BJ has always been oversized in both frame and personality. At the age of three, BJ was 6ft 7in tall, and although he shrunk to 4ft 11in two years later, he was named Tallest Taranaki Child for 12 consecutive years. BJ has played at a representative level for Taranaki in various sports including bowls, tiddly winks, kabbadi and three day eventing. Eventing was a particular challenge due to a lack of horses of a sufficient size to accommodate BJ's oversized frame.

BJ's facial hair is similarly overcharged. Modern razors have particular difficulty cutting through the thick hairs that populate BJ's face. This means that even the sharpest razors are only able to cut the thinner tips off the end of BJ's facial hair, leaving him with a permanent beard, but only of a couple of millimetres in length.

BJ once competed against the Stratford Glockenspiel Clock for the title of Most Exciting Thing Ever to Come From the Taranaki. BJ defeated the Clock in the first round, but lost out to the Hawera Water Tower in the Semi Final. BJ was highly disappointed and subjects the tower to a stream of invective whenever he drives back to the Taranaki.