Sorry Jonas

Well after a few week hiatus it appears Jonas was getting too much work done and was in danger of being employee of the month so he kindly asked me to get with it and spill a few key notes on what the hell has been up with me lately. My apologies sir, and dont worry youll never get that promotion if I have anything to say about it! Where should I start I guess we can touch on the low and then end with the high, it appears the BMX community is just getting rocked with sad news over and over again. This last month or so we lost Kyle Bennett in an auto accident which was a hard swallow. I had just seen him and exchanged a few words at the Louisville race with him and was psyked to see him in some mains and riding well. Kyle was the first ever USA BMX Olympian with that kick ass season when he locked up the points race back in 2008 and I dont know if anyone will ever grasp that in the way that I do. It's one thing to be an olympian in general but to be hands down the first for our country in a sport, thats doin' it big. UCI retired his career number which I thought was the best UCI decision I could ever recall in all my years of BMX, classy move and again shockwaves went through the community because some guys are just all smiles all the time. I wont shy away from the fact that KB was reportedly not wearing a seatbelt and not to say that it would have changed the outcome of the situation or anything like that, but kids make it a habit to always buckle up. It definitely doesnt hurt to take a second  to protect yourself a little extra. Until we meet again KB! And in a salute to KB which I do when anyone in the BMX community passes away I shred the trails/track whatever is available and just try and put in a solid session that would make that person proud, I rallied up Jay and Matt and we went to Fresneck which is the best track in the country and rocked that place for a few hours on a quick little day trip. I hadn't done the pro section in what felt like years and when the session started winding down I knew I didnt wanna leave without giving it a go. First few runs were decent, nuthing too fancy but getting through and felt good about it. Then the inevitable bonk to ohhhhhhhh shit get loose sideways jump half the distance needed and stick out leg for no good reason booooooooooom. Blew out my right knee pretty bad and had to man up and not cry like a wussy in front of the boys. Matty was running circles and was making me dizzy or the pain was, but either way it was funny. Bought a bag of ice and iced that puppy and drove home. Just got MRI stuff a few days ago and see my ortho on Monday, but Im 99.9% sure everything is torn and getting a fresh knee installed before the years out :) Good times. Then more sad news just this week. BBJ/Mojo/Jordan Mc Mulled passed away this week at the young age of just 16. I recall speaking with his dad several times on bmxnews one of the bmx forums and I first noticed Jordan a few years back just before he got bumped to Redmans tribe. He was going way fast then and was on track to make a serious name for himself in the very near future. Unfortunately we will never get to see his talents again and his mark will now be more of a question mark and an unfinished story of sorts. Things are never that serious people, keep close with your friends and always have an outlet and someone you can speak with or just visit when your not feeling things are going your way. Sure Ive heard rumors and stories will swirl about what prompted the outcome but again nothing is worth losing your life about. Permanent solution to temporary problem. I believe if we as a community can get past the initial shock we can leave with a positive outcome, sure the family needs time to grieve and most will never experience or comprehend what they are going through, but I think we as a whole from the higher up guys at the head of the sanction, to the track moms and dads that are still new to it all... We can all learn that suicide and the pressures of life are always abundant and getting the word out is critical to making sure this stuff can't go swept under the rug because we are just too sad about the person and overlook the situation. The way I see it is you never think you need to speak to your kids about things usually until they are confronted with them, for instance if your at a movie and your 10-12 year old kid just see's their first sex scene i think you get inclined to give the birds and the bees talk when you get home right? Well this to me is the same scenario, dont feel so sad about it happening that you forget to speak with your little ones and get involved and LISTEN to them. It goes a very long way and the world is 10x harder now than it was when you were growing up. It aint about choosing between a mullet or a fanny pack anymore, the internet, social media, etc etc etc kids are under alot of stress these days and could use some love.  So Jordan when I get back onto the rig, I owe you a gnar gnar kickout and I know V Wang already sent you a few so those will hold you over, until we meet again lil buddy!

I said I would end with a high... Vinyl wrapping the evo either flat black or white in a few weeks and new wheels in a week or so and a new iphone 5 arrives today for me. Thoff highly recommended the iphone 5 so I had to get on the hype. He said something about it's like sipping kool aid and well when your dark you have a special spot for kool aid :)