Ask Heckler Thursday:
You seem like the person to ask about this.
I am attending my first mountain bicycle race event on Sunday,
primarily for the purposes of heckling my friends that nutted up and registered to race.
My question is about the boundaries of heckling-
Can you say stuff about dudes' moms, or do you have to limit it to how much they/their bike/their kit sucks?
And there are going to be a few laps, if I run out of things to shout at them, can I just throw rocks?
Thanks in advance.
@jmanic,
Thank you for your inquiry. We are excited to help you with your heckling needs.
The #1 is don't be a dick.* Kit/cloths/gear heckles are a good safe bet, team name puns, reading shakespeare, asking political views, quoting movies - all great safe fun. I enjoy just trying to make racers laugh. It's a hoot getting someone deep in the pain cave to crack a smile. There will be MANY laps if I understand this short track thing. Come prepared, its on BSA property I think so you may have to hide your beer in juice boxes.
@Norm, can you confirm juice box beer?
@seanrunnette is the true heckling god. Stand around him and hope some of his quick wit rains down on you from above. If you're lucky he might grace you with a relic giving you the powers of a slightly better heckle.
*If the person you are yelling at is your friend anything is fair game. Make him/her cry, but know that they may kill you, or may
try to sleep with your S/O on a later date.
The biggest thing to remember is that the racers are racing and some are there for kicks, some are there for business and some are in the middle. If you feel inclined to offer hand ups let the racer decide if the want the hand up, don't force it upon them. Encourage fun, not negativity.
It took me many races to figure out what was okay. There is a pretty big grey area with "what's okay." Every person responds differently to different stimuli. Surprisingly, I've received 3 of my middle fingers from "Sweet aero helmet," on three separate occasions.
I'm still not a
good heckler, I just yell really,
really loudly and
try not to be a jerk.
HOPE THAT HELPS, SEE YOU AT THE RACES. ILL BE THE DORK IN THE MARTYS KIT ON A RED EPIC WITH A ORANGE HELMET AND STUPID GLASSES. Tell me I look fat, I can't stop eating chipz and candy.
-The Heckler