The Mike Anderson story

[LauraLyn]

Mike's deposition never existed? Really?

Yes, Mike and Lance discussed the design of the shop. Wonderboy liked Mike's idea so much he used them when he opened Mellow Johnny's

Maybe along with giving up his jerseys he could give Mellow Johnnies to Mike? I think we can all agree it would be the right thing to do. Only fair.

More than fair. I could definitely go along with this.

In fact, I think both Mike and I would even settle now for a simple apology.

 

[LauraLyn]

Sheryl told me. She is kinda chatty

She told me the same thing over afternoon tea. I just didn't think she was chatty.

Just kidding.

 

[webster]

Mike's deposition never existed? Really?

Yes, Mike and Lance discussed the design of the shop. Wonderboy liked Mike's idea so much he used them when he opened Mellow Johnny's

Maybe along with giving up his jerseys he could give Mellow Johnnies to Mike? I think we can all agree it would be the right thing to do. Only fair.

Sorry, RR - I know you know the inside scoop on most everything, but you are off base here. If I had a dollar for every bike shop guy who had an idea for another bike shop, I'd be rich. Mike was unhappy at BSS, and he took a gig with Lance. He brought shoes and swag, if you wore a size 43, into the shop for the shop guys, but he was never going to be business partners with Lance. Lance is a ****, and he is a doper, but Mike should have known how that relationship was going to end. He is milking this just a little too much.

 

[ChrisE]

Sheryl told me. She is kinda chatty

That's nice. How does she know?

 

[TexPat]

I really hope this is the final catharsis Mike needs to get on with his life.

Yes it has.

I think Lance is guilty as charged of being a doper and a jerk, but this article just makes Mike seem like a whiner.

That term implies that I had no legitimate complaint.

I get that the job was not all it was cracked up to be, but I am sure it beat working on hybrids and huffys at Bicycle Sport Shop.

Not that I'm opposed to working on hybrids and Huffys, but I certainly spent more time on Serottas and other high-end bikes. Thanks for demeaning both my skill-set as well as the Bicycle Sport Shop, who are still, I gather, one of the better shops in the country.

And really? You thought Lance was just going to fork over money for you to start an instantly successful bike shop in Austin?

Actually, yes I did expect that. Because he told me so. Yep, I'm a bit naive. Lance and I were friends, I thought. And a man's word should be as good as a bond. It's a contract not unlike "to honor and to cherish, til death do us part", isn't it? But we know that he can't abide by the terms of that sort of contract either.

A guy who can't save an important email or manage his own finances?

The first is addressed by the above. However, I'll add that his attorneys challenged us to spend the money to find the email using forensic computer analysis, which we did successfully. Somewhere out there is a copy.

I mean you were a good mechanic, but those are easy enough to come by, and that skill alone would not have translated into bike shop owner. Look at Mellow Johnny's today - they have the financial backing and management from CSE, and they would be out of business if it weren't for t-shirt sales. And other than that "grievance", you bascially had a disappointing last year working for Lance, and it sound like the writing was on the wall for it to be over. I have never heard of anyone hanging on to so much anger after losing a two-year job over eight years ago.

A lot of over-simplification there. I assure you that anger is not my motivation--the truth is.

It is time to take responsibility for your life and your decisions and stop blaming Lance for crushing your dream of opening up a bike shop.

Are you someone's life coach? Glad you're not mine, because nuance is really not very clear to you is it?
I'm actually quite happy with my life now, thanks.

 

[TexPat]

More than fair. I could definitely go along with this.

In fact, I think both Mike and I would even settle now for a simple apology.

Yes, LauraLyn. An apology would be great.

People really fail to appreciate how much nastiness get's levelled at those of us who have spoken out. His voice has always been louder which makes it impossible to get a fair hearing in either the court of public opinion or in the kangaroo courts of TX.

 

[TexPat]

Sorry, RR - I know you know the inside scoop on most everything, but you are off base here. If I had a dollar for every bike shop guy who had an idea for another bike shop, I'd be rich. Mike was unhappy at BSS, and he took a gig with Lance. He brought shoes and swag, if you wore a size 43, into the shop for the shop guys, but he was never going to be business partners with Lance. Lance is a ****, and he is a doper, but Mike should have known how that relationship was going to end. He is milking this just a little too much.

No, I wasn't happy at BSS. That much is true.
I'd wager that the majority of the bike shops out there were started exactly the way that you describe. You must be loaded!
To be fair to all of the bike shops out there; it's a really tough business that is populated by folks with passion who have chosen to do what they love. The bike biz is not on the Forbes list of money making schemes.
In fact, I had already been discussing opening a shop with a friend, and had approached a potential investor prior to any of the business with Lance. Look around Austin and you'll find quite a few shops whose origins are just like what you describe (eg founded by employees of other shops who moved on to do their own thing).
Pretty sure that anyone who had a gig with LA to open a shop would put a lot of faith in it to succeed--even if it's success was in selling LS gear. Hey, it's retail right?

Milking? You'll need to elaborate a bit on that. Not sure what you mean.

 

[ChrisE]

Yes, LauraLyn. An apology would be great.

People really fail to appreciate how much nastiness get's levelled at those of us who have spoken out. His voice has always been louder which makes it impossible to get a fair hearing in either the court of public opinion or in the kangaroo courts of TX.

I enjoyed your article and I wish you luck.

Can you shed some light on RR's assertion above that MJ's was based upon your concept, and your deposition confirms this? Thanks.

 

[LauraLyn]

Yes, LauraLyn. An apology would be great.

People really fail to appreciate how much nastiness get's levelled at those of us who have spoken out. His voice has always been louder which makes it impossible to get a fair hearing in either the court of public opinion or in the kangaroo courts of TX.

Mike, glad to make contact with you here. And my apologies for assuming something on your part.

I have admired you since I first read of your troubles with Lance. I don't consider you naive, not at all. I consider you honest and a person someone could rely on, a person who could be a good friend. If that is a fault, keep it.

I admire your courage to come out in yesterday's Outside, and take all the horrible orchestrated replies there.

Being a good bike mechanic is truly noble. It is great to work on bikes. I love it too. Only people who work on their own bikes, let alone on bikes for others, can appreciate the value of a good mechanic.

You don't need to defend yourself, I believe. And I hope you can live without the apology you deserve. It will never come. But you are bigger than both the injury and the apology.

I am just pleased to be able to address you directly.

(Btw, I don't think Webster's comments were meant personally. In the great scheme of Lance, he had good points. But you still stand head and shoulders above Lance. And above many of us here, myself included.)

 

[Benotti69]

No, I wasn't happy at BSS. That much is true.
I'd wager that the majority of the bike shops out there were started exactly the way that you describe. You must be loaded!
To be fair to all of the bike shops out there; it's a really tough business that is populated by folks with passion who have chosen to do what they love. The bike biz is not on the Forbes list of money making schemes.
In fact, I had already been discussing opening a shop with a friend, and had approached a potential investor prior to any of the business with Lance. Look around Austin and you'll find quite a few shops whose origins are just like what you describe (eg founded by employees of other shops who moved on to do their own thing).
Pretty sure that anyone who had a gig with LA to open a shop would put a lot of faith in it to succeed--even if it's success was in selling LS gear. Hey, it's retail right?

Milking? You'll need to elaborate a bit on that. Not sure what you mean.

Hi Mike, he is saying that you are milking the story about you been shafted and bullied by Wonderboy.

 

[QuickStepper]

No, I wasn't happy at BSS. That much is true.
I'd wager that the majority of the bike shops out there were started exactly the way that you describe. You must be loaded!
To be fair to all of the bike shops out there; it's a really tough business that is populated by folks with passion who have chosen to do what they love. The bike biz is not on the Forbes list of money making schemes.
In fact, I had already been discussing opening a shop with a friend, and had approached a potential investor prior to any of the business with Lance. Look around Austin and you'll find quite a few shops whose origins are just like what you describe (eg founded by employees of other shops who moved on to do their own thing).
Pretty sure that anyone who had a gig with LA to open a shop would put a lot of faith in it to succeed--even if it's success was in selling LS gear. Hey, it's retail right?

Milking? You'll need to elaborate a bit on that. Not sure what you mean.

Well, no need to debate here whether RR is exaggerating or not about Mr. Anderson's claims in the lawsuit did or didn't include a claim that he and Armstrong had plans for the bike shop which eventually became Mellow Johnny's. The innuendo of RR's comment, and the further suggestion that Armstrong should turn over Mellow Johnny's to Mr. Anderson (along with an apology) is that Armstrong literally "stole" the idea for the shop and that there were definitive plans in existence for Armstrong to "steal". Otherwise we are left with Webster's conclusion that whatever the discussions were between Mr. Anderson and Armstrong, to the extent they happened at all, were as detailed in the allegations of the third amended counterclaim to which LauraLyn provided a link upthread, i.e., that Armstrong allegedly promised to provide Mr. Anderson with funds upon the termination of Anderson's employment (and upon Amrstrong's retirement) so Mr. Anderson could open his own shop.

We don't need to debate it because TexPat can actually tell us. He's here and seems willing to discuss what his alleged "deal" regarding the bike shop was as it pertains to Amrstrong. At least he wasn't reluctant to provide details in the article published in Outside magazine and in bits and pieces of the story that appear in the Daily Mail.

RR suggests that the deposition may have been sealed, perhaps as a part of the terms of the settlement. Well, if that's the case-- and I don't know whether it is so or not-- Mr. Anderson is apparently not under any restrictions from discussing what his testimony was, or if not the testimony itself, the essence and details of his claims in the lawsuit. Several iterations of the pleadings still remain available online. I have not searched for the depositions, and RR may be right about that.

But Mr. Anderson can tell us what the deal really was? Was Armstrong supposed to be a partner, with all that this legally implies (i.e., joint liability, co-management, sharing in profits according to one's partnership percentage interest, etc.); or was he just going to be an investor, with an expectation of return of his principal together with interest after a certain period of time? Or was the money just going to be a gift?

Only TexPat can really give us his side of the story. He's here, and I think all of us would like to know the details since this can really help clarify some of the questions raised here by the article.

So which is it? Did your claims in the lawsuit concern allegations that Armstrong misappropriated your idea to open a shop or not? Did he steal your idea, or just wind up not honoring what you believed to have been a contract for him to provide you with funds?

 

[TexPat]

I enjoyed your article and I wish you luck.

Can you shed some light on RR's assertion above that MJ's was based upon your concept, and your deposition confirms this? Thanks.

Thanks.

Yes, MJ's is very much like what he and I discussed on many occassions. He asked me what I had in mind conceptually, and that was it. Granted, it's not exactly a unique concept for a bike shop, it would have been for Austin at the time.
What was covered in the depo is difficult to remember in detail, as it was several hours long, very stressful, and often wandered off in tangents. However, the basic ideas and the agreement we made were definitely there.

In light of all of the newer evidence, the depos of all parties would be very interesting for everyone to see--everyone except Lance's, because he failed to show up.

 

[python]

Mike, glad to make contact with you here. And my apologies for assuming something on your part.

I have admired you since I first read of your troubles with Lance. I don't consider you naive, not at all. I consider you honest and a person someone could rely on, a person who could be a good friend. If that is a fault, keep it.

I admire your courage to come out in yesterday's Outside, and take all the horrible orchestrated replies there.

Being a good bike mechanic is truly noble. It is great to work on bikes. I love it too. Only people who work on their own bikes, let alone on bikes for others, can appreciate the value of a good mechanic.

You don't need to defend yourself, I believe. And I hope you can live without the apology you deserve. It will never come. But you are bigger than both the injury and the apology.

I am just pleased to be able to address you directly.

(Btw, I don't think Webster's comments were meant personally. In the great scheme of Lance, he had good points. But you still stand head and shoulders above Lance. And above many of us here, myself included.)

Mike beware, not that you are blind, of the sweetness sweeter than that sugar load. Particularly when it ends with a load. ...asking you to respect a poster who just insulted you.

 

[the big ring]

Thanks, Michael. Hope those sheep lovers are doing you right - bike shops are a ***** of a business to be in these days.

Good to see RR vindicated. Look forward to the intern apologies...

 

[the big ring]

Well, no need to debate here whether RR is exaggerating or not about Mr. Anderson's claims in the lawsuit did or didn't include a claim that he and Armstrong had plans for the bike shop which eventually became Mellow Johnny's.

Do you have a keyboard sponsor? You sure type a lot. Looks like Texpat backs up RR's claims fully.

PWNage of the banninated.

 

[QuickStepper]

Mike beware, not that you are blind, of the sweetness sweeter than that sugar load. Particularly when it ends with a load. ...asking you to respect a poster who just insulted you.

Mike, yes, with respect to the specific questions I posed to you about your recollection of what the bike shop deal with Armstrong were, I should disclose that my questions were more pointed and specific for a reason: I'm a lawyer, and I tend to ask questions about such things because really, it's only the specifics that can give the validity or invalidity of this sort of thing any substance. If you don't remember, or don't want to answer, that's fine too. But I thought it only fair to make disclosure to you about why I was asking these specific quesitons:

Was Armstrong supposed to be a partner, with all that this legally implies (i.e., joint liability, co-management, sharing in profits according to one's partnership percentage interest, etc.); or was he just going to be an investor, with an expectation of return of his principal together with interest after a certain period of time? Or was the money just going to be a gift?

I don't expect you to trust me, or to even like me, and I don't think you do based on our limited exchanges in other threads.

Nevertheless, if you'd care to answer, that would be appreciated.

 

[QuickStepper]

Do you have a keyboard sponsor? You sure type a lot. Looks like Texpat backs up RR's claims fully.

PWNage of the banninated.

Actually, TexPat's response doesn't do anything of the sort. TexPat's response merely states that he and Armstrong discussed a shop "conceptually" and that he remembers nothing else in particular about the deposition, which tended in his mind to wander to many different topics.

That's really not definitive as to whether TexPat's claims in the litigation were that Armstrong misappropriated the idea. Race Radio wrote:

Originally Posted by Race Radio
Mellow Johnny's entire concept (Urban shop, serving commuters to racers, coffee shop, showers, etc) was all Mike's idea. They had drawn up plans and talked in detail about the shop.

Mike's answer hardly shed any light on this, other than to say they had a general discussion about the concpet of a shop. What were the "concepts"? I don't think Mike's answer tells us, and I don't believe this was made part of the claims presented in the lawsuit.

Giving Mike the benefit of the doubt, that the claims in the lawsuit didn't fully present this may not have entirely been his doing. Attorneys draft pleadings, not clients, and sometimes lawyers make tacitical decisions to focus on some elements of a claim and not others.

But Mike can certainly clear up what the concepts were that he and Armstrong discussed, and what sort of legal relationship he and Armstrong contemplated, if any, about the funds to be provided for a shop.

 

[TexPat]

I'll get back to this later. It's Sunday morning in NZ, and I'm taking the kids to the open day at the local BMX club.

 

[python]

Quick stepper, you wasted more space. I did not address you. I addressed mike.

Since I and many others long ago established that you are an armstrong doping apologist , your inputs are suspect. I warned mike who has plenty of his own good sense, to be careful with physhers like you.

 

[QuickStepper]

Quick stepper, you wasted more space. I did not address you. I addressed mike.

Since I and many others long ago established that you are an armstrong doping apologist , your inputs are suspect. I warned mike who has plenty of his own good sense, to be careful with physhers like you.

Since when do you exclusively get to decide who can respond to messages in a thread?

And last I looked, your advice is misplaced, and ironic since I just used your statement as a springboard to my comment to Big Ring and to Mike Anderson. I was not talking to you, just quoting you.

 

[LauraLyn]

Mike beware, not that you are blind, of the sweetness sweeter than that sugar load. Particularly when it ends with a load. ...asking you to respect a poster who just insulted you.

Mike, apologies for speaking from the heart. And please do not feel any need to believe me. (You will find me in the comments on your Outside page yesterday.)

No. I don't believe that Webster (or anyone here) intended to insult you. I genuinely do not believe that. I disagreed as well with Webster on some of his responses, but I think he made good contributions, including regarding your excellent discussion in Outside.

Frankly, I don't think you have to answer to anything here. You have done enough answering, and it has been good. Take care of your family and enjoy your work on bikes. Keep your passion and let the rest of the world deal with Lance.

 

[python]

Since when do you exclusively own a discussion or make the decision to point out who can respond in a thread or not?

And was I speaking to you? I think I was responding to Big Ring.

Once again you're showing grand confusion...for a guy who claimed to be too expensive for armstrong this is amateurish...When you quote me, you respond to me, big lawyer.

 

[LauraLyn]

Quick stepper, you wasted more space. I did not address you. I addressed mike.

Since I and many others long ago established that you are an armstrong doping apologist , your inputs are suspect. I warned mike who has plenty of his own good sense, to be careful with physhers like you.

Python: As kindly as possible, I need to say to you: You are out of line.

Your behavior is not appropriate to the clinic. It belongs in the DC basement PR offices Lance has hired.

Please just allow people to contribute. No one needs to control the discussion. And certainly not with personal attacks and bullying.

 

[QuickStepper]

Mike, apologies for speaking from the heart. And please do not feel any need to believe me. (You will find me in the comments on your Outside page yesterday.)

No. I don't believe that Webster (or anyone here) intended to insult you. I genuinely do not believe that. I disagreed as well with Webster on some of his responses, but I think he made good contributions, including regarding your excellent discussion in Outside.

Frankly, I don't think you have to answer to anything here. You have done enough answering, and it has been good. Take care of your family and enjoy your work on bikes. Keep your passion and let the rest of the world deal with Lance.

I agree with everything that LauraLyn has written above. I agree you don't need to answer any questions. I too am sympathetic to anyone who loses a job, has to suffer financially as a result, adn who is forced to deal with the trauma, time and expense that ensues when one has to defend a case that is brought by someone else who has more money and is willing to spend time and money with lawyers litigating something that you believe never had to be the subject of litiation in the first instance. I appreciate the trauma that this sort of thing can cause to a person and his or her family and lastly, I appreciate and recognize how difficult it must have been for you to make the decision to bring some of the claims you did assert in the litigation with Armstrong.

That said, you've evidently made a decision to allow the publication of many of the details of your relationship and the disputes you have with Armstrong. And that being so, I for one would greatly appreciate it if you were to provide additional insights and information to some of the questions that we've been discussing here.

If you don't wish to do so, I fully understand. But if you would respond further that would be great.

Have fun with your family. Kids grow up way too quickly so enjoy your time with them while they are young.

 

[python]

Python: As kindly as possible, I need to say to you: You are out of line.

Your behavior is not appropriate to the clinic. It belongs in the DC basement PR offices Lance has hired.

Please just allow people to contribute. No one needs to control the discussion. And certainly not with personal attacks and bullying.

your posting, I could care less about your behavior as you should not be so confused to judge mine, belongs to the sock puppet thread as was brought up by others.

As kindly as possible I ask you not get too worried about me.

Care about your frantic inputs becoming exposed as trolling.