Erin, Ont. man competes with best friend on the Amazing Race Canada

Erin man competes in The Amazing Race Canada John Ferguson was born with dwarfism and hopes to smash stereotypes while competing on TV. Colton Wiens reports.

John Ferguson is back in his hometown of Erin, Ont. after competing in season 10 of the Amazing Race Canada on CTV.

Two episodes have already aired on CTV, but Ferguson said he won't be tuning in.

“I do not like watching myself after I’m recorded. Which is ironic, because I make videos for a living,” Ferguson said.

Born with Achondroplasia Dwarfism, Ferguson has faced many challenges. He said growing up in a place like Erin was a good thing, as seemingly everyone in town knew who he was.

“Erin was the best place to grow up for somebody who is different. I mean, we’re all different in our own ways, don’t get me wrong. But Erin really brought me in, everyone treated me so well,” Ferguson said.

Ferguson is already a bit of a celebrity in his own right. His day job is posting comedic videos on social media. He said it was at McMaster University when he realized he could make a career out of it.

“I was hiding in a washing machine, and I decided to scare one of my good friends. I scared him really well, so well that it got over 20 million views on vine,” Ferguson said.

Ferguson has been making funny videos for about five years now, and has lived in Los Angeles and Ohio to do so. He said an Amazing Race Canada casting director reached out in October. Once he determined it wasn’t a spam message, he had to pick a teammate. At first, Ferguson considered asking another little person to compete with him.

“I do love being with my fellow little people. I love showcasing our physical and mental capabilities. However, having Connor on there, having the 6’2” handsome young Hollister model on there, I think that was the best choice for me,” Ferguson said.

He picked Connor Carroll. Ferguson and Carroll became best friends during their time at McMaster University. Carroll grew up in Pickering, and is now a lawyer in Toronto, but jumped at the chance to compete.

“I was pumped when he called me. I think we made a pretty good team out there,” Carroll said.

In episode two, Carroll said the unique size differences of him and Ferguson kind of helped.

“I threw John on my back and ran us to the finish line. So maybe it helped us, maybe it saved us a few minutes, I don’t know. But we definitely brought our own strengths and weaknesses,” Carroll said.

Since the show went to air, Ferguson has been mulling around his hometown and has been getting messages from high school friends and teachers.

“A lot of them have actually recently hit me up after the race aired and said ‘oh my gosh, after you were doing all your crap during math class, I never thought that I’d be seeing you on my TV on national television.’ Well, sorry Mrs. Watson, but here I am,” Ferguson said.

The best friends are still in the competition. You can follow their journey Tuesday nights on CTV.