Local resident Dale Kristensen is a familiar person in Barriere B.C. having grown up in the area on a family farm.
He is known for his determination, grit and mechanical aptitude by many in the North Thompson.
Kristensen is a Little Person born with achondroplasia, a type of dwarfism and has learned to adapt throughout his life, personally and professionally.
He is featured in an upcoming show on Accessible Media Inc. (AMI) called Underdog Inc., which airs on Friday July 11 at 6:00 p.m. Pacific time and 9:00 p.m. Eastern time.
“For as long as I can remember I’ve loved heavy equipment and trucks, which I use any way I can to make a buck on the backroads," he can be heard saying in a trailer for the show.
“Being a Little Person is not easy” he says, adding "so I use every trick in the book to get the job done,” as he wenches a large wooden crate off of a trailer deck and then a huge potable water tank as well.
He speaks with emotion about his seven-year-old son Cooper who is often seen with him around town or in his shop, a smart boy who’s learning which tools to hand his dad as his helping hand.
“I’m showing my son the importance of never giving up,” he says.
Cooper is also a Little Person and is growing up watching his capable father, a giant in his eyes, standing at four-foot-two, as he takes on jobs that average sized people may find challenging.
Kristensen doesn’t back away from those challenges, determined to succeed when he takes on high-risk hot-shot deliveries and hard-to reach-backroad vehicle recoveries through the often-tough interior of B.C. terrain.
“A lot of people ask ‘why do you do it’ and I answer that there is one little guy that is counting on me. I never back down from a challenge,” he says.
Kristensen says “I’ve spent my whole life defying stereotypes, this is my story,” speaking about the series Underdog Inc. and it’s obvious that he intends to live up to the challenge of building the best life possible for Cooper, his inspiration and trusty sidekick.
Underdog Inc. is an eight-part docuseries. Viewers can stream episodes anytime free on AMI+.
