My Fight With the Drunk Mayor of Frisbeeville and What You Can Learn from It

I wish I could go a weekend without having an adventure to report, but let's start at the beginning. FMX has long been a supporter of the frisbee crowd in Lubbock. In fact, one could say we practically invented the sport around here.

Over 30 years ago and for a dozen or more years, we hosted the Kite Fly & Frisbee Fling. Then, we teamed with a local guy (I wish I could remember his name for sure, but I think it was Patrick Kitten) and for many years we helped him with the very first Frisbee gold tournaments -- not only promoting them, but giving him large amounts of cash and other donations to make the events happen every year.

I guess it shouldn't matter, but the station, which has been largely represented by me for the last 30 years, has paid our dues. So, let's say I feel just a tiny bit entitled to visit a course for whatever reason. Then again, the courses are in PUBLIC parks.

Let's back up here and say like with ANY group, 99 percent is going to be great people, and 1 percent are going to be jerks for whatever reason. Out at the Lonestar Amphitheater, we've had to deal with a few jerks cutting the fence, pulling it up and knocking it down all to retrieve Frisbees. We've also had them walking all over the property. So when I get to rest of the story, please keep in mind we've worked really hard for the Frisbee community, even though a few of them have actually destroyed property of ours (and our landlords').

Now to the beginning. We had about 30 clowns in makeup to shoot a new billboard. I had gone up early and scouted locations out by the wooded areas around the Frisbee golf course and some very nice Frisbee golfers gave me some nice tips on some really awesome places (an open huge sewer pipe and such).

Later that day we trucked the clowns up to that area, taking a two-lane road that had zero "no trespassing signs" or anything that would lead you to believe that that area was off limits. The Frisbee flingers we passed were all in a great mood and were waving at us and everybody was having a good time.

We got to the end of the road and started shooting pictures. We were on our second location when I was informed that somebody was complaining that we were there.

I went up and the guy starts jaw-jacking me that we were on private property and we needed to leave. Now, knowing full well that this was bullshit, I told him so and told him to call the cops if he needed to. The guy kept jaw-jacking me.

At this point, I go off on the guy using the M.F. word very liberally. (If you try to tell someone that they are breaking the law, you shouldn't do it while you are drunk with a beer in a glass bottle in your hand.)

Knowing that this guy is just full of beans, I go back to the shoot. Well, as you know with most drunks, the guy goes about 20 feet down the road and starts cussing me. I immediately went up and got in his face again, and once again, all talk. One of my actors stepped in and I gathered my folks up and went to another location.

As we were leaving and I was driving out I see the guy punching his fist, so I let him know again that I was available if he thought he was up to the task.

Now there is a bit more to this story, including the fact that even one of the guys with this jerk said, "I love you guys, don't listen to him." There's also the fact that my lawyer was there and saw him stir the shit pot. Then there's the fact that most of this is on video. None of that is important. What is important is what you should learn in the last paragraph.

What this fellow didn't know is that a couple of those clowns are disc golf players, and one of our other actors has had dealings with this guy as well. I know his name and what his family does for a living. What I know most of all is for some reason this fellow has elected himself mayor of Frisbeeville and has pulled this move before trying to bully people off the course.

What you need to learn here is that public parks are for the ENTIRE public no matter what your interests are and that no one should tell you differently. You should also not let anyone try to bully you with "facts" whether they are true or not.

I am happy to report that when we were leaving the rest of the Frisbee Golfers were as friendly as they could be, waving and being awesome. It just sucks that during my ONE visit to a Frisbee golf course in 30 years, I had to meet the one guy trying to give the sport a bad name.