Gavin Strickland, 19, was reunited with his Nissan Verda sedan after his parents launched an online appeal to help their 'doofy son' track down his car. Photo / Facebook / Craiglist
Gavin Strickland, 19, was reunited with his Nissan Verda sedan after his parents launched an online appeal to help their 'doofy son' track down his car. Photo / Facebook / Craiglist
A New York teenager lost his car for three days after forgetting where he'd parked it during a Metallica concert.
Gavin Strickland, 19, was only reunited with his Nissan Verda sedan after his parents launched an online appeal to help their "doofy son" track down his car.
The teen had driven up from his home in Syracuse, New York State, to Toronto to see Metallica play on Sunday night.
But when the concert came to an end and it was time for Strickland to return home, he realized he had no idea where he'd left his car, the Daily Mail reported.
Strickland said he spent hours walking up and down the streets of Toronto, looking for the garage where he left his car, but no to avail.
"At first I was like, 'I just forgot where I parked. It's not a big deal.' Eventually I started thinking... I may never see my car again," he told CTV News Channel.
By Monday, he had to admit defeat and make the embarrassing call home to tell his parents he'd lost his car. He then jumped on a bus back to Syracuse.
His father, Eric, said: "He just really kind of screwed up going into a big city not knowing what to do."
His dad decided to post an appeal on Craigslist offering Toronto locals $100 to help his 'doofy son' locate his car. Photo / Craiglist
At that point his dad decided to post an appeal on Craigslist offering Toronto locals a $100 to help his "doofy son" locate his car.
He also posted a photo of the vehicle - which had Florida plates, a Canadian flag in the rear window and a Bernie Sanders bumper sticker, and the details his son could remember; it was in downtown Toronto, near a 'strange spiral outdoor sculpture', a Starbucks and a construction site.
After the post, the Stricklands were flooded with responses, some more helpful than others.
"Some of them were supportive, but some of them were calling me an idiot," Gavin told CBC. "Apparently like a search party went out. Basically like a scavenger hunt, which I thought was pretty cool."
Eventually, Toronto resident Madison Riddolls, who read the post, located the car on Wednesday and got in touch with Gavin who got on the bus the next day for the long, 250 mile journey north.
Riddolls, who received the $100 reward for her efforts and another $100 for the charity of her choice, directed Gavin to the parking garage where his car was waiting.
Luckily for the teen, Impark, which runs the garage, heard about his story and didn't charge him for four-days of parking. They even gave him a Bluetooth device for his car to ensure he can find it next time.
But Gavin, was simply glad to be reunited with his car.
"I was worried it got stolen," he said. "I love Canada, and I think I just love how the city got together to help me out."
