[sm=vader.gif]

I see your Shwartz is as Big as mine.........

 

Mike, not going to turn this into a flame war but.....until you have been in this situation you really can't tell me that I am hitting below the belt. I don't know this guy, but I know a lot of people just like him....hell I was in a year of rehab with a few of them. You may not have givin him any cash...but I bet you some have. Trust me, there are always companies willing to give cash and equipment/gifts just to get their name on the final "I did it" story...notice the mention of his bike sponsor in his post? Did the guy with arthritis trying to complete the same race get free bikes and training? Nope. See, what you don't know about me was that before I got sick I was a year or two from turning pro in either bowling or bass fishing, I was doing both on a semi-pro level for years and had a lot of options. I was hammered in the hospital by companies wanting to give me fee stuff in order to get their name attached to my career....I took the blue collar approach and busted my azz on my own on my path to recovery. As did 90% of the people in rehab with me that had to work in order to survive while they recovered. IMO this is more inspirational to the kids I coach than saying hey..look at this new boat that Ranger gave me while I as in rehab. So call me cold or a dik, but until you are in this situation, as I was you can't cast a valid opinion. Of course I congradulate this kid in his accomplishments but the fact of the matter is that he will never have to work a day in whatever time he has remaining, while there are thousands of people in hospitals around the country that are losing their homes because they can't even get their insurance to cover their bills....just because they can't run in a marathon?

 

I don't think you're a dik. This isn't about the sponsorship. You say you inspire the kids you coach, which is great, but what if you had the chance to inspire 1000 kids, or 10,000 kids more. Wouldn't you take it? I understand 100% what you mean, BUT, the point here is you are assuming that he is doing this for the fame and money.

You have to understand something here. He did not have any sponsorship when he started training for the first Ironman he did a few months ago. He did it on his own. The sponsors, as you said, came to him, AFTER he was already training for this. He was all set to put himself through this competition. That's when people started learning about his story and came saying hey, you want this and this and that? I think most people out there would say yes, sure. You didn't do that. I understand why,and maybe i'm wrong, but you didn't want to give people the impression that you could be bought, or use you for their own financial gains. Of course, I understand that. BUT, Brian wants to inspire as many people as he can, so whether they use him for profit or not is not the point, the point is he can use them to get his story out there and inspire people.

The way you make it sound is like he's this bad person and looking for money. I mean just you incinuating I gave him money is totally wrong. He never asked me for anything. Right there, that shows me you are assuming it's all about money. That's why I got upset. I don't need to pay people to be my friend, and you thought maybe he came to me looking for money or whatever, but he didn't.

My point is, why do you have to assume it's all about the money for him or talk down about his accomplishments? What do you have against the kid? Step back and look at it from a different perspective.

Yes, you are right, there are other people in the world that have it worse or just as bad, but ya know what, does that mean he is supposed to keep is story a secret and not do some good int he world because others can't as well? That makes no sense. Why put someone down that is trying to help inspire people? Why would you do that?

This isn't about money dude, it's not about sponsorship, it's about someone being proud of himself because of what he accomplished, and wanting to help others. So, you tell me, what is so wrong about that? You keep turning it into YOU YOU YOU, well dude, sorry to sound like a dik, but gues what, This isn't about you. This is about him ok? You had it rough too, I know that, but c'mon dude,why are you comparingeverything to your situation? It's almost like you are trying to find a reason tomake it seem like it's not a big deal.

Yeahother people go through this,so who denied that? I just don't get youdude. Every time someone on here seems to be proud of themselves for accomplishing something, you always find a way to bring them down, and always have to bringup something in YOUR personal life that relates, just like this. You always have to say, oh well I know this person, and that person. OKCool. I'm glad you do,but it just seems like more and more you turn everything into how it relates to you. I like hearing your stories. It makes me know you better as a friend and I will always be your friend,but on this situation,I don't get how you have tomake it sound like what he went through is no big deal.

Maybe to you it isn't a big deal because you have been there, but to him it is, and his family and friends it is, and to those kids in his situationwhere the doctors tell them they will never walk again, or move, or live a normal life, what about them? What about that ONEkid out th

 

as I said, I don't know this dude personally...so I don't resent him....but I also don't know how a kid laying crippled in a hospital whose parents are fighting to make ends meet can feel inspired by watching this kid finish a triathalon while riding a free $20,000 bike, all the free equipment in the world and professional level training/rehab.That is my whole point...nothing pernal against your friend,but I haveseen the faces of crippled kids and cancerkids whowere in rehab with me when other kids got lucridive gifts just because they wanted to make a miraculous recovery and run a marathon. Because they weren't athletes and hadno chance of doing anything spectacular with their lives they got to sit and eat hospital Jello while others got showered with new skateboards,bikes,ect.....show me how they were inspired to greatness? Tome the best inspiration in the world would be to sell that expensive free bike and donate the money to a childrens hospital....now that would inspire EVERYONE!!!I guess my life's experiance may haveleft a sour taste in my mouth about this topic so it's closed as far as I'm concerned.

Onelast story....I was in rehab for maybe a week, there was 4 of us per room. The kid on teh same side of the room as me was an X-games up and comer...from what I was told he was gonna be something special, the kid across from mewas 8 and lost both legswhen his bike was run over by a dump truck. One day a group of guys from a few different companies came to our room and gave the x-games kidskateboards,pads,clothes, everything he wanted. Later that night the 8 year old across from me asked his mommy if Santa was mad at him..."because he got a lot of presents but I didn't get anything" That memory will never leave me...EVER!! The next morning I had my brother go out and buy that 8 year old like 3 cart fulls of toys....that had to be the best feeling I ever had.

 

jesus on a stick, y'all are draggin' me down. knock it off and get back to something less serious, like where's the pic of the new chick on the forum? all i've seen is her truck. [&o]

 

GHEY!!!!![8D]

 

WHO....WHERE.....

 

I just like understanding where people are coming from. That's why I wrote all that, for those of you who can't stand us

I think Mike is catching my book posts syndrome, or BPS as I like to call it. Don't worry, it only lasts until you're dead

I understand where you are coming from and that's all I wanted. Next time, we will discuss through PM's since nobody gives a Fabout this stuff on here and I don't blame youI guess.[&:]

Now, where's my BFF?