Bigfoot could mean big bucks for Key native

Is Bigfoot real?

Matt Carman can’t say for sure.

The Longboat Key native compares the fascination with Bigfoot to the public’s interest in alien abductions.

“People want to believe in it. There’s no proof of anything yet,” he says. “Basically, you’ve seen one video in Washington state, and no one’s ever seen it since.”

Still, despite the lack of verifiable Bigfoot encounters, Carman, 40, is open to the possibility that Sasquatch exists. He’s had at least three experiences in the outdoors he can’t explain.

Now, Bigfoot could mean big bucks for Carman.

That’s because he and his friend, Julie White, are one of nine teams on Spike TV’s “10 Million Dollar Bigfoot Bounty,” hosted by Dean Cain, best known for his role as Superman on the TV series “Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman.”

Teams compete to find photographic and DNA evidence that Bigfoot exists for a potential $10 million prize that’s underwritten by Lloyd’s of London.

Carman learned about the show from a friend and decided to audition because he figured if anyone could capture Bigfoot on camera, he would be the guy.

During his career as a cinematographer for hunting and safari TV shows, he’s filmed and photographed just about every kind of wildlife — bears, elk, buffalo, hippos, zebras and rhinos, to name a few. He also says he has super vision and can see a deer move from two miles away.

He originally planned to team up with another friend for the show, but the friend couldn’t go through with filming because of a new job. Instead, Carman reconnected with his former college classmate White, 39, of Fresno, Calif., who once found what she believes to be a Bigfoot footprint.

Filming took place over five weeks at Bigfoot hotspots around the U.S.

Carman’s father, Bill, said he didn’t worry when his son told him he was going to spend five weeks hunting for Bigfoot.

“I was more worried the time he was in Africa for more than a month,” Bill Carman said. “He had to cross a river with crocodiles while carrying his camera equipment.”

Carman celebrated the show’s first episode Jan. 10, with approximately 40 friends at Evie’s Tavern in Sarasota. He and White had not yet been eliminated when the latest episode aired Jan. 24.

Carman can’t reveal whether he and White are $10 million richer thanks to Bigfoot. But he offers this tip for novice Bigfoot hunters:

“I’d say, find a spot where things are active, and keep moving around.”

Q&A with Matt Carman
We’ll admit it. We don’t believe Bigfoot exists. What evidence did you find that proves us wrong?
On the show, I didn’t find a lot of evidence. But I’ve had three experiences where I’ve seen and heard things I couldn’t explain.

What’s your theory about Bigfoot if he does exist?
From what they say about the size and what he weighs, I think he’s like a grizzly bear. You rarely see a lot of sightings of Bigfoot during the winter.

Is your goal on the show to capture Bigfoot?
We had to get DNA evidence and also a clear picture. We went out and the judges told us how to collect DNA evidence. They were looking for hair samples, saliva, but what they really wanted was poop. We all called it the “Poop Show” because that’s what we were looking for the first couple of weeks.

What are your thoughts on the Loch Ness Monster?
That’s something that I just don’t know. It would be great if someone wanted to go over and look for it. That’s got the most lore of anything I’ve seen.

If you did win the $10 million, what was or will be your first purchase?
A trip to Africa for a safari.

Tune in
“10 Million Dollar Bigfoot Bounty” continues at 10 p.m. Fridays on Spike TV. Check your local listings for a full schedule.

Contact Robin Hartill at [email protected]