The article underneath has been written by Laurie Mustard and published in the daily newspaper The Winnipeg Sun, Manitoba, Canada, on October 4, 2002.
OK, UFO fans, what did this couple see?
Last Nov. 2, a Friday, just after midnight, well known local magician/entertainer Steve Chmara, 45, and his wife, Donna, 42, are driving west on the Trans-Canada Highway just past Portage la Prairie, heading to Regina for a Saturday show.
Donna is driving, Steve relaxing after a performance. The night is clear. Steve's eyes wander from a plane he is watching, back to the highway where, in the distance, he notices a bright light.
Although she doesn't mention it, Donna has noticed the same light and is thinking maybe it's a yard light on a farm. Donna notices the dash clock reads 12:10 a.m.
Within a few seconds, the light appears to be getting closer and much brighter, suddenly seems to surge through heat wave and then is immediately in front of their car. The light is brilliant (but doesn't hurt their eyes), lasts only a second or so and disappears.
About the time they saw it do its "heat warble," Donna asked Steve, "Did you see what I just saw?" and then it was on them and gone.
Donna's wondering, "Where the heck did it go?" glances up through the sunroof and spots it "at about telephone pole height" just above the right side of their car. Steve, she believes, is watching the same thing through his window. This turns out to be a very mysterious part of their "encounter."
Although Donna can see this "UFO" quite clearly over them, she just keeps on driving.
"I'm trying to rationalize," she recalls. "Jeez, are we close to Shilo, is this a prank of some sort, a projection from a field nearby? Absolutely nothing made sense. I watched it for what seemed like a minute or so, observing it was boomerang shaped and had what appeared to be a highly polished metal surface.
"It appeared to still be flying, facing the direction it had approached us and so now was flying backwards. Finally, it turned north-east, giving us a rear view of round thruster-type engines at the end of each wing (both covered with an even more highly polished metal), each with three glowing circular bands of red within, and another smaller engine in the centre of the V."
As it leaves, Steve opens his window, yelling, "It's got thrusters, it's got thrusters," and both watch it move off quickly. There is no noise, no heat.
To make a long story short, they are in shock, talk rather excitedly about the encounter, as they continue on to Regina.
The mystery? Steve only remembers seeing the craft arrive in front of their car, then speed off to the north east. He has no memory of the period when Donna was watching it hovering over their car. As it disappeared, she again checked the clock. Still 12:10.
"We know some people are going to say we're whacked," says Steve, "but we're really not nuts. We don't attend UFO conventions, none of that."
Chris Rutkowski, co-ordinator of UFO research a University of Manitoba says there have been at least four other sightings of this type of UFO this year in Canada: Cambridge, Ont., on Jan. 27; Telkwa, B.C., on Feb. 2; Newmarket, Ont., on March 27; and Kelowna, B.C., on April 30.
He says Steve and Donna's is the most descriptive (with this type of UFO), yet.
"Whatever we saw," says Steve, "it inspired both fear and wonder and was truly the experience of a lifetime."
I know these people. They're not nuts.
Whaddya think kids? Contact?
