Alex Pro resigns from Team Young Guns

I feel very badly for you Alex. I have never met you but my 3 teenaged sons follow your career and they love your work. You will bounce back.

I don't feel bad for Alex at all. Not one bit.

The Mountain Bike community has yet to feel the full ramifications of his actions - and make no mistake that the next time the Biking Community is advocating for trail access etc. the Monica Carvers of the World will bring this up and try to paint all Mountain bikers with the same brush.

That said. I'm prepared to forgive and move on and I look forward to seeing Alex sieze the opportunity he has in front of him to create something positive from all of this.

Good.

I can say without reservation that what happened in Vancouver does not reflect the kind of person Alex really is.
I don't excuse what happened, and Alex is going to have to pay the price for it, but everyone needs to know that this is a great guy with a great future who made one big mistake.

That fireman who got sucker punched and took it like a man……that's a good person. When a person is faced with a stressful situation, that's when their true colours come out.

Little Alex showed his last week, as did many others.

If people give in to peer pressure and mob mentality so easily as to destroy private (and public) property, steal property, and assault police officers, fire fighters and paramedics… well, there's really no excuse for that, and it truly reflects their qualities as individuals.

They are a weak individual who is not able to walk away when they have the chance, regardless of what is going on around them.

As a paramedic, having seen too many of these situations result in death and destruction, yes, society does move on, and yes, people do forgive.

That said, people should not forget the actions of individuals, for risk of history repeating itself (as it so commonly does).

I have never met Alex (nor any of the people being publicly outed), and I am sure that in everyday life, many of them are decent individuals. However, their actions and participation during the riots should never be forgotten, and they, just like any other criminal (as these people now are), must prove their rehabilitation before I will ever extend a hand of forgiveness to them.

And regardless of how many times they apologize and say "I don't know what got into me that day" (as they are ALL saying), that does not prove rehabilitation. Actions speak louder than words…

This is my first and only comment on the riot and the repercussions thereof. It feels pertinent to do so because:

1. Alex is one of "us."
2. I've been sponsored in the past and am sponsoring someone/something now.

We all make choices, and I personally have made some very bad ones in the past. Some people on this board have told me to shut up and run for office, but having my choices made public, and then having to defend or speak to them at the expense of real issues, makes that just not a viable option. Maybe down the road, when drugs are legal and a long track record of speaking out and protesting actively against religion, corporations, and totalitarianism are considered positives, I'll reconsider. That being said, I at least had the smarts to not wear my Descente rain poncho during protests.

Which brings me to the sponsorship value proposition: an individual or corporation or organization decides that giving someone or some team or other organization free stuff; perhaps even a salary, in the hopes that this expense is recouped and more by people making positive associations with the sponsoree and the product. There is no value in maintaining a sponsorship if the actions of one side or the other make the relationship untenable. Apart from criminal prosecutions, the very LEAST that will happen is that all of his sponsors must disassociate immediately, lest we start thinking Oakley and Affliction in the same context.

So, as a sponsor, there is no recourse other than to sever ties with an individual, and to put some distance between the actions of that individual and the entity being represented. The issue as to whether one forgives or forgets has changed drastically in The Google Age, and whereas the muddy tracks of someone being dragged off a logging road in an act of passive resistance have long washed away, the images of an individual smashing and flipping a vehicle during a riot will linger online for a very long time.

Which brings me to my last point, and that is my problem with the media and VPD calling the rioters "protesters" or "anarchists." First off, riots are illegal. Protest is not, and are a vital part of our democracy. It's a nice bit of Orwellian spin to paint all of this with the same brush. Ask yourself who benefits from tarring people lawfully assembling in Toronto for the G20 with rioting douchebags. The activists I know are FAR too smart to provoke law enforcement, get photographed being stupid, and/or simply not have a plan or understanding of the consequences of their actions. No, what's happened is that the police have emerged unscathed, with public sympathy, and come budget time, will get whatever new toy or weapon they ask for, and our ability to dissent is diminished further.

Whether you're a water polo player trying to light a police car on fire or a freerider smashing and tipping a car, there has to be some basis for understanding right and wrong. NO where I know are these actions considered "right." In that mob, there were people who tried to stop the destruction, people who participated in the destruction, and a whole crap ton of "real hockey fans" who did NOTHING to stop it. Same context, same situation, different reactions. It comes down to knowing what is right and what is wrong, and making a choice.

/Nat.

Good on you for stepping down, unless it was by team ultimatum.

I don't think I can make any comment here that will make you feel like more of a jackass than you already do. Man up and move on, do not let a fleeting moment of unbelievable stupidity define you.

Right now there is no plan, just give er'!

The only thing more embarrassing than the riot is that there are people that feel bad for these idiots. Talk about disrespecting the victims, the police, the firefighters, hospital workers, the people that cleaned up the next day and even the Canucks for that matter (who have proven that they have the least intelligent group of fans in the league.) I used to have some pride when I put on the blue and green jersey but the next time it's on I'll feel like some kind of moronic mouth breathing twat.

Maybe the Canucks should change their uniform so I can get the image out of my head. :dizzy:

I have somewhat known Alex since he was a ripping 14 yr old grom and he has always been friendly and stoked to ride. Before this happened I had nothing but good things to say about him and it is still the same. If youtube, digital cameras and all the social media stuff had been around when I was 20 I can't imagine what life would be like now. Hahaha, and I was one of the "good kids". We all do stupid $h*t
Alex made a big mistake and is paying the price, yes he will have a heavier price to pay than many but that comes with the territory when you are a sponsored athlete.
Lets hope he learns his lesson and keeps riding because he is still an extremely talented athlete and after his Rampage [HTML_REMOVED] Cold Rush ( 80ft backflip on skis) performances last year it would be a shame if the sport lost him.

Nat,

To this point I've only heard the CBC erroneously describe this mob as protesters.

If the vpd and other media outlets are making this representation,I strongly believe that this error should be corrected.

A firm distinction needs be made between what happened last week and legitimate protest(no matter how much I dislike most protesters).

….and for the record,you were encouraged to run for office so you could speak louder,not shut up….I'll bet Shithead has some skeletons in his closet that haven't stopped him.

message from a far removed scottish rider.

really sorry for you Alex, no doubt you will be taking some shit for this, and you deserve that at least. however we have all been young once and all done some dumb shit without thinking of the consequences…. but most of us werent lucky enough to blessed with sponsorship deals… and so you are paying a higher price than most young men who do something dumb. the lesson here for you is to not let it lead you the wrong way from that point onwards. deal with it like a man. Own up to what you have done, you will be more respected for it and hopefully it will be the last dumb thing you do for many decades yet… lesson learned i hope.

thoughts are with you and keep the chin up :lastweek: , from a 'dissapointed in vancouver' scotsman

I agree. Many have done worse both in this situation and otherwise, and i know i've come close without consequence but the act of doing something stupid doesn't mean you can't or aren't capable to learn from it and decide to change for the better, or stop you from feeling a whole lot of remorse. it's stupid what he did but I looked up to him as a rider and feel kinda sorry for him now caught up in all of this giving what he has lost so far.

I personally feel it is sad that everyone around Alex is so concerned about what Alex lost. Losing his sponsors is a natural consequence for his behavior, but it does not amount to any form of restitution for the victim of his actions, or amount to any kind of apology to the victim. Alex helped destroy someones work vehicle and their tools. That person has also lost their ability to make a living and pursue their chosen profession, through no fault of their own. Being a good person in general and feeling remorse does not mean one has made amends. The right thing to do in my opinion is for Alex to find out who this person is and pay for his losses.

I know we have all done stupid shit, especially at his age, and I'm sure he is a great person as everyone says, but so far all we as the public have seen from him is an attempt to lie and diminish his role in this incident. I dont think he owes everyone an apology publicly, but he sure owes the person who owns that truck an apology and a lot more.

I personally feel it is sad that everyone around Alex is so concerned about what Alex lost. Losing his sponsors is a natural consequence for his behavior, but it does not amount to any form of restitution for the victim of his actions, or amount to any kind of apology to the victim. Alex helped destroy someones work vehicle and their tools. That person has also lost their ability to make a living and pursue their chosen profession, through no fault of their own. Being a good person in general and feeling remorse does not mean one has made amends. The right thing to do in my opinion is for Alex to find out who this person is and pay for his losses.

I know we have all done stupid shit, especially at his age, and I'm sure he is a great person as everyone says, but so far all we as the public have seen from him is an attempt to lie and diminish his role in this incident. I dont think he owes everyone an apology publicly, but he sure owes the person who owns that truck an apology and a lot more.

Well said, I couldn't agree more.

Personally, I don't think Alex is some riotous ass who runs around looking for an opportunity to flip his next vehicle. I'm sure that he's a nice kid but the fact is that he fucked up, it was huge and it was well documented by a lot of people who there that night. He started by smashing, then flipping and then clearly gloating about how proud and excited he was by his actions. In doing this he committed a crime which took someone else's livelihood away. Fast forward a week and he's done a really poor job of handling the situation. He woke up Thursday morning knowing damn well what he did the night before but he chose to lay low until that first telling image came to light in the National Post. Then he chose to 'apologize' by saying he just posed for the photo and didn't do anything else. A few days go by and now he's all over the web with photos and video showing him beating on the truck and helping to flip it. Snowball effect, it just got worse. If he really felt remorse for his actions he could have shown up the morning after by helping clean up, turning himself in, selling his free gear to help pay the man who lost his truck, tools and business. The list goes on. It's obvious that he has people behind him giving him the wrong advice on how to handle the situation. This is the internet age of transparency, the days of laying low and letting the dust settle are long gone. This situation is no different than corporations who get called out in social media and are forced to change or make amends.

Unfortunately for Alex he's made his bed and now he has to lay in it.

He woke up Thursday morning knowing damn well what he did the night before but he chose to lay low until that first telling image came to light in the National Post. Then he chose to 'apologize' by saying he just posed for the photo and didn't do anything else. A few days go by and now he's all over the web with photos and video showing him beating on the truck and helping to flip it. Snowball effect, it just got worse. If he really felt remorse for his actions he could have shown up the morning after by helping clean up, turning himself in, selling his free gear to help pay the man who lost his truck, tools and business.

^ This, and this again.