Winnipegger in spotlight as ‘the Raptor’

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This article was published 31/05/2019 (2374 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

TORONTO — He keeps an extremely low-profile, like all masked characters usually do. But make no mistake about it: Winnipegger Ryan Bonne is literally jumping for joy at the success of the Toronto Raptors.

That’s because the 46-year-old University of Winnipeg grad has been getting airborne for the past 24 years as the official mascot of the basketball team, known simply as “the Raptor.”

There he was on Thursday night at Scotiabank Arena, getting the sold-out crowd of nearly 20,000 pumped up as the Raptors reached new heights by opening the 2019 NBA final with a thrilling 118-109 victory over the Golden State Warriors. The best-of-seven series continues Sunday night in downtown Toronto.

Now, I’d love to tell you what was going through Bonne’s head as more than two decades of work culminated in such a magical moment for both him and his team, including performing in front of the biggest worldwide television audience he’s ever had. After all, there were plenty of low points along the way, where there wasn’t a whole lot to get excited about, despite Bonne’s best efforts through regular stunts such as launching off a trampoline to dunk a basketball.

But, like the actual dinosaurs that once roamed the Earth, this Raptor isn’t talking.

“Unfortunately, we must politely decline your request. Ryan and us like to keep the ‘magic’ of the Raptor’s identity a mystery as much as possible. As a result he doesn’t do interviews,” a spokesperson for the club told me on Friday.

The Free Press spoke with Bonne more than a decade ago, at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, where he was invited to be one of the official mascots of the event. He shared details of his somewhat improbable journey from regular Joe to a beloved furry dinosaur who was named the 2006 mascot of the year in all of professional sports. Yes, that’s actually a thing.

“Every parent thinks doctor, lawyer… but mine got a big puppet,” Bonne said at the time.

Bonne’s first big break came by winning the role of “Kaboom,” the mascot for the Winnipeg Thunder, which played minor-league basketball at the old Arena for three seasons beginning in 1992. Bonne, an accomplished gymnast during his time at Vincent Massey High School, then moved on to play “Wild, Wild Wes,” the U of W’s official mascot, while also briefly donning the costume of “Buzz” for the Blue Bombers. 

After completing his BA (major in theatre, minor in physical activity and sports studies), Bonne parlayed those experiences into his application to be “the Raptor” as Toronto’s brand new pro team was set to launch in 1995. His incredible agility and personality got him the job out of more than 200 other hopefuls.

The rest, as they say, is history, as he made his memorable debut by actually emerging from a dinosaur egg during the team’s first game.

Bonne, his wife and two children have lived in southern Ontario ever since, living a rather low-key life considering the massive international exposure Bonne gets every time he dons the costume. 

Now it’s the Raptors making history, just three wins away from their first-ever NBA title and snapping a 26-year championship drought in Canada’s big three sports leagues.

For Bonne, that’s definitely something to cheer about.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg