By: Jason Sheppard

They may have only known each other for a short while, but together the members of the OZFM Summer Cruiser Team are enjoying the summer of their lives

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“Are you gonna call soon, Becky?” read the text message on Becky Daley’s iPhone as she and I sat in the boardroom of OZFM one rainy, early June afternoon. 

The message was from Mitchel Snelgrove, Becky’s fellow OZFM Summer Cruiser Team member. Our interview consisted of myself and Becky in the OZ boardroom, with her two other team members, Mitchel and Asha Whiteway joining in by three-way call. Right away, it was obvious that these three young people get along – they’re already getting saucy with each other. 

Sights & Stories 

The trio had met just four weeks earlier during a Newfoundland Herald cover photo shoot and interview. This week, The Herald caught up with the OZFM Summer Cruiser Team to find out how their summer has been going so far. 

“It’s been really good fun,“ Daley said. “We’ve met lots of new people already. We’ve gone to Carbonear, which is the farthest we’ve gone so far. We’ve gone to the Ride For Quinn event and the Janeway Telethon was really big for us. A lot of people were at that and it was just good to see everyone and hear lots of stories.”

Snelgrove feels the same. “It’s been great. It’s been everything I expected and more. Meeting everybody, like all the OZFM listeners, is something I’ve always dreamed of doing,” he said. “The response from listeners has been incredible. People coming up and saying ‘Oh my God! The Summer Cruiser Team!’ That was great.”

Despite never having met before, the three Cruiser Team members bonded pretty quickly and get along great. “We’re just like a family,” said Whiteway. “Lots of laughs, lots of fights,” she adds with a laugh. 

“We get along really well. I mean, sometimes we argue about places to go,” Daley said with a laugh, “When we first met we were trying to figure each other out but right away, we just clicked.”

‘A Kind of Excitement’

On days when the weather is not-so-great (such as the day this interview took place) the Cruiser Team still manage to keep the fun going. “We just usually pick a spot where we’ll find a lot of people. Usually when we give out free stuff people are like, ‘Yay, wow,’ even when it’s kind of a foggy day like this,” said Daley. “That brings a kind of excitement. We also leave the doors open with the music on blast so that’s kind of a happy place there,’” she adds with a laugh. 

“It kind of just happens,” adds Whiteway. “The three of us have some pretty good vibes so it really doesn’t matter where we go or who comes to see us, we’ll have fun regardless.”

“The one thing the three of us do that keeps the vibes going is just to turn the tunes up, ignore the weather, ignore the rain and just kind of go with it. We’re in Newfoundland,” said Snelgrove. “We stay really upbeat. We’ve never had a moment where there’s nothing to do or to feel sad. We’re like ‘We’re the Cruiser team!’ We just blast music and go around looking for people.”   

This year, the Cruiser team is giving away all kinds of great items. “We‘re giving away things like concert tickets, passes to Thomas Amusements, passes to George Street Fest, the Eastbound races up in Avondale – basically passes to every event that happens here,” Daley explains. 

In addition, The Cruiser Team are not just looking for OZFM stickers on the back of cars. They are looking for OZ stickers on people’s phones. Daley describes one incident where they were recently in the Avalon Mall and spotted a shopper with the OZ sticker on their phone. They told them to come find them the next weekend where they would have something to give them.   

Recently, during the Janeway Telethon, the team were approached by an individual for a photo. “We said to ourselves ‘name a better trio.’ Then they responded ‘the only better trio we can name were (OZFM Rush hosts) Stephen, Steph and Hugh.’ “  

Upcoming Events

So what is the best part of being a part of the OZ Summer Cruiser team? “Meeting people,” answered Daley. 

Meeting people will be exactly what the Cruiser Team will be doing all summer as they will be on hand for The George Street Festival, the Salmon Festival and other events.   

One event coming up that Snelgrove is really looking forward to is the Regatta. “That is one event that I’m super-pumped for,” he expressed.  

A question the Cruiser Team often receives on social media is if they will ever leave the Avalon? The answer is yes! The team are planning trips to the West Coast and all across the island. 

“It’s early yet but we do want to get out there,” Daley says. “My pop in Lewisporte keeps saying to me ‘are you ever going to make it out this way?’ ” 

We believe it’s safe to say to Daley’s pop, that yes, the 2018 OZFM Summer Cruiser Team will soon be heading your way.