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Don't grill me too hard guys, I'm sure this has been done before. This is just for fun.
I was noticing in the heavies a couple threads where people met and took pictures with fighters. I was kind of bummed, thinking how I've never actually formally met any UFC guys/fighters. (not technically "met" anyway. There's been a couple incidents that don't qualify by this criteria.)
So the criteria here is that you actually either spoke to them or shook hands, etc..."Seeing" someone from a distance doesn't count. Here goes. Some of these guys are a lot more famous than others obviously. I have a fairly limited but very eclectic group here.
Bill Clinton: 6/26/06. Clinton unveiled the Columbine Memorial at Clement Park. Afterwards, he walked down the fence on the left side of the stage shaking hands, including mine. Was pretty cool to get to shake the former president's hand, even if it was like half a second.
Eli Roth: Had an extremely awkward and brief meeting with him at the Stanley Film Fest a couple years ago. My wife was actually more quick to recognize him than I was. He was actually standing right next to us and staring at me for some reason. When I realized it was him, all I could get out was a stammering: "Th....The Bear JEW!". To which he basically did the "touche" glass raise and left. I could hardly have handled that worse.
Eric A.K: Singer of Flotsam and Jetsam. This guy might not even really qualify as famous. Certainly not compared to Bill Clinton or even Eli Roth. Got to hang out on their tour bus after a show in Golden, Co at the Buffalo Rose. Guy sure liked to smoke weed. I was pretty starstruck actually, cause I'm a big F&J fan (especially the Cuatro album). They were also doing some blow and hookers in the back of the bus I'm pretty sure. Was an extremely memorable experience.
Next, I've kind of separated off the people who I met in a more controlled setting (autograph signing type thing) as opposed to out "in the wild".
Jake Plummer, Rod Smith, Ed McCaffrey, and Molly Qerim (NFL Network morning shows and NFL Fantasy Live): This was all at one event, and also the only one I have photo evidence of. I'm going to try to avoid posting those pics because I look even fatter than normal in those. Especially next to the unbelievably hot Molly Qerim. More on her in a minute.
Jake Plummer was really cool and cordial and seemed genuinely interested in what people would say to him. Ed McCaffrey was similar. Very nice guy, much more of a strong/stern personality than Plummer though. McCaffrey did strike me as someone who would fare well in MMA, incidentally. He just has that look, like he could easily kill you with his hands. Rod Smith was a dick, frankly. I said some stuff to him, he didn't even look up to make eye contact and mumbled something as he scribbled his autograph and more or less threw the picture back at me.
That didn't bother me one bit though, because Molly Qerim was the SHIT. I've seen a lot of beautiful women, but it's kind of different to actually be standing or sitting right next to a woman of this caliber. She's different in person. On TV she looks like a 9/10. When she's giving you a hug, it's more like 14/10. OMG. Whatever that perfume she was wearing...arr.g
I'm getting off topic. Anyway, Qerim liked me and my friend for some reason and asked if I would shoot a piece for a commercial with her for DirecTV. Hell yeah, I would. She asked some questions, I answered the best I could; perhaps even attempting to channel my inner Chael Sonnen. I saw the clip later unedited and it was pretty cool actually. Surprised it never aired as far as I know. (I never saw it. )
Last ones I'll put here are Gary Kubiak and former Avs winger and Soviet National teamer, Valeri Kamensky.
Kubiak I met when I was about 8 years old. No shit. We still have poloroids of it somehwere. It was a big autograph signing at SW Plaza during the season before their Super Bowl against the Giants I believe. There were a bunch of other guys there like Vance Johnson and Mark Jackson, etc. I was wearing a kids John Elway costume.
When we finally got to the front of the line, Kubiak made some funny comments to me about "Hey John, get up here and help us sign these things! We'll get out of here a lot quicker. " My dad thought that was the shit and loved Kubiak forever after that, even though he kinda hated the Broncos.
Finally, Valeri Kamensky.
Kamensky had a Russian translator with him, which I thought was kinda cool and a trip right off the bat. I had bought a Kamensky jersey prior to the event to get signed, I was a huge fan. He was the fucking coolest player on a team that also had Patrick Roy, Joe Sakic, and Peter Forsberg if that tells you anything.
So I get to the front of the line, there's a translator, and a security guy repping the mall, making sure all their policies are being upheld or whatever. I hand Kamensky my jersey (he seems kind of excited I have his jersey, it wasn't that common.) and he starts to get out his pen, the security douche takes the jersey from Kamensky. WTF??
Kamensky seemed to protest that move a bit, arguing in Russian with the mall security douche. The translator explains to Kamensky that I'm required to buy one of the 8x10s over there and have that autographed.
"Then can I just have him sign the jersey if I buy one?"
"Nope. Has to sign the picture."
Fucking shitty. Stupid experience. Kamensky himself seemed fine, but his handlers and the mall promotion company were assholes. So that's it. That's all I can think of right now. Share some good stories! Hopefully better than mine...
I was noticing in the heavies a couple threads where people met and took pictures with fighters. I was kind of bummed, thinking how I've never actually formally met any UFC guys/fighters. (not technically "met" anyway. There's been a couple incidents that don't qualify by this criteria.)
So the criteria here is that you actually either spoke to them or shook hands, etc..."Seeing" someone from a distance doesn't count. Here goes. Some of these guys are a lot more famous than others obviously. I have a fairly limited but very eclectic group here.
Bill Clinton: 6/26/06. Clinton unveiled the Columbine Memorial at Clement Park. Afterwards, he walked down the fence on the left side of the stage shaking hands, including mine. Was pretty cool to get to shake the former president's hand, even if it was like half a second.
Eli Roth: Had an extremely awkward and brief meeting with him at the Stanley Film Fest a couple years ago. My wife was actually more quick to recognize him than I was. He was actually standing right next to us and staring at me for some reason. When I realized it was him, all I could get out was a stammering: "Th....The Bear JEW!". To which he basically did the "touche" glass raise and left. I could hardly have handled that worse.
Eric A.K: Singer of Flotsam and Jetsam. This guy might not even really qualify as famous. Certainly not compared to Bill Clinton or even Eli Roth. Got to hang out on their tour bus after a show in Golden, Co at the Buffalo Rose. Guy sure liked to smoke weed. I was pretty starstruck actually, cause I'm a big F&J fan (especially the Cuatro album). They were also doing some blow and hookers in the back of the bus I'm pretty sure. Was an extremely memorable experience.
Next, I've kind of separated off the people who I met in a more controlled setting (autograph signing type thing) as opposed to out "in the wild".
Jake Plummer, Rod Smith, Ed McCaffrey, and Molly Qerim (NFL Network morning shows and NFL Fantasy Live): This was all at one event, and also the only one I have photo evidence of. I'm going to try to avoid posting those pics because I look even fatter than normal in those. Especially next to the unbelievably hot Molly Qerim. More on her in a minute.
Jake Plummer was really cool and cordial and seemed genuinely interested in what people would say to him. Ed McCaffrey was similar. Very nice guy, much more of a strong/stern personality than Plummer though. McCaffrey did strike me as someone who would fare well in MMA, incidentally. He just has that look, like he could easily kill you with his hands. Rod Smith was a dick, frankly. I said some stuff to him, he didn't even look up to make eye contact and mumbled something as he scribbled his autograph and more or less threw the picture back at me.
That didn't bother me one bit though, because Molly Qerim was the SHIT. I've seen a lot of beautiful women, but it's kind of different to actually be standing or sitting right next to a woman of this caliber. She's different in person. On TV she looks like a 9/10. When she's giving you a hug, it's more like 14/10. OMG. Whatever that perfume she was wearing...arr.g
I'm getting off topic. Anyway, Qerim liked me and my friend for some reason and asked if I would shoot a piece for a commercial with her for DirecTV. Hell yeah, I would. She asked some questions, I answered the best I could; perhaps even attempting to channel my inner Chael Sonnen. I saw the clip later unedited and it was pretty cool actually. Surprised it never aired as far as I know. (I never saw it. )
Last ones I'll put here are Gary Kubiak and former Avs winger and Soviet National teamer, Valeri Kamensky.
Kubiak I met when I was about 8 years old. No shit. We still have poloroids of it somehwere. It was a big autograph signing at SW Plaza during the season before their Super Bowl against the Giants I believe. There were a bunch of other guys there like Vance Johnson and Mark Jackson, etc. I was wearing a kids John Elway costume.
When we finally got to the front of the line, Kubiak made some funny comments to me about "Hey John, get up here and help us sign these things! We'll get out of here a lot quicker. " My dad thought that was the shit and loved Kubiak forever after that, even though he kinda hated the Broncos.
Finally, Valeri Kamensky.
Kamensky had a Russian translator with him, which I thought was kinda cool and a trip right off the bat. I had bought a Kamensky jersey prior to the event to get signed, I was a huge fan. He was the fucking coolest player on a team that also had Patrick Roy, Joe Sakic, and Peter Forsberg if that tells you anything.
So I get to the front of the line, there's a translator, and a security guy repping the mall, making sure all their policies are being upheld or whatever. I hand Kamensky my jersey (he seems kind of excited I have his jersey, it wasn't that common.) and he starts to get out his pen, the security douche takes the jersey from Kamensky. WTF??
Kamensky seemed to protest that move a bit, arguing in Russian with the mall security douche. The translator explains to Kamensky that I'm required to buy one of the 8x10s over there and have that autographed.
"Then can I just have him sign the jersey if I buy one?"
"Nope. Has to sign the picture."
Fucking shitty. Stupid experience. Kamensky himself seemed fine, but his handlers and the mall promotion company were assholes. So that's it. That's all I can think of right now. Share some good stories! Hopefully better than mine...
