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Man, what a crazy week. The video I released last Saturday about the issues with Facebook drew a huge audience…and not only drew an audience but you responded with support that has been phenomenal.
I am not at liberty to fully disclose how it happened but I would like to report the issue with MCrider’s Facebook page has been resolved. The flags have been removed, I am no longer “fake news.”
I don’t know why the issue arose but like I said, time to move on. If it happens again, I will let you know.
To say I feel appreciated by the response after the video on Saturday would be an understatement.
I set the video to go live on Saturday morning as a Premiere. What that means is the video goes live and YouTube opens a chat room about 30 minutes before the video where we can message back and forth.
We chatted and had a good time introducing ourselves before the video started. By the time the video ended, there were over 600 people watching the video release live with me. As soon as the video ended and throughout that first day and weekend I think I heard from everyone who has my cell phone number, friends and family called or texted in support, members of MCrider and subscribers of MCrider sent me direct messages, emails, and comments. I think I received every form of communication except for carrier pigeon…but it was kind of windy that day so they may have been blown off course.
I just want to say thank you. Thank you for supporting MCrider, thank you for supporting me, and thank you for the words of encouragement I received.
I had a lot of reservations about doing the Facebook video…Not because I don’t believe what I said and not because I am afraid to say it. My reservation was because I didn’t want the message to take MCrider somewhere I didn’t want it to go.
MCrider is about motorcycle road skills and road strategies to help you become a better rider, it is a simple message and one that riders have gotten on board with.
In the course of building MCrider, you get to see glimpses into who I am and what I believe, that is just a natural occurrence of spending time together. In the process, you get to know a little about me.
That part of running MCrider is still weird to me. When I meet some of you in public and you ask me how Major, my dog is doing…I forget that you know my dog’s name,even though he has only been in a couple of episodes. I will reach out to shake a viewer’s hand and say Hi, my name is Kevin. Most of the time the response is…”I already know who you are.” One time I was in a store talking with a friend and someone came from the next aisle over because they recognized my voice. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard from riders who say they hear my voice in their head when they ride. I hope that works for you but when I start hearing voices in my head it is time for a break.
I forget how many people watch these videos. To be honest, I try not to think about it. When I look at the camera and talk to you each week I don’t imagine a sea of people…I imagine a person on the other end of the camera.
When we talk to a person we can usually come away with at least a few things in common. There is usually some common ground that we can agree on when we look another person in the eyes and talk face to face. In those situations, we walk away as friends.
When we talk to a sea of people it becomes much more difficult. If I release a video and it reaches 100,000 people, there are going to be at least 100 people that disagree strongly with something I say…and believe me I often hear from those 100 people.
That is part of the problem with Social Media. Instead of having 1 on 1 conversations and finding common ground, Social Media broadcasts our opinion with a bull horn that reaches every corner of the world.
That 1% who disagree with us share their opinion and they find a percentage who disagree with them, they share their opinion and with each cycle, the comments become hotter and hotter. Before long everyone is yelling into the bullhorn and nothing is being heard.
To make matters worse those with the most extreme positions get the most attention on Social Media. If I said something outrageous on MCrider, you would comment on it, it would get shared and it would build a huge audience…just look at some of the youtube channels out there, even some that claim to be about helping fellow riders have built a large subscriber base not by providing good information but by highlighting the sensational aspects of riding.
I won’t allow MCrider to become that. I will continue to try to be the voice of reason, I will continue to focus on you as a rider and try to appeal to the individual and not to the masses.
Along the way, I will say something that you disagree with…and I am willing to have rational civil conversations on those topics…but what I am not willing to do is see who has the louder bullhorn or disrespect you in the process.
Do you want to make the world better? Stop trying to win arguments on social media, love your kids and raise them right, love your neighbor and help them. Try to give more grace than you receive and see if things don’t start to even out over time.
For me, the foundation of who I am starts and ends with my relationship with Christ. I believe that God loves me just as I am, but he loves me too much to leave me just as I am. Just as I strive to be a better rider I strive to be a better person and I want my work here on MCrider to reflect that.
Thank you so much for reminding me this week that MCrider matters. You encourage me, you inspire me to do even more and I can’t wait to see what God has ins store for MCrider around the next corner.
Oh, one more thing…did you notice there were no close calls the entire time you rode with me in this video? Following distance, position the motorcycle where you can see up the road…road strategy. If it feels like people are trying to kill you every time you ride…it is time to look in the mirror and see what you can do differently. Go to MCrider.com/RoadStrategy and start learning how you can ride with less stress and fewer close calls.
