Jumping into an online community

Newfoundlanders share their passions over Youtube

Curtis Lynch hadn’t touched Pokémon trading cards for more than two decades before a chance encounter in January brought him crashing back into that world.

The 34-year-old from South River was shopping at a local grocery store in January when a stranger asked if he wanted a box of Pokemon cards. Lynch didn’t know the man, but said he would trade some hockey cards for them.

It was an Elite Trainer box with eight packs, and as soon as Lynch opened them he was sucked into a time machine.

“I thought this was amazing and it brought me right back to 1999,” he said.

That fateful encounter led down a road he wasn’t always going to go down. That box led him to Youtube, where he discovered an entire community of Pokémon people sharing their love through videos.

In turn, that led him to start his own channel — Bazel02gaming — and rediscover a world he had left for more than two decades ago.

“I love doing what I’m doing,” he said.

Lynch’s channel is up to 950 subscribers, which is nine times what he thought he would get with just six months of videos under his belt.

“This is gone beyond what I thought it could be,” he said.

For more than 15 years, Youtube has allowed people to share their fandoms and interact with others from that community all over the world.

Outlets like Twitch, Tiktok and Facebook Live have come along to help with that.

Chris Ballard is another sharing his passion on the internet. He has always been a bit of a collector. In the past, he has collected signed baseballs and other pieces of sports memorabilia.

So, when the pandemic hit, he figured he could use his extra time to collect video games. More specifically, he could start collecting every hockey video game that has ever been made. In total, there are about 300 titles across all gaming platforms.

Ballard also thought he could use the time to pick up some new tricks, mainly video editing, and start a Youtube channel to document his new collection.

“I just kind of dove in with both feet,” he said.

With that decision, Puck Hunt Gaming was born. The first episode debuted on June 11 and he has released new episodes sporadically ever since.

In the eight episodes Ballard has done, he’s done some of the more common Youtube video archetypes. He has done a couple of lists, shown off his game room and filmed an unboxing video.

“I’m more of a build it and they will come,” he said of his attitude about expanding the channel.

Each time, he learns something new about shooting and editing, and what works for him in that space.

They give him a chance to learn something new that may help him with his day job as the voice of the Newfoundland Growlers.

Perhaps more importantly, they give him the chance to share an important piece of himself with the world. As nervous as that may make him at times, it’s been worth it, he says.

“I get to collect the stuff I like to collect. I get to have fun and I get to share that with other people who have similar interests,” said Ballard.

Steve Healey is probably the most established of the trio. The owner of Card Break NL, he’s been shooting card break videos since 2016 and has since garnered a sizeable audience.

Each of his breaks sells out rather quickly and there is always rabid interest in the next one. Sometimes, people will watch a break even though they weren’t able to buy into them.

“I did it out of love for the hobby,” Healey said.

When Healey started shooting, he did some stuff on Youtube before focusing on Facebook Live and through this own website. Since starting, he’s worked with all the major sports trading card companies.

The online community in this province was nonexistent then and, as someone in at the ground floor, he is excited to see what it has become.

“I feel pretty lucky to get in when I did,” said Healey. “I’m glad I got to see it all.”

It has given him a chance to interact with other collectors around the province and the world. Each time a good card gets pulled, he is happy for the person who will get it, and that enthusiasm comes through on his videos.

It also allowed him to make a living and support his family.

“It is a wonderful thing,” said Healey.

Even though each of these individuals finds themselves at various stages of the Youtube experience, they’ve found a community that is welcoming and supportive.

It is a group that pushes them to make more content and keeps them interested in sharing their little slice of fandom with the world.

“I’m not going to stop doing it, because it is so much fun,” said Lynch.