After eight weeks and more than 20 difficult challenges, Albertan oil rigger Ted Coffey has won the title of "Canada's Greatest Know-It-All."
Over the course of eight episodes recorded in the Hamilton, Ont. area last summer, ten competitors chosen from thousands of applicants applied their skills and knowledge in tests of problem-solving, leadership, co-operation and strategic thinking.
When the Discovery Channel series' finale aired Monday night, it was finally revealed that Coffey had come out on top.
Talking about his newly-acquired bragging rights on CTV's Canada AM Tuesday, the 57-year-old oil and gas industry consultant said he feels good, but not smug.
"You look around and you think anybody in the room could have won it," Coffey said, recalling the moment when he was named winner of the show.
"You're wondering how much is luck and how much is fate."
Considering that he was a Grade 9 dropout, one might be forgiven for assuming Coffey was never destined to to be named the biggest know-it-all in Canada.
While he didn't graduate from high school, it wasn't for lack of interest. In fact, during those student days Coffey so enjoyed hanging out at the university library that he missed lots of his high school classes.
As a result, the school suspended him for truancy. But rather than stay away from school, Coffey began turning up for all his classes with all his schoolwork dutifully complete. It was too late, however, as the audacity of his return so infuriated the school administration he was expelled altogether.
Reflecting on that formative experience, Coffey says he's still unsure whether it's been a help or a hindrance.
"The only thing I've ever had going for me is I've got a really good memory," he said.
"I just tend to remember things, so that was my only real ace in the hole."
Coffey said the hardest part of the competition was never knowing what the next contest would entail.
"Trying to adapt on the spur of the moment, that was the biggest challenge," he told CTV News Calgary.
Indeed, it's unlikely anyone could do anything to prepare even if they had known what was in store ahead of time.
For instance, competitors had to build a cardboard structure that could withstand hurricane-force winds; extract replica human bones from blocks of ice and then reassemble them into an anatomically correct skeleton; and even build a giant trebuchet to play a unique game of "Trojan Basketball."
And now that he's recognized as a champion know-it-all, Coffey's not afraid to admit he's still got lots to learn.
His stint on the show, which he pursued at his wife's encouragement, has left him with at least one life lesson.
"It's okay to show emotion, that was the biggest thing I learned," he told Canada AM, describing himself as someone who has kept his emotions under wraps most of his life.
But he still knows his limits.
"This was probably a one-time shot for me," he said, laughing. "I don't like cameras!"
As for his new bragging rights, which Coffey says come with a title that he's always considered derogatory, he's proud of what he's achieved.
"A know-it-all is not something you really want to be called, but maybe we can change the meaning of that term."
If you think you have what it takes to be the biggest "Know-It-All" in the country, you have until April 15 to apply for a spot in the series' second season.
