I have been online since late 1997, and in that time I have met hundreds, if not thousands, of people on the internet. Some I still talk with once in awhile, but most have come and gone. There are a couple that I have known since the beginning and still converse with them on occasion, but they have mostly moved on. Most are women as I have little to say to guys. If I want to engage in a pissing contest, I prefer to do it face to face, and preferably, with friends. I do, however, have a few male friends from the internet who share common interests, and until a few weeks ago, had never met any of them.

Enter L. Michael James. A fellow motocross racer, writer and general motofreak. I had read some of his stuff in a Moto mag back when I was still racing(1999) and began talking to him through a motocross message and chat board(I have long since forgotten its name). We started out just discussing motocross stuff, but eventually, as a friendship formed, began talking about everything. Families, friends, politics and just whatever we happened to be involved in at the time. We traded pix, bench raced and bragged.

In 2002, after Ricky Carmichael's first perfect season, I wrote a blog about it. Mike read it and donated half his column space in a motocross magazine he was writing for to my piece. I was floored and very flattered that he would do that, but as I realized as I thought about it, it was just like him. Unselfish and appreciative of friendship.

Mike lives in The Bronx, NYC, N.Y. and we had been talking about trying to get to the same race at some point and actually meet. An e-mail in late August informed me of his impending trip to the Glen Helen National as a journalist in September. There was no hesitation. Bev and I made plans and reservations to be there. A few calls and a few hours of driving put us together at Chapparal Motorsports in San Bernardino, Ca. We hugged, laughed and talked a bit also meeting Mikes brother, Doug, another fine fellow. We hooked up for dinner and spent a couple of hours getting to know each other in the ways that are impossible online or by phone. Some things just have to take place face to face. We didn't see a lot of them at the race, as they were busy covering the event and we were just watching, but we did hook up for awhile.

Next September the Motocross des Nations will be in America for the first time and Bev and I are already making plans to be there. It will take place at Budds Creek, Maryland, Mikes home turf, and we will get to spend some more time together. I am looking forward to the whole experience. It's not often that people from opposite coasts that meet online, ever get to meet face to face and have such great times. I consider myself fortunate to know a man like Mike and will make time to see him whenever I find myself back east. Such is the nature of friendship. I hope that one day, Mike can come out here again with some time and I can come up with a couple of dirtbikes so he can fulfill one of his dreams of riding the world famous tracks of So. Cal. I would take whatever time off work I needed to to make that happen. He would do the same for me back there. It's fun to flirt, converse, argue and debate online, but rarely do any of us ever meet. I am happy I live in the internet age because it has given me the opportunity to meet people like Mike and a few others who's company I have had the pleasure of sharing, and I am a better person for it. Here's to what's worth it!