A Penticton aviation student is one step closer to claiming the title of Maxim Cover Girl Canada.
Brandi Hansen, student pilot at Penticton’s BP Aviation Ltd., has made it to the semi-finals of the online contest, which will award one model a featured spread in Maxim Magazine and a cash prize of $10,000. There are currently 12 groups of nine models in the semi-finals, and once online voting wraps up on June 13, the top model from each group will go head to head for votes in the finals.
“I didn’t think I’d make it this far at all. I never aspired to be a model … so for me to do something like this is completely out of character and I’m out of my element in it,” said Hansen. “But it’s for the greater good, so I just entered it on a whim.”
Hansen decided to take a different approach as a model contestant, submitting photos of herself in the outdoors, flying a plane, fishing and doing other activities she and her family enjoy. She also did not want to submit photos of herself that were half-naked or scantily clad, but she does not knock the other models who did.
“I’m one of the only contestants that is fully-clothed, with outdoor photos doing all the things I normally do. That’s me in my element – doing archery, biking, hunting, flying planes, fishing and there’s no Photoshop or magic, it’s just me,” said Hansen. “I’m not knocking other women, they’re on their own journeys. But I’m just trying to demonstrate that you can pioneer your own path and still be successful.”
READ MORE: Penticton pilot-in-training on board with becoming Maxim cover girl
Furthermore, Hansen has decided that if she wins, she will use $8,0000 of the prize money to sponsor four scholarships called the Higher, Further, Faster Scholarship for girls under the age of 18 with their Fixed Wing Private Pilot Licence who want to attain their Commercial Pilot Licence. She will be directing the remaining $2,000 to a BCSARA search and rescue group of her choice.
When she first learned her application to the contest had been accepted, she admits that she initially panicked. Ultimately, her daughter inspired her and the opportunity to make a difference for other young girls is why she chose to stay in the contest.
“I just entered a couple of outdoorsy photos thinking ‘Why not?’ … I kind of forgot about it and I just thought Maxim thought ‘Who does that girl think she is?’ and then a week later I recieved a message saying to check my dashboard because I had been hand-selected to participate in the competition,” said Hansen. “I actually emailed them and said to please remove my profile because I didn’t actually believe it was going to go through and I kind of panicked. After much consideration, I decided I was going to go through with it to my own liking.”
Hansen said she’s had conversations with her daughter about the girls and women featured on magazine covers, and wants to prove to her that you don’t have to “follow the crowd” to be successful in life, and that beauty does not always earn you success either.
“It doesn’t matter what we look like, it’s what’s inside that counts. And as we age, looks get less relevant,” said Hansen. “So it’s really important to focus on things other than attractiveness.”
To view the models in the semi finals for Maxim Cover Girl and to vote for Brandi Hansen, click here.
To report a typo, email: editor@pentictonwesternnews.com.
<>Jordyn Thomson | Reporter
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