does arrive, the staff will interview locals who claim to have seen what many believe to be the missing link. They’ll conduct research and also journey out into the nearby wilderness, perhaps looking for Sasquatch. 

The mayor, though, said where they go will remain a secret until next year when the show airs.

In the meantime, the Burchett said the rest of his day will be spent “working the polls,” and asking folks to vote to close a costly pension plan for the Knox County Sheriff’s Office.

He also noted that he broke from tradition this year and voted early. He joked that he was afraid he’d have another motorcycle wreck and wanted to make sure he got to the polls.