We are amazed how many people love sharing their stories with us... and we love hearing them!
We encourage you to send us your personal testimonials - what do you use your whistle for? For work or play? Do you have a unique use for your whistle? Has the use of a Fox 40 whistle been a lifesaver in a critical situation?
The now famous Fox 40 Pealess Whistle originated as an Official's whistle. It has been used at the NBA World Championships, World Cup of Soccer, and the Olympics. But did you know the Fox 40 Whistle has since "climbed" Mount Everest and flown to outer space? It is used for bomb disposal, training birds and dogs, and by search & rescue professionals during numerous worldwide rescue efforts.
• FEATURE STORY:From Pool to Classroom...
• Fox 40 in Action During Typhoon Ondoy!
• Backpacking through the Sierra Madre Mountains with the new Sharx Pealess Whistle!
• A Chance Meeting...
• Dear Mr. Foxcroft...
• Whistle Me Success
• Fox 40 Whistles Are Bug-free!
• Fox 40 Whistles On Guard for the Royal Netherlands Mounted Police Force
• Fox 40 whistle keeps coyotes at bay!
• Fox 40 Classic Whistle - Always on Duty!
• Fox 40 Whistle works even after being run over!
• Fox 40 Whistle flies on Space Shuttle Atlantis Expedition 15/16 to International Space Station!
• Saving Lives in the Desert
• Thanks Fox 40; great job looking after the ones we love!
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Safety, from the Pool to Classroom...
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Fox 40 in Action During Typhoon Ondoy!
On September 26, 2009, Typhoon Ondoy brought a month's worth of rainfall to Metro Manila in the Philippines and nearby areas in just a few hours, causing severe flooding which resulted in the loss of many lives and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people. Fox 40 was thrilled and humbled to receive this letter from a loyal customer who relied on our whistle during this disaster.
My Fox 40 Micro whistle worked great during the Typhoon Ondoy. I used it to call the attention of my siblings to fetch me (using the makeshift craft made of banana trunks, big plastic gallons and plywood) in the temporary port cause we live far from the highway. The picture [opposite] is my neighbor’s house (20 meters across from ours, where I took the picture) where I always pass by during and after work.
Robert John R. Banzuelo - Product Specialist - Sports Resources Inc. - Manila
More information on the Typhoon:
http://www.typhoonondoy.org/
http://www.google.com/landing/typhoon-ondoy.html
Backpacking through the Sierra Madre Mountains with the new Sharx Pealess Whistle!
We just returned from our trip backpacking through the Sierra Madre Mountains. We tested the Sharx whistle through forests, on mountain passes and along loud rushing rivers and falls. The whistle is incredible; its sound carries easily over a mile. I highly recommend covering your ears when you blow it. The first time I used it my ears rang for several minutes from the intense sound. The sound is also easily localizeable, meaning you instantly know what direction it is coming from. In search and rescue operations this feature is crucial. Thank you for letting me test this fantastic device. I will never go hiking or backpacking without it!
Paul H. Gilwit, M.D. - Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
A Chance Meeting...
I was walking through Place Bonaventure on my way to the station. Usual tourists hanging about. One guy approaches me and says, "Excuse me, are you Roy Green"? I said, "Yes and who are you?" He says, "my name is Don and this is my wife Linda. We're from Oakville [Canada] and we always listened to your show on CHML and watched you on 'CH LIVE. We're great fans and really miss you. Since you left we've stopped listening to CHML, except for your weekend program."
I said the usual stuff and hoped they were enjoying their visit to Montreal.
Then he says, "we thought we recognized your face and knew you'd left Hamilton for Montreal, but what really made us sure is the jacket you're wearing." I'm wearing the Fox 40 Grey Cup jacket. His wife says "yes we know you and Ron Foxcroft are great friends, so when we saw the Fox 40 jacket we were sure you were Roy Green." Then she fishes into her purse and pulls out her keys and there's a Fox 40 whistle on the key chain... and he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small pen knife on a key ring and with the pen knife there's a Fox 40 whistle.
They both asked me to say hello to you and said my show always sounds better when you're on the air. I said "yep, I know! Just like my golf game improves whenever Fox is my partner."
Wow....!
Roy Green - Award-winning journalist and talk-show host - Montreal, Canada
Photo credit: www.630ched.com
Dear Mr. Foxcroft...
We met a few months back at Upper Canada College during an elementary boys basketball game. I was the official at the time and you so graciously offered me a cushioned Fox 40 Mini. You had asked me for my feedback... all I have to say is WOW!!! Honestly, I was the envy of Toronto and York officials. Few officials had the cushion. Now, the numbers have grown. It's comfortable, small, and stay in my mouth. The cushion allows me to bite down on it when I need to and speak!
I am also a physical education teacher for the York Catholic District School Broad. My colleagues love the Fox 40 and now the cushioned mouth grip. They love the comfort and sound of the Mini. I think 50% of my day is spent with a whistle in my mouth between officiating and teaching. So comfort and getting the job done is paramount. I have gone online to order more supplies and frankly I will not even look at another whistle!
Siobhan Wright - Physical Education Teacher
St. Francis Xavier Catholic School, Toronto, Canada
Whistle Me Success
One of my (two) 19-year olds went to the YMCA in Peterborough a month or so ago to see if they needed lifeguards (he's qualified). No, they said, but we need instructors. He asked them to hold the position, found a three-weekend crash course, got that certificate too and the job.
For Christmas I got him his first Fox 40 Classic whistle with a couple of lanyards. Wow was he impressed. "Thanks Dad. That's the only whistle we are allowed to use. This is really great."
Now that I've seen the collection on your website I know what to get him on any/all occasions.
Anton Hart - Toronto, ON Canada
Fox 40 Whistles Are Bug-free!
I received a Fox 40 whistle in my Occupational Health & Safety course 9 years ago. It only recently broke. I was in a rush and bought a cheap whistle at the local "carries everything" store.
I opened the Made in China product, and there was a dead maggot inside. I don't know if it came from the pea inside the whistle, or what. I took it back to the store and they did return my money, but didn't see the problem of a dead maggot in a product they are selling. No sorry, no nothing.
I have already replaced my old Fox 40 with a new one, from MEC [Mountain Equipment Co-op]. I've learned my lesson. Buy Canadian. Buy Fox 40 whistles!
Andrea - Canada
Fox 40 Whistles On Guard for the Royal Netherlands Mounted Police Force
The other day, Fox 40 received a letter in the mail from a new customer in the Netherlands. We'd like to share that letter with you!
Recently, I have become a user of the Fox 40 Whistle. By writing this letter, I would like to share my experiences with you.
Some time ago I transferred from the Royal Netherlands Airforce to the Royal Netherlands Mounted Police Force. One of my duties is to escort convoys of the armed forces from one place to another.
The Fox 40 has a clear and audible sound, which can be heard over a large distance. Almost everyone in the public recognizes the sound. Furthermore, the whistle has a sturdy design and is waterproof, which is very important in my line of business.
I sincerely hope your company will never change the design or make other concessions to the quality of this product. In the event that I might misplace my whistle, I want to be sure that I will be issued a replacement which is as tough and endurable.
Thank you very much for this fine work of quality. Please keep up the good job!
F.A.H. (Folkert) Bergsma - Netherlands
AMAZING STORY OF SURVIVAL!
Alberta Man survives 96 hours trapped in the wild -
Fox 40 whistle keeps coyotes at bay!
Read full story here (ctv.ca)
Listen to CBC "As It Happens" interview with Ken (22:08 - 28:50)
On Jan. 8, Ken Hildebrand of Fort McMurray was collecting animal traps near Livingston Gap, a rural area about 130 kilometres southwest of Calgary, when his ATV rolled over and pinned his leg.
That's where he would remain for the next three nights -- 96 hours in all. He had food, water, and even a first aid kit, but all of them were out of the trapped man's reach.
Making matters worse, a pack of coyotes were just metres away, ready to pounce at Hildebrand and the beaver meat that was rotting next to him.
The only thing keeping them from attacking was a whistle* he blew constantly.
Just when he thought he would die out in the wild, Hildebrand was found by a hiker walking his dog.
* In the CBC interview, Ken mentioned it is a Fox 40 whistle he used - we feel priviledged that our whistle played such an integral part in his courageous ordeal!
Photo credit: CP File Photo
Audio credit: CBC Radio "As it Happens"
Fox 40 Classic Whistle - Always on Duty!
I am a police officer, and tonight, while directing traffic at a Big Ten University sporting event in -2ºF weather, I was once again reminded of why I love my Fox 40 Classic whistle!
After the pre-game traffic detail ended, many of the eighteen officers assigned to the event met in a break room. I heard at least five of those officers complaining that the peas had frozen on their traditional metal whistles. My Fox 40 Classic obviously never had this problem, and it worked as well as on any summer day.
I have been employed at this agency for more than 12 years. During that time, I have had the same whistle dangling from my duty belt, night after night. I have used the whistle to direct traffic, and when I do my patrol on bicycle I use it to perform traffic stops. The whistle is always very loud, and many people have commented on how it has cut through vehicle and stereo noise while they are driving.
Since I have a habit of chewing on the mouthpiece of the whistle while directing traffic, I have almost chewed through the whistle. I expect to have to buy another one soon, but I am very confident that my next whistle should take me through to my retirement. My current whistle is the best $7 I have spent on any equipment in my career here.
Thanks for doing such a great job making such an excellent whistle! I truly appreciate the quality of my Fox 40 Classic!
Christopher Hawk - Police Officer
Fox 40 Whistle works even after being run over!
I am a retired police officer that purchased one of your first “Fox 40” whistles back in the 1980's when they only came in black. I always carried it on an extra ID holder on my belt unless I was I was actively in traffic control when I would clip it in a handier place like my shirt pocket or collar.
After a couple years, I lost the whistle but was lucky enough to find it a couple days later in the road. It had been run over at least once and the clip no longer worked. It was pretty flat but it still worked fine. I got a new ID clip and continued carrying that “Fox 40” until I retired about 15 years later. Together we moved a lot of traffic over the years.
John Lawrence - Retired Police Officer
Fox 40 Whistle flies on Space Shuttle Atlantis Expedition 15/16 to International Space Station!
Crewmember Clay Anderson, who served as flight engineer for the station's fifteenth expedition, personally carried the Fox 40 whistles.
"I have some baseball caps and a referee shirt or two. I was a big college basketball referee — I say 'big', I was big into it," continued Anderson, who also packed for his trip a couple of NBA-regulation referee whistles. Fox 40, which produces the whistles, was reported to have given Anderson four Mini whistles to fly. At least one of those, per the OFK manifest will be returned to the company when Anderson is back on the ground.
Expedition 15 — ISS Official Flight Kit (OFK)
Black Fox 40 Mini Whistle - Foxcroft Corporation, Niagara Falls, NY
Credit: collectspace.com - Shuttle Carries History and Future to Space Station
Click Here to view Certificate!
Saving Lives in the Desert
I would first like to thank you for creating the Fox 40. Over the years It has saved the asses of both myself and my students many times over and I recommend nothing else.
I am a guide in the desert southwest teaching survival among other subjects. I am getting ready to have printed a product called the Desert Bandanna. Basically a survival book printed on a large piece of muslin. The idea being not only can you use the bandanna as such but when things go wrong there is pertinent information printed on it to keep you alive. This is very important in an area where on average a dozen or more hikers die every year; some only yards from a trail. Most recently was the body of a young man found two days ago just off a trail with a water bottle and a broken leg. A Fox 40 whistle may have saved his life. In the course of my classes I teach that the four most important items to carry from the Basic 10 Essentials list are:
Water. There is no such thing as having enough water in the desert.
Something to cut with. A good quality knife with the Ontario type 499 survival knife recommended.
Something to make a fire with: lighters, matches, a boy scout.
and something to signal with. A cell phone. Of course being a desert we have large areas of no coverage here so they don't always work. On the other hand a whistle... The Fox 40 is recommended and I carry two on my pack and one on my keys, no BS. My climbing partners and I also use the Fox to signal to each other. Climb, belay, off belay, etc.
I would like to include a reference to the Fox 40 on the bandanna. The reason is simple. No other whistle can be heard when blown weakly by an injured person. My primary goal is to make sure that people playing in the desert have the right tools to survive and get help. To me that means a Fox 40 for signaling. Anything else is unacceptable.
"DeRanger" Steve
Eco and Adventures Tours in the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts
Thanks Fox 40; great job looking after the ones we love!
In August of this year (2008), my youngest son Brady and I decided to go fishing at one of his favorite coves near our cottage. Not wanting to join us, my eldest son Kenny instead chose to try some wakeboarding with some friends a mile from our fishing spot. When Brady and I arrived in our fishing cove we got excited about the possibility of realing in some Perch, Pike and Bass as Ken and his friends were off enjoying themselves.
As time went by things got a little quieter as there were no motors to be heard. I started to get a little concerned. Then, there was a solid sound - a piercing pitch of a Fox 40 Micro Whistle, which was attached to my son’s life jacket. Brady and I pulled in the anchor to go see what the problem was (I knew something was wrong because I taught my kids to use this whistle only if they were in trouble). As we neared the cove another boat from the docks came flying past in response to the rescue and towed them back to home base.
Simply boat trouble, thank God nothing more.
The Fox 40 Whistle did it’s job that it was set out to do!
Sincerely Matt Bell & Family, Stoney Creek, ON, Canada
• POLICE • FIREFIGHTERS • SEARCH & RESCUE • REFEREEING • COACHING • PERSONAL SAFETY • CAMPING •
• STUDENTS • OUTDOOR • CROSSING GUARD • CHILD SAFETY • SPORTS TEAMS • HUG-A-TREE • BIKING • HUNTING •
• SURVIVAL • CAMPING • HOSPITAL WORKERS • MARINE SAFETY • LIFEGUARDS • DOG/BIRD TRAINING • GUIDES •
• COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS • TRAFFIC CONTROL • DRUM MAJOR • ELDERLY SAFETY • BOMB DISPOSAL • SCUBA DIVING •
