Let's Talk About Tinker.....

Whiney little bitch or not?

https://www.pinkbike.com/news/tinke...nondale-in-now-deleted-social-media-post.html

"Hi everyone, if you haven't heard or not Cannondale is dropping me because they don't have the budget to keep me on, $25,000 isn't a lot for a cyclist who race almost 50 years and I don't have time to write everything I've done, but I could guarantee I sold more bikes than anyone racing for Cannondale. I gave my life to promote Cannondale and I believe I race as much as your top XC racer and more, so how can you just drop the best Ambassador in the sport. I got this very powerful and touching text from my fan Paul today after my ride. He said, "if Cannondale drops you after all you have done to represent the brand, I will boycott them forever! They should grant you life ambassador status because you are the greatest of all time. You are a legend and inspire me to keep riding. God bless." These words hit me and I am so thankful to Paul for these kind words. I know there are 10,000 people that feel like I do, please post your feeling because it is not fair to be done like this so cold and unexpectedly."

 

Don’t know enough to have an opinion. P.R. spin response from Cannondale

 

No doubt an all time amazing cycling athlete. No doubt.
But he is being a whiney little bitch.
All things come to an end. He has had sponsorship for decades. Most pros can only dream of that!
It sounds desperate. Finish with some class.

 

It was time....sour grapes is what I'd call it.

 

That was a painful read. Think about stuff before you rage post?

Calling yourself the best ambassador in the sport ensures that you are not that.

Who wants to pick up the damaged goods after seeing a company get flipped that bird? He must've thought of that about a second after he hit Send.

 

He made himself look very petty. Go out gracefully and maybe someone else will pick you up.

 

Yep comes across as a WLB. Still an amazing athlete that sold them way more bikes than what it cost to pay him though.

 

I’d like to see the first draft of each of their statements.

Even I cringed a little with some of the content of Tinker’s complaint. I wonder what bike he’ll decide to buy. Who would hire him now?

 

I completely agree with the two Mikes. Show some class. Athletes fade. Things come to an end. They could have and probably would have continued to give him bikes, just not pay him a salary. But that's gone now.

Maybe he can go back to Klein?

 

Cannondale still makes bikes?

 

Just ask Missy Giove!

 

Weed's legal now.

 

Yeah but I hear she just got popped from intoxicated driving.
Does she still have her pet piranha around her neck?

 

I listen to an 1.5 hour podcast from Singletrack.com with him being interviewed. He is definitely full of himself. He is definitely as he stated an Ambassador for the sport and for Cannondale, but there comes a time like @Mikie said you got to hang it up. Just this time, Cannondale decided to do it for him. The young stars in their 20s only know him as a legend they were not around when he was in his prime. IT's like all the greats in all the sports. Time to let the younger generation lead, even if you can beat a lot of them.

Babe Ruth didn't play baseball forever and he is still considered one of the best baseball players of all time. People say he would still be better than most. Michael Jordan and Kobe would probably still kick ass but you got to move on sometime.

Nothing says he cant still race and kick ass, just Cannondale will not float the bill. Now he has to succumb to life like the rest of his peers.

I don't feel he was the greatest of all time. Maybe the most competitive and the longest career but not the greatest.

 

No one is going to hire him. He at most has 5 good years left. Now he sealed his own fate by acting like a child. He should open a bike shop and sell Specialized, Trek and Giant. He can be vindictive instead of a baby.

 

I saw the post when it was still live on his Facebook feed, and the comments from his fellow legends and pros were along the same lines. "Dude... You might want to take this down."

I don't think Tinker prepared well for this point. The last few years he's been trying to sell everything in his garage that isn't nailed down.

 

I still like his signature ODI dreadlock grips though.

 

I gave him too much credit, it sounds like. He fouled his own legacy with a non-functional superego. Strong body; weak mind.

 

Maybe...

No corporation is going to hire him again, but as a fan I'm willing to look at his post as being written at the lowest point in his life. We're seeing him at his absolute worst moment immediately after the emotions took over. I'd really hate to be defined by my worst moments.

If he doesn't keep going off the deep end, people might remember the career, and not the flamethrower exit... We'll see.

 

Well said and for sure fair. I know I have had many episodes of worst moments. I'm hoping I have deleted those both in written text and emotional course correction.

 

25k! Dang.. for riding? He passed me once on the main divide somewhere... nice guy.. did not realize he was cannondale guy..

 

I make screenshots. Just in case anyone on this board gets the urge to run for office...

You should all read Mark Twain's "Running for Governor". It's only a couple pages long and available for free on line...

 

That's a good thought – it brings balance to my criticism. I've had enough interaction with elite athletes to know that they all put one pant leg on at a time.

I'm damn happy to have a low profile, though. I can be my real self and barely anyone finds out.

 

Obviously his thumbs did the typing, but I blame social media with it's instant dopamine hit. Instead of taking the time to process emotions and thoughts, that instant catharsis of spewing them out to the world with immediate satisfaction, damn the consequences takes hold. I've done it, most of us here of done it. The control of such god-like power at our fingertips is addictive. Too bad the FB/IG outage didn't last a few days longer.

With great power comes great responsibility...

 

Well, this sounds better...

 

I was just going to post that. But with this....

 

Those spandex photos aren't going anywhere....

To stay on topic, I really don't know anything about Tinker personally but have always known "of" him from his racing days. Even ran into him and his posse on top of the SJT one morning up at Blue Jay. I know he's still winning races in age class as well.

I originally saw this article on Pinkbike which obviously has a much younger crowd and was surprised how many people who have never heard of them. Then again, yesterday in our group ride here in Prescott, ONE out of SIX riders had heard of The Whole Enchilada. How is that possible?

 

Dammit!

 

I was running big 53 and the 11 recovering on Lynn rd in Dos Mercedes after just climbing the Potrero Wall. This little long hair old guy comes up on me and passes, I try to keep up but I do not have anymore gears. That was my experience with Tinker, dude is pretty fricken fast

 

My Tinker experience...

NORBA 1992 - Winter Park. I "raced" beginner class. I think I came in DFL. Then I went to the ski hill and watched the pros climb. Tinker was mashing up the steep frontside trails in his big chainring - in the days of 3 chainrings. Yup. He was (and still is) STRONG! Rishi and Ranjeet Grewahl, Tomac, Overend, Wiens, etc - not in big chainring.