randall harris

i just wanted to say that people really need to stop asking about his personel life. i mean theres basically a new thread every week about it, and its really nobodys business at all. if the vandall wants people to know whats up, he'll tell everybody.

As it's been said about a million times... He already has shared what went on in his "personAl life" it's in a wake vid, so it pretty much seems to be the business of whomever iss interested. But I agree a little research never hurt anybody. Not that that excuses ridiculing somebody for asking a question.

im not ridiculing

Yeah, but the topic is in the same spirit as all of the nasty posts that responded to the most recent questioning thread. Maybe it would have been a good idea of the questioners to do some research, but at the same time, asking people who have watched the interview about what happened is technically research. Not everyone can afford to buy 30 dollar DVDs whenever a new one comes out, so it can't be expected that everyone has seen Transgression.

Personally, I was very curious prior to owning Transgression, and I got a few small answers here by reading some of these topics. It didn't make me think any less of the man, and I didn't see it as an invasion of privacy, as all of the information posted had been gleaned from Transgression. As a matter of fact, the entire deal gave me an even greater respect for the rider, and if I had not read about all of the personal stuff leading up to his INCREDIBLE comeback, I probably wouldn't have bought Transgression. But I read that here, and got into it, and wanted to see his new riding, so I went out and bought the DVD. Consequently, I watched his interview, and gained even more respect for the man.

When someone puts their personal life onto a DVD like that, which means that it is in the public domain, it means that he doesn't mind if people hear about it. Sure the memories are painful, but what's the best way to get over pain? Absorbing it into yourself and not talking about it? Or talking about it. One of my friends passed away recently, and instead of talking about it to people, I sucked it all up, and it hurt. As a matter of fact, the one thing that I regret in the situation was sucking it up and not talking about it to people. While the situation is far from being the same, it runs in the same vein as the emotional aspect of Randall talking about his past.

I don't honestly see a big problem with people asking if they genuinely want to know, and they can't afford to pick up Transgression. Hell, if people are nice about it all, maybe then the poster will become curious to see Harris's rebirth, and then buy Transgression the first chance they get.

No one wants a complete biopic on the man's life, they just want a simple question answered. A little bit more research into the subject wouldn't hurt, but at the same time, they are coming here and asking because the members of this forum are regarded as relatively knowledgeable on all things wakeboarding, riders and their past included. He may not be a "real" celebrity, but he is a "celebrity" in the wakeboard community, as small as it may be, and if he puts his past out there for everyone (or at least the buyers of the DVD) to see, then it is fair game for a discussion.

Does this mean that it is the best discussion to have? No, not in the least. But asking questions about Randall's past does not warrant attacks on one's moral character, like I saw in the last question topic. Just answer the question and let the thread die, just like all of the other ones. The rate at which threads appear and disappear on this forum is insane, and if the question is answered, and people don't continuously post inflammatory statements about the OP, then guess what? His question will be answered in a slightly more private environment, as the OP will find his thread, read the answer, maybe respond with a thanks, and that's the end of it. Posting negative responses to a person's question only brings more attention to the issue at hand, and making topics about the question topics isn't going to help things either. It's going to make people curious about what the topic is about, and they're going to find the "offensive" thread. Or maybe I'm just misguided in this aspect of how humans think...

Just my two cents.

I think that's a little more than two cents.....

Hey Nick, great post. On that note, I haven't seen Transgression yet. Can anyone fill me in on what Randall talked about that's getting everyone all riled up? Since it's in the public arena via the DVD, it's probably ok to talk about it here, right?

Fine, my 2 dollars.

Apparently, based on the angry reactions of people, it's not okay. Basically though, he wound up in the same basic scene that all of the celebrities that you hear about on the news all of the time, namely, drugs and alcohol. It happens to the best of people, especially those who become famous early in life and don't grow up before they start the party life. I know plenty of people that I graduated with that would benefit from hearing Randall's story, but they never will really grow up. Harris did grow up, he found God, has been sober for over 2 years, and that is part of what makes him such an incredible guy. After seeing his past, and his rebirth from that past, I feel that this rebirth shows a lot about his integrity and the fact that he is relatively open about it, at least on Transgression, shows what kind of man that he has become.

thank you for that post!respect to the vandall

that post made me feel kinda stupid.