MOOSE JAW -- Following months of planning, Moose Jaw’s Mac the Moose has officially emerged as the world’s tallest moose.
The installation process started on Monday, when crews could be seen sawing and hammering Mac’s head where his new antlers were to go.
The City of Moose Jaw decided to get Mac a new rack so he could retake the title of World's Tallest Moose. Mac lost the title to a moose in Norway in 2015, but after a "Moosarandum of Understanding," the two countries decided Mac could be largest, and Norway's Storelgen could be the shiniest and most attractive moose.
The new rack was crafted by Rion White, the owner of Orion Taxidermy, and Brysen Bert, the owner of Steady Metalworks.
The 700 pounds of steel crafted into the shape of antlers turned out to be so large, Bert and White had to move them to a different shop in Moose Jaw.
“A lot of work has gone into this, and to be quite honest, I think there’s been a few people who have been nervous about what the end result was going to be,” Fraser Tolmie, mayor of Moose Jaw, said. “But I don’t think we disappointed.”
While the ongoing feud has garnered international attention, the payoff for the City of Moose Jaw’s tourism sector has been evident.
“We noticed an incredible increase in our shoulder seasons, so the seasons that kind of hurt in our city,” Jacki L’Heureux-Mason, executive director of Tourism Moose Jaw said. “And we held really strong through the summer, and we weren’t really expecting that.”
L’Heureux-Mason said she hopes to see that continue.
“This is the gift that keeps on giving,” she said. “People will be talking about this for a long time. Those new antlers are going to be a beacon to people to stop in, and we know if we can get people to stop for a little bit, we can get them to stay.”
And while this brings the moose mayhem to an end, both L’Heureux-Mason and Moose Jaw mayor Fraser Tolmie say if anyone tries to come for the world’s tallest moose title again in the future, they’ll be ready to fight for it.
