Against my better judgement as I write this I'm fixing to got put on about a half a pot of coffee, which means I'll probably be up till 1:00AM but I feel like I've got something important worth taking the time and writing here, and its something that has been kind of weighing on me recently.
We're less than 2 weeks away from what is going to be one of the biggest three-wheeler races in probably the last 20+ years. Bigger than any year Trikefest, bigger than the OTC races. This event is going to be the ATVA Extreme Dirt Track Racing national at Ashtabula, OH on the weekend of the 20th of July. Its important to note that this is not an "official" ATVA event and per an email I got from Mr. Fisher (The track owner) no three-wheeler riders will be required to pony up for an AMA membership (whew). There has been a lot of work put into this event by TimSr of the Ohio Trike Crew, Bill Casey of TPC trikes in getting some oldschool pro riders from back in the day interested. Jackie Meadows, and at least a few others will be there riding. Plus, a bunch of amateurs like myself. From all the scuttlebutt, this is going to be quite an event and we might out number more than a handful of quad classes(!)
As awesome as that is, Theres been a lot of drama and conflict surrounding it. Probably the most I've ever seen in our group. Ever. And thats saying something because we've seen some conflicts. And, I must admit I've participated in some of those in the past. There have been other (unrelated, but within the community) issues at the forefront of personal discussions amongst people as well, its like a perfect storm brewing of every conceivable thing to go wrong and polarize everyone thats ever been involved with the three-wheeling community ("Internet site" and otherwise) in one form or another. I've seen people that were long time friends turn on one another, I'm seeing the whole group splinter into sub factions. There isn't anything wrong with having a more localized group of friends, and in general "cliques" cannot be avoided as that is just simply human nature to gravitate more towards the people you feel most comfortable with and can identify with the most. But I'm seeing groups (from all sides of these issues) basically start competing amongst themselves for "who is right". We have people who were seriously looking forward to participating in this event that are disappointed and fed up with a lot of the drama surrounding it. Some of you reading this have a personal stake in this or a bone to pick. I'm asking you to just put aside the details of the conflict long enough to finish reading this post, and then you can continue to think the way you want, but give me just a few minutes of an open mind.
What we (The three-wheeling community as a whole "internet sites" and everyone else that rides and loves trikes) have here is pretty close to a golden opportunity to have a high visibility in a public venue that will get multitudes of magazine exposure. Multitudes of spectator exposure. Multitudes of kudos from a ton of fellow atv enthusiasts. A lot of those guys that race the nationals, they do every race in the series, all over the country. They have friends in the industry and all over everywhere that could bring an endless list of possibilities for this community to continue to thrive and build on some of the traction we've gained over the years. And yet, it also threatens to completely rip us apart it seems. This site will be a medium for communication and camaraderie as long as I'm physically able to keep it that way, but the drama and internal struggle ruins it, and it ruins us. There isn't a single person that visits this site, or goes to races, or spends ungodly amounts of money on parts and restorations that doesn't just love it as a passion. We are ALL very passionate people. And naturally, being the defiant types still riding the demon death trap illegal three-wheeled things, have strong convictions about what we believe in. I've spent many long nights on the phone with friends and some people that I didn't even really know that well trying to mediate and keep people on agreeable terms with one another at different times. Some recently, some in the past. And its hard to focus on the big picture and look beyond those differences and problems. I GET IT, I really do! But if that drama and conflict ruins your appetite for what you love, is it really worth it?
If your in personal turmoil over these issues, or any other, its easy to think and say to yourself "This is BS and I'm sticking to my guns and I don't give a
what anyone else thinks!", "So and so is a jack ass and not worth my time." I've said these same (and worse, I'm afraid) things many times before in the past with my own personal conflicts INSIDE this community I've had. To be honest, I just about had a break down a few days ago and was ready to throw the whole towel in on "all of this", because it was stressing me out big time on top of already pre-existing personal and professional responsibilities. I was ready to pull the plug on everything because it didn't seem worth it. And then, I had a bit of a realization...We get so caught up in sticking to our guns, and we are ALL naturally on the defensive more than about 99% of the population because of the stigma associated with our sport, that it sometimes makes us miserable defending what we think and feel so staunchly. The reason we defend our convictions (whether a sub-matter of this community as a whole, or something more at the forefront) is because we are PASSIONATE! We care about this hobby and sport. We miss family functions, we use our precious work vacation days to go riding, we spend more money than we probably ought to on bikes and parts, it becomes a life-style. We might have different ideas and plans on how to get to somewhere, but I feel like I can say all of us have the same general desire, and passion...we just apply it via different methods, and have different ideas on what specific goals should be, and this is where 99% of the conflict originates.The question I'm asking everyone to take a few moments and ask yourself is; Is giving these conflicts and bouts of friction merit, and thought, and further stoking the flames of the fire worth destroying your passion and love for the sport? Is acknowledging and participating in these drama situations worth making you grouchy around loved ones? Is it worth you getting so frustrated one night you go to the garage and throw tools and parts around, is it worth fully washing your hands of your desire to participate in this sport simply out of disgust at something, is it worth allowing the drama and battles to kill your fun? When you perpetuate these types of conflicts and don't work to defuse them, it sours the passion and desire you have to continue participating. Who wants to get stressed the hell out over something that we all do for fun and enjoyment? NO ONE! I've realized that over the years this has affected me as well...I've gradually lost some of the "spark" I had and interest in the sport because of the continued conflict that I deal with (and perpetuated, I realize that now). I don't care how strong you you think you are, if you feed it, at some point it will wear you out and break you down, I was right on that edge recently, trust me.
ALL of these issues are PETTY in the big scheme of the combined passion we all have. Is that passion and desire that we all have worth getting snuffed out by these battles that keep coming up? Is letting this stuff get to you worth waking up one morning and having the feeling of selling all your bikes and taking up water coloring because its less stressful? Make that mathematical calculation....is allowing this CRAP get to you worth murdering your affinity for the sport? Do you want to come home from work and see the bikes and be relieved, and smile at them, or do you want to walk by them in a total indifference because you've allowed the conflicts to disgust you?
I'm not asking everyone to make friends with one another and sit by a campfire holding hands singing kume-bye-ya. This is the real world. People have differing personalities, and not everyone will always get along. And while some people might be good at not verbalizing their "real" thoughts and feelings and keeping things sounding amicable in public, if you personally analyze this stuff and keep thinking about it, IT WILL GET YOU! Even if its all entirely interalized, it isn't worth it. Putting on a good show for the public and having to grit your teeth the entire time because you don't believe a word your saying is about as useless as just coming right out and perpetuating things externally.
Try and look at the situation from the other persons side, and make a genuine effort to work it out. I'm challenging everyone to make an effort to reach out and try and resolve an outstanding issue you might be involved with. I'm going to as well. And if we can't, then we have to just let it roll off our backs. Don't feed the drama, or waste valuable brain power on it. Ignore it. Pay it no mind. Try and not worry about who is right, or telling someone why they are wrong. If you dont, one day you'll wake up and you wont want much of anything to do with the sport anymore...and you wont even care enough to want to change that.
We all just want to ride and have fun...lets keep that our forethought when troubling things and situations arise.
Thanks for your time,
-Billy
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