You’re gorgeous.”
Steve Irwin, aka the Crocodile Hunter, is belly down on the ground and nose-to-nose with Bubba, a crocodile.
Never mind that he’s no where near his regular stomping ground–the Aussie Outback–or that the croc with which he’s chatting is an ambush animal that doesn’t mind downing kangaroos and cows.
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The star of Animal Planet’s “Crocodile Hunter” and the new movie “The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course” (PG, out Friday) is right at home when he’s getting in the face of wild animals. On this occasion, Irwin and Bubba are smack dab in the middle of the Rain Forest Cafe in downtown Chicago, and a crowd of curious diners has gathered behind a half wall to watch Irwin charm the croc.
After a few minutes, Irwin excuses himself from Bubba long enough to chat with Scoop Trooper Zachary S., 12, of Des Plaines:
Q. In the film, you mention that your dad got you started wrestling crocs and involved with reptiles. How old were you when you caught your first croc?
A. I was 9 years old and we were up in North Queensland catching freshwater crocodiles. My dad must have thought I had seen enough and learned enough to warrant going in and catching my own, so the last croc he let me dive in on it and grab it. Mind you, I was only barely able to hang on to it. As soon as I thought I was going to drown, he actually scooped both of us up into the boat.
Q. What is the largest croc you’ve ever wrestled?
A. The largest croc I ever caught was nearly 16 feet, probably about one ton in weight, and it took me about two years to [track and] catch.
Q. Do you have a favorite type of animal?
A. The crocodile. They’re like modern-day dinosaurs, and I just love them. But my all-time favorite animal, of course, is my dog Sui.
Q.Is there any kind of animal that scares you?
A. Yeah, parrots. I’m not real keen on parrots. They have a real bad habit of biting me. I’ve had the front of my nose nearly torn off, and I’ve been bitten on my fingers so many times, it’s not funny.
Q. On the show, snakes don’t seem to ever bite you. What’s your secret?
A. I’ve been bitten plenty of times by non-venomous snakes. There’s no danger of being harmed. But I’ve never been bitten by a venomous snake because I take a lot of time to respect them. When you see me touching them, I actually love the snake and they tend to feel that. A lot of people get them with tongs, pin them down, get them behind the head. But if I were to grab you behind the head, instantaneously you get all nervous and agitated, you stiffen up, you get stressed. That’s what happens to snakes. If I gently persuade them with my hands, they may want to strike the first 30 seconds, but then they settle down.
Q. How was filming the movie different from doing the cable show?
A. Mainly, working with the animals wasn’t much different. It was one take; that’s all you get. So John [Stanton, the director] had to get a lot of cameras to get those different camera angles. There were no tricks involved. It was like real crocodiles trying to kill us and real wrestling and all that kind of stuff. The rest of it, I had to do a lot of takes. I didn’t have a script; it was just using my own thinking and own words, so I was ad-libbing everything. But John made me do it three, four, five, six, maybe 10 times, which I wasn’t used to. I’m a one-shot wonder.
Q. What has been your most dangerous encounter with an animal?
A. Probably with Graham, the star crocodile in the movie. Many years ago, he grabbed me on the hand and pulled me into the water. He was going to kill me. But luckily enough, I landed on his head and gave him a bit of a scare, and he let go.
Q. What do you do on days you’re not wrestling crocs?
A. Surf. I love to surf–that’s my sport.
Q. Your show is so popular, but you have to suspect some viewers tune in because they’re curious to see if you’ll get your hand taken off. How do you feel about that?
A. I think that’s great. Whatever it takes to get people excited about wildlife. It’s so hard in this day and age to get kids excited about animals and wilderness areas. A very small percentage of 12-year-old boys are going to want to watch that cheetah make another kill from 500 yards away, whereas if you see me walk up to the cheetah and it attacks me, you’re going to watch it. That’s the beauty.
Make yourself at home at camp
Camp rules when it comes to getting away from it all. No taking out the garbage, no practicing the piano, no cleaning your room. Plus, there’s tons to do and kids everywhere.
Still, even experienced campers admit that camp isn’t always one giant romp in the woods. Recently, we asked readers what they dreaded most about camp, and they came up with a list of complaints: icky grub, mosquitoes, cruddy toilets, snoring cabin mates, the stifling heat and no TV, among other things.
Campers also said they miss their family. In fact, Christopher Thurber, a psychologist and co-author of “The Summer Camp Handbook”($15, Dimensions), says 95 percent to 98 percent of campers he surveyed said they experienced some homesickness when at camp. “It’s perfectly normal,” he says. “Even counselors get homesick.”
What can you do to help conquer the homesick blues? Read on:
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1.Do your homework. Never been away from home for long? Practice with long weekends at relatives, Thurber suggests. Spend time looking at the literature that your camp sent you so you know about the daily schedule, phone-call policies, how often laundry is done and other routines and rules. “One of the things that make kids wish they were at home are unpleasant surprises,” he says.
2.Stay busy. “If you’re involved with other people and doing things and having a good time, you won’t have time to think about home,” says Gordie Kaplan, executive director of the Illinois section of the American Camping Association.
3.Pack something from home that’ll make you smile. “Bring something you have an attachment to,” whether it’s a stuffed animal, a favorite baseball glove or the pillow from your bed, says Tony Mayfield, director of Culver Summer Camps in Indiana and president of the Association of Independent Camps. Photos of family, friends and pets are good idea too. Also, a stack of pre-addressed, stamped postcards makes it easy to write notes to the folks at home.
4.Set a goal at the beginning of camp. Want to learn photography? Improve your backstroke? Hit three bull’s-eyes in a row at the archery range? Stake out what you want to do early on and be realistic, Mayfield suggests.
5.Don’t be afraid to ask for help. All three experts say it’s important to open up to counselors if you have a concern or complaint. “Be assertive and stick up for yourself,” Kaplan says. Counselors might not be able to fix all your gripes (for instance, they probably can’t do anything about the mess hall’s mystery meat), but sharing will help you get your feelings out, he adds.
–Carol Monaghan
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(Editor’s Note: Thanks to all the campers who sent in their sob stories for our “Make Me a Happy Camper” contest! We’ve chosen three lucky campers to receive care packages while at camp.)