Shpoing wrote:Sigh...Ok here goes..
I usually stay away from posting, choosing instead to lurk on the outside just reading posts, but this time I have to chip in. There are things that Satan says that I agree with and things that I don't.
But the one thing I emphatically agree with is the fact that Rick does all these things in an effort on self promotion. I admit that Rick's information has probably helped many kiters from being injured, but his attitude of "I am the one and only savior" really irks me. The best example I can give is when a friend called me a couple of years ago to tell me a fellow kiter had been badly injured in Miami and asked for my help in raising funds to help him out. I posted on kite fourm telling about the incident and asking for assistance. Very soon thereafter I received a direct email from Rick saying that I was wrong to post anything about the incident and that I should wait until he posts his version of the accident....(I'll probably get one from him after this posting also..) He basically stated that he was the only one who should be reporting these types of events. There is nothing wrong with trying to help people out, but when you do it to build up your own self image it's straight out creepy. I know I will probably get slammed for this post and I don't really care. I just needed to vent the feelings I have had bottled up inside ever since that incident. Toby, you can ban me if you want. I already told you how you how I felt about Rick when I first met you at Surf Expo years back and you didn't take it well then either. So ban away if you wish. As for you Rick, report the facts and keep helping people, just take the ego out of it.
Sounds about right.
Rick may have started out trying to help. He is now more into the celebrity of being "our savior".
I couldn't agree more. I have been reading Rick and attempting to interact with him for several years now.
Look back at all his posts (if you want to waste a lot of time).
You will notice a clear trend to simply ignore anyone that addresses him that isn't an icon and vice versa - the trend to go out of his way to their kiss their as.ses if they are.
Somehow some people have interpreted this as being diplomatic. (?)
After seeing literally years of not so much cooperating, but posts limited to exchanging with "the guys", I gave up on interacting with Rick on a forum.
If your goal is genuinely safety (and not looking good), you would have also become frustrated and picked up on this.
Rick has been more interested in becoming an icon than promoting safety for quite some time. If this was not the case, you would see him put some Florida shop owners/instructors/icons asses to the fire and demand safety (at least ONCE....). I have yet to ever see him do this.
Instead, he is complacent to rub shoulders with them on podcasts and stroke their egos.
I recently quit FKA (Rick's forum) because I got so sick of seeing that kind of crap.
The last straw was when he actually congratulated a local shop employee for taking initiative, when all the guy did was avoid my question over what the shop's take was on some very basic SAFETY guidelines. In other words, the shop guy listed zero guidelines.
Yet Rick congratulates him for taking initiative? What a hypocrite.
I have also been reading Toby now for years as well. No way he is going to ban you over this.