For the first 26 years of her life, Tyra has lived in Drumheller.
Billed as the World’s Largest Dinosaur, Tyra towers 25 metres above the Drumheller Visitor Information Centre. She is about four times larger than the actual T-Rex that she represents, and more than just another roadside attraction, Tyra has stairs inside her gullet, which you can climb up to a viewing platform in her mouth.
Tyra is currently owned by the Drumheller Chamber of Commerce, and while she’s in need of some cosmetic repairs, she’s still in reasonably good condition.
But the Chamber’s lease with the city of Drumheller runs out in 2029, and the Chamber has announced it will not seek to renew its lease.
“While this announcement is a difficult one, it’s also an opportunity for the Chamber to refocus on our core mission: supporting local businesses, advocating on their behalf and fostering economic growth in Drumheller,” said Lana Phillips, President of the Chamber back in March of 2025. “We invite the community and visitors to make the most of the remaining years to create lasting memories with Tyra.”
And while citizens and organizations in Drumheller are looking for ways to keep Tyra in the community, Jennifer Slack has a different idea: Tumbler Ridge should adopt the dino.
“I have spoken to the CEO of Conuma, who is backing it and willing to help out. And we have other industry partners like La Prairie Crane and SMS,” says Slack. “But with having Conuma support behind it, and then taking that to council, I’m hoping that is going to be enough.”
Slack says she became the spearhead for the movement to bring Tyra to Tumbler by accident. “I had posted on Facebook about Tyra and it received over a 100 comments. Then I received a message from a reporter who wanted to do a story on it. So I said, ‘I guess. Why not?’ I did a little interview with him, and then a couple hours later, he messaged me and asked me if I wanted to go on CBC radio. And I thought if I’m going to do that, I might as well just go all out and make a genuine effort to do this. So that’s how it started.”
With an upcoming appearance on CBC, Slack decided to some research on Tyra, discovering her height (mentioned above) and weight (154,000 pounds.) “It’s not going to be an easy feat to move her,” says Slack. “She has 106 stairs inside that spiral up. She’s ginormous.”
And, while Tyra recently received a clean bill of health, she’s not in perfect condition. “Tyra needs about $154,000 in repairs,” says Slack. “They’re minor repairs, but they’re things that need to get done. There’s water pooling where it can’t drain easily. There’s poor ventilation, high humidity, a little bit of deterioration in the grout. A lot of little things that need to be fixed. That would have to be added on to the cost too.”
And then the exterior will need an overhaul in about eight years. “It’s got a Fiberglas and metal skin. And the interior would need to be done in about ten years. It does sound like a lot of money, but maybe the initial repairs that need to be done could be done when they dismantle the dinosaur and put it back together and get that taken care of.”
But why Tumbler Ridge? “We have a lot of dinosaur things around here, and I just think it’d be a really neat addition,” says Slack. “It’s going to bring tourists to the town. It’s going to be an attraction.”
And more importantly, she says, it will give people something else to think of when they hear the town’s name. “There’s going to be connotations around Tumbler Ridge for the next decade after the recent events that have that have unfolded here. I thought it would be kind of neat to change that into something more positive. ‘Tumbler Ridge? They have Tyra the Dinosaur!’ Just shift the focus a bit. Do something fun for the town and hopefully maybe make some money.”
Ah, yes. Money. In Drumheller, the Dinosaur attracts about 150,000 visitors. At $5/visitor, $15/family and free for kids under five. While the Chamber has not said how much the Dinosaur makes per year, since 2005, the World’s Largest Dinosaur Fund has reinvested over $800,000 back into the community.
“I don’t expect we would get 150,000 visitors here,” says Slack. “But if you go by the population of kids under 14 years old in Fort St. John, Dawson Creek and Chetwynd, you’re looking at 8700 kids. In 2024, the museum received 4700 visitors. So that’s quite a few people there. So even if you only take like 30 percent of the population of the kids in just the surrounding towns, not counting Tumbler, you’re looking at 3480 kids. It you charge people $10, that’s $34,000. That’s not much. But if 40 percent of the other visitors were to visit, that’s another $20,000. Little bits and pieces that can add up. And with supportive industry, I think it could be something that we could, we could cherish for a long time in Tumbler Ridge.”
How long? Tyra recently received a clean bill of health, and, with proper care and maintenance, Slack thinks it could last another 25 years. “I think there’d be a small income from it, maybe even enough to break even.”
And of course, there’s always grants available.
While there’s been no sell price listed on Tyra, Slack believes Tumbler Ridge would be able to get it, for the low, low price of just taking it off their hands. “There’d be a cost to us dismantling it and getting it up to Tumbler Ridge, but I’m thinking we could set it up by the Visitor Centre. In Drumheller, it’s near their Visitor Centre, and they have a little ice cream stand and activities for the kids and tourists and other things to do.”
Something like this would attract more tourists. That’s a good thing. But what are the problems? “The biggest threat is logistics,” says Slack. “And the cost of the upcoming repairs is going to be a concern.”
Ultimately, says Slack, she is just the chief cheerleader for the idea. “I’m not a finance person or anything like that. I just thought if there’s enough people interested, we should pursue it. I think there’s good reasons for it. And if it is feasible, then we could take it a step further.
“This kind of happened by accident, but if I’m going to do it, I’m going to give it my all.”
Of course, the Drumheller Chamber would have to be willing to give the dinosaur up in the first place. And while they are retiring Tyra, they have not expressed interest in donating the dino.
Indeed, when the Calgary Herald asked Chamber Executive Director Heather Bitz about the dinosaur being re-homed outside of the community, Bitz said: “We don’t believe this is a feasible option.”
Slack will be bringing her proposal forward to council on Monday, April 20 as a delegation.
Trent is the publisher of Tumbler RidgeLines.
