Jason Yocum never encountered any assignment like this in his days at the University of Cincinnati: How to Move Gorillas 101.

But that's just what the Cleves resident had to figure out when he appeared on Monster Garage, an hourlong Discovery Channel show.

Monster Garage is like the MacGyver of reality TV. A team of five has a limited amount of time, money and supplies to build some kind of super-powered machinery. However, while MacGyver turned clothespins and can openers into bombs, Monster Garagers have to revamp a semi into a motorcycle.

In "Episode 43: Gorillamobile," Yocum's team had to transform a Toyota Tundra pickup truck into a vehicle that can safely move gorillas. Because the San Francisco Zoo will be given the finished product, it's the first Monster Garage design that will be used in the real world.

Team members had a big task ahead of them. Gorillas, which weigh between 200 and 400 pounds, need to be handled with care during transport. The climate-controlled cage needed to be picked up off the ground and lifted into the back of a truck at the push of a button. And the team had to create a special passenger area for celebrity gorilla Koko, who likes to ride shotgun. Plus, all of this had to be gorilla-proof.

The winning idea came to Yocum, 27, while in the bathroom at the hotel after the first day of taping.

His plan? To lift the cage with hydraulic arms, kind of like garbage trucks that pick up Dumpsters.

At the end of five 12-hour days, the team had a finished product - only they didn't know whether it would work.

"We knew the cage would get off the truck, but we didn't know if it would go back on," Yocum said.

It did.

Each team member received about $3,500 in Mac tools. They also got the satisfaction of appearing on the only reality show where somebody doesn't get married, cheat on a lover or eat animal intestines.

But Yocum received so much more.

For him, it was validation.

"The best part about this whole experience is that it will allow people to see what I can do," he said.

Yocum was just another average student in mechanical engineering until about his junior year, when classes became more specialized. He fell in love with design, and his GPA started to rise.

But since graduating in 2002, Yocum hasn't worked in his field.

Instead, he is a foreman and service technician at Perfection Lawn and Landscape in Melbourne. Someday, he wants to build custom off-road vehicles.

"Hopefully I'll own my own company someday," he said - before retracting that statement.

"Not hopefully - I will."

In the meantime, he chased after the appearance on Monster Garage so he could showcase his full education.

"There are a lot of engineers who can't operate a welder, but they can design a skyscraper," he said. "But I really can do it all, from designing things to building them."

Even with just 60 minutes of fame, Yocum is still a prime example of the young, vibrant and educated professionals who make up the creative class in Cincinnati.

The creative class, which has been under attack lately by politicians and other columnists, isn't limited to artists and eclectic, bohemian types. Sure, it includes cutting-edge performers, like those in the Know Theatre Tribe, and musicians, like the amazing Abiyah.

But then there's someone like Yocum, who is equally creative - just with complex designs and precise calculations, wrenches and sockets.

Yocum proves his creativity by demonstrating he is willing to chase his dream, even if that means bringing it to a reality TV show.

"To me, the show was more fun than anything. It wasn't like a long-term goal," Yocum said, grinning. "But someday - someday everyone will see what I can accomplish."

E-mail mdowns@enquirer.com