A few weeks ago, I had heard some rumors about me. I’m never one to beat around the bush so I decided to confront the guy who I thought may be the source. Come to find out, it was all a big misunderstanding and there was no issue. But this guy said something that has stuck with me ever since. “Thanks for talking to me about this. It’s refreshing. It seems like I am surrounded by nothing but cowards lately”
At first, I felt sorry for him because I am fortunate enough to be surrounded by so many wonderful people on a daily basis. But once I peered outside my circle, I started to notice what he was talking about. I guess it happens everywhere but I haven’t noticed it around me in a very long time. An average day in my world usually consists of nothing more than bikes, beers, and best friends
It is inevitable that life will occasionally get heavy and it gives you an opportunity to see things from a different angle. Last week I was heading to Flagstaff for a little fall riding in the hills. My phone rang just as I was pulling in to the trail head. It was my sister informing me of a death in the family. Stunned, I hung up the phone. There was a bike in front of me, the air was cool and crisp, and I already had my shoes on. I did the only thing I knew to do, I rode. I rode so hard that my legs blew up after only two hours. After a solid session of singletrack therapy, I coasted back to the car and went to go find my friends.
I recruited two of my closest friends to hit the town with me on a Monday night, I needed a drink. As the evening progressed, I toasted and celebrated the life of a great man. We ran into the infamous Goldmember and we shot the shit about everything from Mexico to how special east coast, immigrant families are to us. That guy gets it. Then, just as we made the move from cheap wine to good tequila, a coward reared his ugly head. Some guy who I would never be able to pick out of a crowd said to me:
“I’m glad Big Jonny got hit by that car. He deserved it, he was probably drunk”
Full stop. How I acted after those words were said may have been an over reaction or even juvenile but at the end of the day, I look out for my friends like family. I don’t regret it, and now I have to deal with the blow back. Like this e-mail I got the next day:
“The next time you show your little bitch face around Flag you’d better watch your back”
Noted, but this all seems so silly and trivial to me after the past few days. Before I got my bad news, this was shaping up to be a weekend of epic proportions. The plan was to go to a concert with my friend Turkey, who I met through this site. Then drive through the night to El Paso and do a 12 hour race put on by a guy that I also met through DC. It was also going to be my buddy MG’s first mountain bike race. I met MG a couple years ago through friends of this site. Are you starting to see the pattern here?
Instead, I’m sitting in a cabin in upstate New York without a bike for six days. Miserable, because I left in too much of a hurry to pack one. A member of the bike29 crew that I met in Ireland jumped in to save the day. They offered to lend me a bike without hesitation and to give me a tour of the trails around Waterbury, VT. I snuck away from the family for a day and rode some sweet Vermont singletrack, it was just what I needed. I would never have this connection without knowing 40 Hands. And I never would have met 40 without being a part of this web site.
I want to take this opportunity to thank all of you for making this amazing family what it is. We would be nothing without each and every one of you around the globe. When cowards and haters make noise, we shut them up. When one of us stumbles or suffers a loss, we get their back. When it is Us vs. Them we look out for each other. I wish all cycling communities were like this.
It all leaves me searching for words. Bikes are cool, but they are just a gateway to what really matters. The amazing people that ride them. My glass is raised to you, friends. Thanks again.
keep it dirty…
so proud of u internet drunks . .
Rabidlocal wins “Toughest Guy on the Internet”- wonder if he’s willing to say his name.
…trailer park cyclist…no need to return that ellipsis, amigo…
…it was used in support of one of our own & therefor it was put to good use…
…i’m sure ‘rabid lowlife’ is a badass legend in his own mind ‘cuz he’s willing to take on all us pussies but he’s so over the top, it doesn’t really matter…
…truth is, even his friends are gonna look at his shit some day & go, “dude, why are you always acting like a dick ???…it ain’t bad-ass, it’s just stupid-ass shit…wake the fuck up !!!”…
…maybe he’ll get it, maybe he won’t but i’m betting there’s a ‘rude awakening’ waiting for him somewhere down the road…
Awesome!!
LJs been so quiet, but now we have, (Tadaah!!), RabbitLoco!
All together,
‘Lighten up, Francis II’
Rabid Local,
Tell us your real name, bro! Sounding pretty tough here, so let us know who you really are.
Rabid Local was born a poor albino step child.
Yes, everyone “standing in line to back someone up”, everyone talking about kick’in ass, everyone calling someone else a coward, please post your real name, photo and address, then you’all can sort this out.
Let the slap fighting begin!!!
I don’t want to know his real name. Don’t want to “meet” to sort it out. He doesn’t sound like the kind of guy I want to waste my time on. In fact, having given him this much attention kind of makes me feel like it’s time to end this conversation.
D2, don’t ruin it. We could have a modern day “The Quick and The Dead” if we can just get all the killers to come out.
Funny thing is that I know who you are Rabid Local, add to that I know who said “I’m glad Big Jonny got hit by that car. He deserved it, he was probably drunk”
I made two phone calls and found out both of your names, and I still cant believe it. What happened to you guys?
Boys.
I am here to kick ass and chew bubble gum.
And I’m all outta bubble gum.
Wait. No I’m not. I still have a pack.
OK. Wait here. I’ll be right back. Don’t start the fight without me K ?
I wonder if he doesn’t like Pistol Pete, who travels the world to ride trails.
Met him a year or so ago in my neck of the woods, Fullerton, CA, getting ready to hit the train before he rolled to LAX to go to Ausie land for SSWC. That is a rider if I’ve ever seen one. Steel bike, and all he had for gears with all that weight he was carrying, was one of those Surly double cogs.
I wish I had a car to get to some of the trails, with my Aluminum Guerciotti cross bike. I wish I could move too, but that takes money and finding a new job so I’m kinda of stuck here in CA. Oh yeah the girlie, who I love, makes more money than I do, and let’s me live my dream daily sacrificing the level of comfort she would like, so it seems kind of wrong since we’ve been together for so many years to ask her to just pack up and leave. So I guess it really isn’t a choice if I take others in to consideration for how much they sacrifice to keep me happy.
Damn I wasn’t going to get into this pissing match, but couldn’t hold my breath anymore.
“Dirty” sorry for your loss Everyone else keep your friends’ back in real life, keep the rubber side down, ride on, ride hard, ride whatever the fuck makes you happy, and remember if you ever get lost go uphill so that way when you figure out which way to go it’s all down hill.
“mitch@ 29 – thanks for the well wishes. nobody, however much disliked, should be “wished” to be hit by a car. fuck you.”
Rabid, buddy, pal. You’re reading into what I said with an awfully guilty conscience. At no point did I wish anything upon you. Go do something productive with your hate and spew on Lances blog or terrorize the local methheads.
In any event, do your best to represent Boulder, CO. It’s a fine town.
We all have our anonymity here. Let Rabid have his, even if he is a douche. No one needs to know where he lives or who he is.
I have not spent the time to read all the comments, so sorry if I am restating something. But my wife was diagnosed with cancer this past February and our friends circled to support us like no one’s business. Our friends are as close (if not closer) than blood and I will stand toe to toe for any of them. I am sorry for your family’s loss, but hopefully you will find some extra strength in the support of your friends. They know that you will provide them strength when they are in a time of need.
Wait a minute: you mean all you guys are using fake names? I wondered about that. I just figured your parents were hippies or mad scientists or weirdos. Me, I’m Tim Joe Comstock, the Trailer Park Cyclist. Anything you ever hear me say, I’ll back up. Oh, Crap, does this mean Judi is a fake name too? Fuck! Thank God I gave up on reality a long time ago.
Applause Tim Joe Comstock!
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I have now heard both sides of the story and they do not mesh.
“I have now heard both sides of the story and they do not mesh.”
He said She said.
How it works.
I’d bet next months rent that db is the “He” in this situation.
No offense judi.
Awesome frames Steve, If I had shit loads of money I’d order one.
Sadly, living down here in Hobbiton that’s not going to happen.
However, (insert catch phrase here), “I Believe Dirty”.
You guys rock. Thanks so much for all the positive energy. I hope each and every one of you have a great weekend of riding (even the haters)…
See you out there. Enjoy the ride.
OK. bj just tweeted that he had a vasectomy yesterday.
Does that mean pics are soon to follow ?
Cause if so I’m throwing this laptop out the window.
Have a great ride db. Snowing like a mofo here in NJ so I’m hunkered down for the weekend. Ride one and drink one for me.
Nah, I’ll save you the horror of visual imagery. Suffice to say I am sitting around doing pretty much nothing.
I remember years ago, when vasectomies were a bit more major surgery than they are now, a friend being advised to put a small pack of frozen peas in his undies to reduce the swelling.
He was advised not to use mixed vegetables because the diced carrots had sharp edges & could be uncomfortable.
Needless to say, the pub went hysterical when he passed this advice on.
Mrs. Joe hit menopause afew years ago. We doan’ need no steenkin’ vasectomy.
Downside: Mrs Joe, going through the change. Joe’s kid, pms. The two of them at once. The horror. The horror.
Mitch @63: Boulder? WTF, Dude? The Rabid Yokel ain’t there; not in the People’s Republic of Boulder. Come on, man! Most everyone here has a handle or alias. When you start trying to track people down, things are going to another level. I don’t think you (we) want to go there. Relax!
this whole thing should have been settled (or maybe it was) with a “bro off”
SUP BRO?
trust me elgruppo, me no track nobody. didn’t need to. i don’t even have time for shinnanigans like that. info flows fast on these here intertubes. besides, nobody is truly anon and some just need to be reminded of that when brandishing the keyboard shield.
peace.
WOOOOOOT! BJ got a vasectomy. i bet your wife is pretty stoked. birth control sucks. hormones are the worst. dominic had his when he was 22. that pretty much sealed the deal for me.
Don’t get so excited, he could still pass along a case of the clap or crabs if he had it. If he does have it, he probably deserved it cause he almost certainly got it while drunk…
This all, about shit talk and a sucker punch. Nice!
uh oh, sounds like the truth has been revealed…someone threw a sucker punch but couldn’t admit to it…lol
” How I acted after those words were said may have been an over reaction or even juvenile “
THIS JUST IN: An elite cadre of undercover trailer park journalists were THERE! and captured the entire confrontation ON LIVE VIDEO!
WARNING: This video contains content not suitable for the faint of heart.
Sorry, DB, time for the TRUTH!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOGWbzUM-y8
…“…i know you are but what am i…infinity…”…
…doesn’t get any deeper than that…
…thanks, btw, trailer park cyclist…somebody hadda make sense of all this…
Thanks Trailer park! now you owe me a beer cause that Ska Mexican Logger just went through my nose. good stuff..nothing else really matters today because i just got a new bike. Lights are charged and I’m heading to the mountain http://twitpic.com/7902u4
booo ya
Don’t thank me, thank Gnome. He phoned in the report. (Re-watch clip @ 0:30)
Whatever dirty, you can’t play the victim in your little bar altercation. Countless times I’ve seen you drunk, starting shit with somebody or talking shit to somebody. What goes around comes around and you sure can dish it out but you can’t take it. You’re a visitor when you’re in Flag, remember that.
Awesome, this one is 88 responses before the Troll crawls out from under its rock!
Not to mention that it’s all Flagstaff, locals rule.
Fuckwit.
Ummmm…I like turtles. Just sayin’.
Turtles are cool, forgiving & peaceful creatures Joe, thanks for reminding us.
…no nads…i mean, ‘no, nads…don’t stir up more shit !!!’…
…just sayin’…
Actually, I didn’t like this post from the start. Dirty deserves our sympathy for his personal loss and this post showed he was having a great deal of trouble in a tough time.
Lashing out certainly happens in tough times and can be easily ignored and forgiven. Assaulting someone is obviously a bad move and beyond juvenile.
Now we have Nad, getting right down to one of the major points, being a drunken shit starter. Being a drunkcyclist sounds fun enough, I generally don’t drink and ride at the same time. Just being an angry, obnoxious drunk at the local bar (especially in a small town) is nothing but a pain in everyone else’s ass. Do it enough times and you’ll get served.
WOW!
So everyone- let’s see if I can bring us all together as one big loving cyclist family and at the same time motivate us to represent in a better manner?
How many of us have heard some fuckstick say “Cyclists are a bunch of pussies” or “Give me a break, cycling is not a real sport”. EVERY ONE OF US. Has it pissed us all off? YES
Now, let’s go back and look at a vast majority of the responses to this post. Don’t we as ‘cyclists’ look like a bunch of pussies slinging shit at each other over the Interweb?
Bottom Line- Someone suffered a loss. In trying to make sense of the loss and gain comfort by riding his bike and throwing back a few, another individual who probably had no idea of Dirty’s loss (or perhaps he did catch wind of it at this establishment and still decided to make the comment about Big Jonny), decided to throw salt on Dirty’s emotional wounds. Yes, how one could wish for someone to ‘deserve’ pain, suffering and a changed life upon someone is unfathomable.
HOWEVER, then the responses turn to people bleeding into their tampon (no sexist degradation intended Judi) and chest beating over who built/maintained what trails, whose ‘hood is better than another’s, and then degrading into suggestions of sleeping with another’s wife (I’m hoping it was prior to the marriage, if it actually did happen and if it did, keep the shit to yourself).
Look at this/us! This only fuels to the fucking hatred fire of noncyclists/individuals who propose that we are all a bunch of whiny pussies who participate in an activity that isn’t a ‘true sport’.
I’ve never met a single one of you personally. HOWEVER, I consider every one of you a ‘friend’ because of the (supposition) that you are all fans of cycling as an activity and a SPORT.
Can we possibly show some solidarity and humanity here and put this to rest? I don’t believe in censorship, but possibly the admins of this site need to consider deleting or invisibly archiving this particular entry and comments.
I was done with this as well until Nads chimed in…
Apparenly, Nads is incapable of getting to know somebody. Given the “countless times (he has) seen (dirty) drunk”… He hasn’t a clue about the man.
Dirty is an everyone’s friend kind of guy. He judges nobody and lays all his cards on the table. Which is probably why he reacted the way he did to somebody full of hate. Eradicate Hate.
As it turns out, he is the only one who is man enough to acknolwedge what he did was wrong in a public forum before anyone even had the chance to accuse him. I guess this is what Nads considers “playing the victim”.
Something else for these small minded persons to consider: If you’re going to open your mouth and pull a punch, you better be ready to receive it. Then consider it a lesson learned and move on. You asked for it and you got it.
Neither should have done what they did, 2 negatives don’t make a positive, and more negatives don’t get anyone any closer to winning that big prize of nothing.
So go ride you bikes.
Jeezum Christmas, what are some of you guys, 12?
Don’t know you, know Flag in many disparate peripheral ways that would likely bore you. Love it anyway, jealous that those of you who do, get to live there.
Grow the hell up and at least try to act like an adult.
Wow.
As for what Mitch said about Dirty? Yep, to a T.
“average day in my world usually consists of nothing more than bikes, beers, and best friends” you are so blessed to have this. Loneliness can sap energy and cause hope loss, but some of us can persevere. Been cold here in NH lately, and I had no idea that you were only an hour away. I know those trails in Stowe – some of the best in the northeast. Did you talk to the guy from Irie Cycles? Great scene up there, but if you want to live in Stowe, you gotta be old family or uber-rich.
More to life than Flagstaff… absolutely right. And for me, more to life than Tucson, where my anger at systemic failure grows, my only outlet to ride back and forth across the auto-centric wastes.
An average day for me, lately, involves wrenches, mud, and wet cold feet… and then the saving grace – a fine woodstove and a glass of Irish whiskey or wine. Methodist Hill Road is one hell of an ass kicker climb, something that makes everything in Seattle seem easy. It’s steep and bumpiest in the steepest parts, and on my only current bike (yes, down to ONE BIKE) an aluminum M2 with ancient tubular wheels, I hang on tight over those bumps coming back down, another day of not getting finished at maintenance camp: A field full of old rigs, two of them now mine. My arms are getting stronger than my legs, relatively. Chicken fat on my cut up knuckles is like slaking desert thirst. Friends… forgetting what it’s like to have them. Someday might I get some again? I seem to think that clawing my way out of this situation will I find myself open to that. There’s snow on the ground, and the sun shines today. It is so much better for me than 110 degree heat. I’m in NH now, got new carharts with double knees.
Oh yeah, forgot to mention that I removed, rebuilt, and re-installed a C6 automatic transmission in my F250. You never want to have to do that.
I never want to as much as pull a dipstick. God, how I hate working on cars. Thank God I have someone to do that whom I trust.