Latest / Chirping Zebras / LUCAS CARR & MATT BROWN | Chirping Zebras Podcast | Ep #108

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LUCAS CARR & MATT BROWN | Chirping Zebras Podcast | Ep #108 · Chirping Zebras

• Mark Riley: I believe that is a zebra on the ice, Bill. How did he get on the ice? Chip, trip, trip. They still can't get him off the ice. This is crazy. Here comes all the zebras. It's a zoo out there. You can't do that! Will it win it? Who else can matter? We wanted to champion keeper, champ keepers. We'll all embrace the zebra side. Welcome everyone to Tirping Zebras. Mark Riley alongside Josh Dolan, Gino Bender Jr. will be joining us shortly. And we are coming to you from the range in Hingham. Thank you to Kevin Mason and the Marina Bay Management Group and Grant Lynx for giving us this ⁓ beautiful space to record today's episode. And before we get into today's episode, want to thank AOA Studios for coming out and doing ⁓ all the great work that they do up in Beverly. If you need a studio for anything, go see Mike. Mike and the boys at AOA Studios. Also want to thank the referees Crease, our sponsors, the Referees Crease, your one-stop shop for all your referee needs, along with Damon Financial LLC. For over 24 years, Damon Financial has helped families and business owners grow and protect their wealth with clear, trusted strategies from retirement planning and investments to tax-efficient solutions. They deliver no nonsense advice focused on your goals. Call them at 508-321-2101 today. Schedule your meeting or find out more information and get in touch with them at Damon Financial.com. I also want to remind you to like and subscribe on the YouTube and also follow us on all the social medias: the Facebook, the Instagram, and of course the TikTok. Thank you, Josh. No problem. Stepping in for Gino rather well right there. ⁓ and ⁓ and find all our merch and everything you want to find on our ⁓ chirpingzebers.com. We got the lace hoodies, the quarter zips, the hats, we got it all. So ⁓ go check. Check that out as well. He hand delivers the ⁓ merch, right? I do, I do. I ⁓ I I come in and it's at night. I slide in at night. And he'll do a few jokes for you too. So Yeah. I almost said a word we can't say in the first one. Poor me up. Today's episode is great. Not only we cover I mean, we gotta thank the range, but today's episode, ⁓ our guests were just I mean, Lucas Carr, Matt Brown. I don't think you can get any better than them. No, no. And I've known Lucas for many, many years. I met him at the WAF studio, the radio station I was on for a very long time in Boston. And we've just stayed in touch. He's he was a huge supporter of the podcast that I did before this called Breaking the Ice, and he's just He's an incredible person, Army Ranger, and he's just I don't know he's amazing. Hockey guy you guys will see. Yeah. Hockey guy hockey guy. I mean and and what he does with the marathon and Matt Brown, if you're not aware you'll hear the story today but if you haven't already. But ⁓ Matt Brown, ⁓ Norwood hockey player got injured ⁓ playing hockey ⁓ and and Lucas pushes him in the wheelchair in the marathon. Yeah. And ⁓ and you you know this episode you'll hear a lot of great stuff and they they ⁓ raising money for the matt brown foundation which ⁓ you'll hear more about as well and that's something if you're looking to get behind ⁓ a foundation ⁓ to you know help out ⁓ someone who's running the marathon yeah ⁓ which is coming up this will drop and it'll be next week I think Th they're a great they're a great duo to get behind and and ⁓ and check out. So like not even just a great cause, they're amazing people. And just like Yeah, well and you look at Matt Brown, he has a kid, you know hockey player, ⁓ has a spinal cord injury, right? and now is, you know, bound to a w a wheelchair for the rest of his life. A lot of us wouldn't be able to take that and do what he's done with it. Right. You know, ⁓ you know, he does speaking engagements at high schools and colleges. ⁓ you know, it participates in in started his foundation. And his attitude too is just like he took something so horrible that I feel like I would I would be done. I I would give up and he's not only like turned it around, like it's gone above and beyond in helping other people with it. Yep. And and ⁓ and of course Lucas, you you won't find if I was gonna get pushed around, yeah, ⁓ he would be my third choice. ⁓ Okay. just a great guy. You know, like you said, Army Ranger. Yeah. And ⁓ we didn't get in there. We're gonna have them on again. We have 'cause we only scratch the surface. We you a lot of it is marathon stuff. ⁓ but A lot of Lucas Carr's stories. We didn't even, it's not even an eye drop of what he's got in the dance. So we'll we'll have him on again. But ⁓ I think you're really gonna enjoy this one. ⁓ and and ⁓ again, the ⁓ great two guys, a great organization, and doing something that you and I have never done, which is run a marathon. And even though I told Becca PZ I would run this year's marathon. It's not happening. We'd probably even bitch and moan about driving a marathon. I don't even like to go to Hoffington. I don't even like to drive up there. Let alone go out there and run back. So, ⁓ but enjoy this episode, Matt Brown and Lucas Carr. ⁓ it's a good one. Boys, welcome. ⁓ so happy to have you guys here with us on the Zebras and ⁓ right off the hop, the marathon coming up. Yeah you know, what's that like? Like be it just running a marathon, let alone what Yeah, I I I think it all goes back to where ⁓ kind of the journey started. ⁓ you know, Lucas ⁓ I met Lucas, didn't know at the didn't know at the time I was meeting Lucas Carr when I was in the second grade, but ⁓ after I got hurt in two thousand ten, ⁓ Lucas made his way into the hospital, said he was from Norwood and ⁓ became, you know, basically family after that. ⁓ about eighteen months later he came by to the house and said, ⁓ you know, words that I never, you know, imagined that in my My wildest dreams would ever become a possibility, but he said, you know, would Matt have would Matt have any interest in running the Boston Marathon, participating in the Boston Boston Marathon. And I thought to myself, I said yes right away, thinking, not knowing how it was gonna work, was it was he gonna push me in this chair? How was that gonna work? ⁓ but I I knew right away I was hooked. ⁓ and a few weeks later we had a ⁓ racing chair. ⁓ they had us do the hyenas marathon to get a marathon under our belt in February. And we did our first Boston marathon in two thousand twelve. It's amazing. Ninety degrees. How long you've been running marathons, Flaw Lucas? ⁓ so this'll be my twenty fifth ⁓ twenty-fifth marathon and I've got, I don't know, roughly twenty two seasons under my belt running just in general. And ⁓ you know, I I think for anything that really has any any effort into it, running takes a lot of effort. So ⁓ You know, when you when you don't skate, you don't stick handle, you lose that. When you don't run and you don't train, you definitely lose that. And it really just kind of goes hand in hand with you gotta be consistent with it. And that's what every marathon season feels like since we've started doing this. I wanna know who decides to run a marathon in February in Hyannis. What the hell were they thinking? ⁓ when your back's against the wall and you really want to run the Boston marathon, there aren't many choices around New England to run a marathon, so right. They pick they pick one out and say, You guys gotta finish? We say okay. We got in the car, I think we got down there. ⁓ that February it was maybe twenty-five degrees and it was a loop. We ran by the water twice. Felt like the wind was in our face the entire time. ⁓ got that one under our belt and then ⁓ you know Two months later it was almost almost ninety degrees. ⁓ one of the hottest Boston marathons on record. So it was a little bit different than that than that day down in ⁓ down in Hyannis. And ⁓ that was one that, you know, I'll always remember and across the finish line. Absolutely drained, you know, with with ninety degrees. you know, that was one. But it it it it it absolutely hooked me. Hook it absolutely hooked me and I ⁓ we know we've been lucky enough to do quite a few after that. And ⁓ you know, in twenty twenty six we'll be our twelfth boss marathon together. That's amazing. You guys are ready for the seven seven seven. Seven marathons, seven countries in seven days. I think we could do that. ⁓ but that'd be a little bit of that that would be a little bit of a challenge, you know, considering Becca Peasy, a former guest, yes. She done it twice. Yeah, she has the record. Now she's like runs the thing. Yeah. We can like yeah, we know somebody from real. I better get my passport out. Now we're the ones complaining about twenty eighth degrees in February. We gotta go to Antarctica, man. Yeah, that's that's where they that's where they run. Yeah, yeah. That's what made me think of it when you guys talk about the cold. Yeah. ⁓ god. She just did an ⁓ one in the North Pole, got in the Guinness book again. Yeah. ⁓ yes. So I think about that. Like, you're in Antarctica. It's like the scene from the movie ⁓ Wayne's World when they're like Let's we could be magically whisked away to Delaware. ⁓ I mean Delaware. That's what it must feel like for them, run like doing that. Like they just get on a plane instead of a car and they're they land and they're running. It's unbelievable. I do appreciate you guys getting that reference because like nine out of ten references that I throw his way, he goes, dude, sorry. I I'm way just I don't get it. I don't smile, laugh, and shake my head. But think about that. You're in our you're in Antarctica. South America the next day. Yeah. You know, that's three days later you're in Asia. It's that's ⁓ the world in yeah, seven days. Yeah. ⁓ Similar is she ran in Antarctica and then ran in I think it was Morocco, it was like a hundred degrees. Yeah, and that was like three days later or something. So it's ⁓ it's wild. Three days later, that's that's it. The body can not feel that's it. The body cannot feel you do that for breakfast or something. No. I she wanted me to run the marathon this year. I was all gung ho when she was on and ⁓ and and luckily I didn't talk to her about training because I don't think I'd make it. Put your phone on, do not disturb after that. I'm so ⁓ Mark. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, look, truthfully, I think for anybody we we really need to remember the first guy that actually did it died, ⁓ which was a very long time ago. ⁓ but at the same time, that ⁓ that first marathon in 2012, there were times I'm like, I really don't think I'm gonna make it. And I just like looked down at Matt. I'm like, all right, it's just we're gonna push. But there was actually a time we were like at mile 24. And I didn't know what was going on. I couldn't I was so like discombobulated with everything. And he like Matt will always remember this. And he said it again. I'm like, ⁓ what Basic basic ⁓ can you just empty ⁓ g grab my headphones, yeah. Yeah, I'm like it was like I'm sure he was thinking, he's like Buddy, we got two miles to go. Your headphones can wait. Your y your headphones can wait. We do not need to worry about that. And and by that point, like it was it was like in the desert looking at a mirage. I mean I mean 30 feet in front of you, you c you could see the waves on the ground. It was just it was just about finishing at that point. I was soaked from head to toe as well as Matt was soaked from head to toe. And needless to say, a lot of people ⁓ volunteered that day on their day off. To run that marathon until their nipples were also raw. So, I mean, for fun. But needless to say, it was probably right. And when you were in that situation, like all that stuff just goes out the door. The feeling, everything goes out the door, everything literally in behind you also goes out the door. But Matt can attest to this that like we've seen some. Crazy like ⁓ can we swear on the ⁓ yeah, we can swear ⁓ remember. I remember we are representing the foundation, so all right. ⁓ needless to say, I'll try to keep it PG. No, I'm gonna keep it PG. I I was just talking about people shit. I mean, I don't know. But anyway, so ⁓ the most famous ⁓ one ever, Uda Pippin. Right, right? And who's and who's the first one to see us at the end of every finish? Uda tipping. No, right there. Yeah. She's so nice to us. Like it is the nicest thing. She is such an inspirational athlete, just from every standpoint and every value for like every aspect of the running community. She's there, like hugging strangers who just like literally, you know, are just like in such an emotional wreck of just crossing the finish line. And I seen her one day. Matt was just like, ⁓ I don't blame Matt because he's just like, I just I want to get out of this chair. I've been with this guy behind me pushing me for four hours. Get me out of this chair. Uda Pipik pushed somebody out of the way and was like this. And I'm like, ⁓ hey, Uda Pipik. Really cool. And it's so bad. That's awesome. Right? But at the same time. She is an athlete that knew it what it took to to win. I don't know. And if you gotta lighten your load, you gotta lighten your load. Hey, you know, Gino. I hear you. It's better than doing a Rosie Louise and jumping on the team. You know, pretty much. ⁓ yeah. Right. It's like where'd she come from? Yeah. That's part of the deal. Not cheating, not trying. Right? I mean, but like, we've seen some crazy shit in the on the way in like And Matt looked like I I know when Matt wants to say something, when he like does his turn, he turns his head up, right? And I'm just like, all right, well, he's got something to say. And it was like some person like running like it was so awkward the way they were running. I'm like, that person's got ten more miles left to run just like that. And I'm like ⁓ boy. Yeah, Matt, you're right. Like Pass her on the right right? On the left, yeah. They passed us. You could see you y y you could see ligaments starting to come off the bone. They were they were they were struggling and that was back in you know, before BC and thinking, ⁓ man, you just you just hope they make it in in one piece. No how is that crowd, the energy like down the stretch? Like how is that? It's it's it's awesome and there are there are a couple a couple spots along the route that you know that really get you going. ⁓ fr ⁓ Framingham, Framingham State, ⁓ you know, w with with the school there. ⁓ you know, the big one is the Wellesley Scream tunnel. ⁓ all of a sudden you're you're about a half mile out and you hear this low this low rumble buzz. Mm and the for the first time, you know, our first time running it, you had no idea what it was. But You know, it gets louder and louder and louder and then you get into that scream tunnel and and it is it's y you can't hear yourself think. ⁓ that's a that's a great spot. And then I I what the the spot that I love is when you turn right at the firehouse ⁓ in Newton, right before that first hill, you know what's at what what's ahead of you. It's it's Three and a half miles of up and down hills, up and down hills, and that's where you see a lot of people either push through or they've reached their limit. And it's called Heartbreak Hill for a reason. But when you get that bolt, you know, that jolt of energy, ⁓ knowing that you know you're already halfway there, those are those are the ones that that really stick out. And last for me is Boyleson Street. You that right on Hereford, left on Boyleson Street. Yeah, that that first time and and every every marathon that we do now, you know, that that turn onto Boylson Street where you can see the finish line and there are people five, six, seven deep on either side for the entire for the entire stretch, you know, that's one that really, you know, gives you chills. ⁓ and every year, no matter the weather, you can guarantee that that's going to be like the home run for the finish and it's it's It's it's a huge pick me up in in why we do it. That's awesome. Real cool. Now the the hills, because ⁓ even just running with not pushing the hills are tough. That's a challenge by itself, you know. It's ⁓ it's like doing contact drills with no pucks basically for about three and a half hours. Full bagskate. bag skate, yeah. You know, like ⁓ but at the same time like it's it's something that Every technique really matters, like where you want to save your energy and utilize your energy the most and pushing and everything like that. It really comes in a strategy from the start. I like it's great to come out of the gates smoking. ⁓ I love it. One year we were we were cruising. It was the year after the bombing and ⁓ and I don't think I stopped on the hills. And Matt knew we didn't stop on the hill. We just kept going. But going up the hills like it's like Something that you need a little bit of specific energy for. I mean it's like can't gung can't gung ho it. No. You gotta like pick pick your spots. And I think that's why you know what what we've done so much is that when we get those hills it's it's a slower process, but he's saving himself for the final six, seven miles in. So it's it's slow. For everyone it's slow. You know, for us it's slow but it's a calculated calculated movement, I would say. Hundred percent. Well, I got a brake on that and I can control my hand. I can control it with this hand and I can use this hand to like run and use my body motion. The chair goes to the left and I have to like jerk it back to the right a little bit sometimes when you're going on the road. But like again, it's all technique. And like Matt is a few full size human as well. Like that's another thing that's like you have to factor in. It's like I think he's ⁓ weighing in at a a whopping one hundred and seventy five now. Little bit lighter, a little bit lighter. But it it's funny, people always ask, you know, you know, what's your training regimen? And Lucas is in the gym. Lucas is in is in the gym, you know, two hours each night. He's running, he's running, he's running. And people ask, you know, what do I do? I cut out ice cream and twinkies. There you go. Just so I'm just so on my lightest forum. You gotta be committed. Lactose intolerancy is a huge key part. Nice and slow up those hills. Yeah. I I joke that one of these days one of these years I'm not gonna see him for four or five weeks and I'm gonna come in fifty pounds overweight just to bury him on the hills. Just to bury him. You might let go of that chair by actually going out of hill. I feel it. Like I feel that shit. I mean crazy amount of effort just to just to get us in there, you know, from point A to point B and ⁓ I I I give him all the credit, especially with you know, this year, you know, Lu Lucas will tell ya, this year was tough with the with Pathfinder and with the tree company business. He with that storm down the Cape, he's been down there he was down there four weeks, you know, seven days a week, twelve hours a day, and he's still committed for the drive back, getting into the gym and ⁓ that ⁓ th that really means a lot to us and the foundation. I mean it it goes without saying that like it is were one of the best foundations you could ever be a part of. Yeah, talk about that, the foundation. And 'cause not many people, you know, might know about it. Sure, yeah. I I I think it you know it goes back to 2010. ⁓ I was a sophomore at Nord High. I had just gotten called up to the varsity team. Played in two games against Walpole and Natick and with each game I felt stronger on my s ⁓ stronger on my skates, stronger with the puck of my stick. And so I was super, you know, super excited for that game against Weymouth. ⁓ we played Weymouth on Saturday, January twenty-third, two thousand ten at the Hingham at the Pilgrim Arena ⁓ down in Hingham. i it was a Saturday afternoon game, so the boys were excited to go down, do our job, get a W and maybe see where the night took us after. ⁓ but from Puck Drop we were ⁓ fully, you know, immersed with a Waymouth team that was a powerhouse that year. ⁓ that game started and nothing was going well for me. Couldn't stand on my couldn't stay on my feet. by the time halfway through the first period, coach said coaches saw that he had had enough. I I was benched for a period ⁓ period of time, went through the intermission, got to the ⁓ locker room. Can't tell you where I was sitting, ⁓ who was saying what next to me, but I knew that, you know, the team was trying to, you know, get something going. And about halfway through the second period, ⁓ coach looked at the three of us and said, No go do something. I ⁓ hopped the boards. ⁓ saw that the puck was racing towards our end. As a forward I was technically out of position, but I made the decision to ⁓ you know go for it as a first guy back. yeah the the puck w went behind our net. a player on the other team and I were racing for the puck, we collided, ⁓ I ended up losing my footing and went head first into the boards. And you know, in hockey, one of the first things that you're taught is that when you get hit, you get back up and get back into the play. So I sent that message to my body. Nothing happened. Confused, I sent the same message again, but the result ⁓ was the same and I ⁓ and I knew that I knew that at that point it was serious. ⁓ I was transferred to social hospital, ultimately sent to ⁓ children's hospital and I woke up there kind of five or six days later. ⁓ and it was dark. It was dark at at that point. I asked why a lot, you know, why did this happen to me? What did I do to deserve this? And I ⁓ remember just as I was hitting my lowest point, ⁓ the sliding door it in my ICE room became a revolving door. People coming in, family coming out, messages from around the country and around the world were starting to make their way to our bedside. And ⁓ that right there let me know that I wasn't going to go through what was ahead of me alone. And so I realized that, you know, I had two options. I could dwell on the past, you know, worry about, you know, why this happened, or I could set a goal. That I'm gonna work as hard as I can for as long as it takes to one day get back on my feet. And I think, you know, seeing the support that I had through high school, through going to college, through the years after, I knew it was time for us to try to get back. And I ⁓ you know was super fortunate with the Travis Roy Foundation, Boston Bruins Foundation, you know, everyone was out there helping us out and going through this for at that point, you know, 10 years. It was all right, I've seen enough. individuals in my situation that it was now time for us to kind of be there like other foundations were for us. And so I tried in college, everyday college life got got in got in the way. ⁓ but I ⁓ I knew it was time to give it I know one more shot. And in the fall of twenty nineteen we were incorporated. ⁓ I was gonna use the 2020 Boston Marathon as our kickoff and then the world shut down. And so I I d I made it a point and made a decision that I was gonna launch the foundation in June of two thousand twenty, smack dab in the middle of a pandemic, a five hundred one C three where you're dependent upon events and fundraisers and ⁓ it wasn't easy at first, but that support system that I had around me, that village, made its way over to the foundation and little by little we were able to, you know, help individuals out. and I think, you know, going back to the marathon, you know, in In twenty twelve, twenty fourteen, fifteen, seventeen, eighteen, and nineteen, every time Lucas and I got to the starting line, we, you know, we're thrilled that we were running, raising money and awareness for some great organizations. ⁓ but in the back of our heads, I think we both had, you know, how great would it be to one day run the Boston Marathon for the foundation ourselves? And so, you know, the marathon was always a dream. ⁓ it was a dream to run the foundation for ourselves one day and that dream became a reality in two thousand twenty one, ⁓ when we, you know, got to that fall Boston Marathon, got to the starting line with the found with the Matt Brown Foundation across our chests. ⁓ and the last five years have been it's it's like a a roller coast roller coaster ascension. First two years were were were tough. We were able to do what we could and then ⁓ getting into the charity program last year You know, our grant our grant applications have ⁓ have multiplied, our grants that we have going out have multiplied and in two thousand twenty four we were able to do a hundred and thirty thousand dollars in grants. Wow. We got into the charity program last year and in two thousand twenty five we boosted that number from one hundred and thirty thousand dollars to two hundred and thirty eight thousand dollars in one year. Wow. ⁓ right now we're right now we're past ⁓ six hundred thousand dollars into our Since our incorporation. ⁓ so it's it's it's been a dream and ⁓ you know, I shudder at the thought of my answer if when Lucas came by that that fall and I said, nah, not really. he's ⁓ he's ⁓ he opened the door to ⁓ crazy possibilities with with what we can do f with ⁓ with the foundation and the marathon. That's awesome. Here we are. Sorry. No. No, no. That was a little long-winded. That was excellent. That's what everyone needs to hear because I don't think enough people know about it. And just the your attitude and how you reacted to this ⁓ over the years is just so inspiring and so, you know, incredible that everyone should know about it. And and, you know, and that's one of the reasons why we want to have you guys with you know to tell that story. It's just ⁓ it's incredible. I I I was I was more lucky enough to have the opportunity with you with the Don Cherry look and the jacket there, Mark. Like, you know. That was back in the day, right? Yeah, I mean, this this this I mean that you're a tall drink of water. You gotta stretch your shit out, man. You know, that's pretty nice. You know, like I love it. You know. But it's you know, I think the biggest thing, like, for everybody's message to understand where Matt's coming from is like, you know, you have you had two things to really choose from at that point, right? And the thing about where he is and where anybody with a spinal cord injury is is that that's what the family like forever. It's like, ⁓ I wonder have have have have has there been improvement? Well I'm sure there has been improvement, but like the spinal cord injury is with that family forever. Like there'll be improvement, you know, with motivation. There'll be motivation with ⁓ there'll be improvement with charity there'll be improvement with grants but like that injury is with the family forever and what the matt brown foundation represents is the longevity to help all those families out as they progressively go through this journey forever and we're on it forever. So like I think it's it goes without saying that like having the opportunity To run with Matt and many marathons and to be a part of a a culture as in Massachusetts of hockey and and a and a great group of people, like it's it's really I I I really like can't begin to imagine like how hard some of these days are for some of these families. But when Matt Brown comes around, he sheds lights on a lot of these situations that do make them come to fruition for a better hope for a better future and that's really kinda like the logistics of what we're just trying to represent every time we put a jersey on that says Matt Brown across the front of it. And I think one of the things that, you know, is that these grants, unfortunately, as much as we wish they could, they're not gonna cure the injury, but what they can do is possibly give someone, you know, w what we like to say is try to make someone's tomorrow a little bit easier and a little bit better than they're today. ⁓ you know, the other thing is that We're showing you know, Lucas is showing individuals that you can get out there and, you know, change someone's outlook on the future. And what I'm trying to show them is that, you know, just because one door closes doesn't mean they all close. You know, that day in January was a big that was a big door that closed. But I made it a point that there were gonna be other doors that opened and it was our job to f ⁓ our job and my job to figure out what what lay behind it and go in and, you know More doors open up and ⁓ yeah, it's it's just about trying to show folks that you can y you can get out there and you know, the world doesn't end when something like this happens. I I think i you know, and we're all hockey guys here, right? And and the hockey community is just such a great community. The best. But what happened to you could have happened to any one of us. Sure. And that's I think, you know, di it it makes you as a hockey player go, damn, like that easily we could be in different places, right? And and so ⁓ with what you've done with it is just I mean it's so remarkable. So you know, it's really an honor to have you guys on. I don't think this happens with any other sport. I'm sorry, but like I don't I don't think the camaraderie that comes around it doesn't happen with any other sport. Like I'm not like trying to like trash talk any other sport when like tragedy hits that part of it, but like I hockey's number one in it. Like it has to like honestly, I'm not like right, Gino. Look at the Bruins Foundation in general. Look at all the people. you know right all like look at all they're all stick around. They have they they play every weekend for s you know for a benefit and they're they they're constantly giving back. And and they and the NHL community is i in other sports you can I I can go into a game a p a a ⁓ a patient from somewhere can go into a game. ⁓ thrilled thrilled to be there. But it's the hockey community and the hockey guys that truly wanna come over. Ask how you're doing and they mean it. They check in. ⁓ and we were so lucky with the Bruins and that that that core group in two thousand ten to two thousand thirteen, two thousand fourteen. I mean, having those guys in your in your corner checking in on you, how do you not try and how do you try and not, you know, i if they're in your corner, you're gonna do your best to keep those good days present and those far days far and few between. And and the hockey community has been ⁓ just phenomenal. Whether whether we got letters, whether you you played it once, you p whether you played it twice when you were, you know, in mites, we got letters from a guy that was seventy years old that called himself a hockey player because he laced up the skates a few times and he knew what it meant to really give back and be part of that community and try and pick up someone that needed it. Yeah, that's great. Darren McCarty said it best on the on an episode in that It doesn't matter what level you play, where you play, or or what. Our love of hockey is the same. Right. So whether you're, you know, ⁓ the best at what you do and a gold medal winner and a Stanley Cup winner or you're a beer leader. We we all love the game the same. And that's what hockey is. You can really feel that too. Like I'm with the Bruins alumni every single weekend and it's went from like, ⁓ my god, I'm in the Ruins all in that locker room to like it's a beer leaf locker room. It doesn't matter who's in there. Yep. Think think about think about like ⁓ doing that like on a softball field or something like that. I mean, I I get that. And and the truth of the matter is it's like we all watch, we've all watched, we've all grown up watching just The normalization of some of these individuals, not just because of ⁓ that they're like all these superstars on these hockey teams. No, these people are actually like really like legit individuals who want to actually get to know you. And they're not like, you know, it was, you know, Patrice Berger on on how he's helped Matt out like all over the course of the years. ⁓ I remember ⁓ it's a crazy story, right? Like Andrew Ferenc. ⁓ I had met him right when he got traded here and Knowing like ⁓ his accolades and like where like an impressive career, right? Impressive career from like holy crap, this this kid wrote a letter to every GM in the National Hockey League in 1997 that he was a very good choice for any general manager to draft him. Right? Right? I did you know, did you know anybody? I didn't know that, right? And he did. And it was it w it was written to each general manager differently, and that's how articulate he was, but you know. I'll tell you right now, like on a side note, if it wasn't for him in the game seven in the 2011 conference finals against Tampa, nobody else will see that scene that he made from his own defensive end to pass that puck to David Craichy, where obviously that was the one goal of the game, where it ended 1-0. It was the best game that they played all year. All year. All year. No penalties. There were no penalties, right? And There was that one seam, because I think they were playing two ⁓ one, two, one. I'm pretty sure if you actually they were doing one, two, one and he did he he saw the seam. He goes, Listen, when I'm going here, this is where I want you to go. And he hit Craichy and that pass was right on the tape. And obviously he flips to Horton, they score and they win the game. On a side note, that was that. But the big thing about that was I had like just gotten back from ⁓ Doing twenty-two months collectively throughout all ⁓ of from two thousand five to two thousand ten, and then met Matt in the hospital and I had met Andrew Ferenc like while I was home on leave. And ⁓ we connected and ⁓ I remember ⁓ very briefly ⁓ during one of my deployments, ⁓ Abraham Odishu. ⁓ Matt, you remember Abe? So the flag? Yes. We ⁓ we dedicated a flag to him. ⁓ to Matt my ⁓ my old unit took it on a patrol but told him about Matt told him about the camaraderie we all have with hockey ⁓ flew it high above Afghanistan ⁓ that was actually Iraq at the time but we were we were you're close. We were we were coming from there. What's the difference? It's all the same matter all right. So like the logistics about like how this how this story was crazy, right? Like how this How how did this all like come about? Well, Abraham Odishu ⁓ got hit by an RKJ3 and it knocked off ⁓ the lower portion of his ⁓ right leg. So he lost his leg. And like he's asking me questions about going to ranger school and all this stuff. And I'm going through the whole process of everything. And all right, this is this kid is really like not only does he like want to learn about like ranger school, but he's like asking me questions about hockey. And it was a 2010 year. When Philadelphia came back, ⁓ like that whole year. So, like, we're building something here, right? So, you know, Matt's going through his recovery process, and like I go, Andrew, like, I gotta do something for Matt. I got a buddy of mine that's coming in. A few days before that, Abraham Odishu ⁓ had just gotten released. And the first person he came to see after that, when we delivered a flag. And the person like brought all the sticks, Andrew Ferrence was Matt Brown. So we set it up on a Sunday afternoon. All right. Sunday afternoon, Abraham Odishu flies in. We got a flag in our hand. He's got a prosthetic and everything. And like the kid got a bronze star with Valor. ⁓ I remember like the whole thing that happened. RKJ3 goes through eight eight eight inches of up armored steel. It Penetrated his right leg. He still pushed it down to push everybody through the kill zone, get everybody out of there. ⁓ last thing I saw him was getting taken away on a Medivac, and he's sent sending me messages on ⁓ email. He's going, Hey, Sergeant Carr, man, I'm sorry, man. I ain't gonna be able to do Ranger School like with a what I go, well, okay, man. Like, I'm wicked, sorry. But like the selfish guy I was, I'm like, well. Would you want to come up to Boston like soon? Like, because I'm getting out. Like, is is that something you would want to do? Sure as shit. Like this kid, just like Matt's expression when he when we brought up the opportunity of running in a marathon. Yeah, sure. I'll come there. All right. It was really cool. Right? Flew in on a Saturday. We went to a Bruins game. Got a flag, coordinated with Andrew Ference. Andrew Ferenc brought sticks from everybody. Coordinated it that way. Abraham Odishu's there. It was like one of the coolest things that like because we started this whole thing with like who these are people are. Like Andrew Ferenc, like didn't could have been like, I'm like a pro athlete. So like you no, that kid, that dude wanted to come out on a Sunday afternoon with his family and visit Matt. And Andrew, I I got to be so close with Andrew in the years that followed that Andrew actually wrote the foreword. ⁓ to my book that came out in twenty nineteen, which is ⁓ really cool. Yeah having ⁓ having ⁓ you know Andrew's words in there and and I I think Lu Lu Lucas says it right, like he was so articulate in ⁓ not nothing against hockey players as as as as as we all were one of them once in a while. but he yeah his his brains stick out and I think that it was no sho ⁓ no shock that he went to Harvard after his ⁓ after his retirement. ⁓ but having his words in the book and reading what they meant, ⁓ really ⁓ really got the one got the reader hooked and ⁓ really set the set the tone for the entire book, which was great. That's awesome. Yeah, he's a g he's a great dude. We've been able to hang out with him a few times at the alumni games and you went to Montana with him. Yeah. Yes, that's right. Montana you guys went to Montana. That's right. We were in Montana with Andrew. Yeah. And Kevin Miller and all those guys and it was incredible. Kevin Miller's Kevin Miller's Great dude, man. Yeah. Yeah. Don't like, you know, like he's got a pretty good right hook. ⁓ yeah, no, you don't want to pistol. Does he still have knuckles that are like razors by any chance? Like or are they flat now? They're what? Those knuckles were like razors if he hit you, like but it was like watching him skate was like always like I'm like he usually held his stick like this, like I'm like, ⁓ my god, he's gonna chart somebody up. When he first came up in the min I refers when he first came up. I was like, Who's baby Bambi up here? And then he like then he starts beating the shit out of people that all my buddies from Selty is like, Who's this? Yeah, and I like, Yeah, let's bring him up. I think we I think we got another cop. The Bruins have another cup. If he doesn't have that, I agree injured. Yeah. He he if he doesn't get injured, we win the cup. I think we beat Chicago, yeah. I really do think that would happen. That was such a good thing. Yeah, those were good. Yeah. So everybody was like that you talk about that series, like somebody I was like if you really rewatch that series, like again, like how how much we had that team on the road. Yeah, I do too. I refuse to I but like somebody was like, so you watch that series, but I'm like, Yeah. They're like, What do you think was a turning point? I'm like, honestly, when we were when we were ta tie game and they scored a short handed goal. Yes. The shorthanded goal, Patrick Sharp scored a shorthanded goal with like five minutes left in the first period, and they went up two to one. And it was a shootout for the rest of that game. Yeah. And then like obviously I think Chicago won an overtime. But like was that the over that was the overtime game they won in Boston? Yes, that was the overtime. Game game six was we were up and then yeah. With the minutes ago, everyone's Derek Boland. Yeah. Everyone's Everyone's planning their game seven watch parties. My father was where are you gonna be? Where are you gonna be? ⁓ We were we were at the game sitting ten rows up from from the thing. Rooney got us the tickets and my father's standing in front of me and he's texting Don Garcia. Hey, game seven, here we go, Chicago. I hit him so hard with my hat, I go mush. I go, I cracked him right over the head. I like You say mush though. Yeah, I did. I yelled mush. I go we all did. I was with I was just sweeting his brother. We were calling him mush. Yeah. And then my mother left. She didn't see the scanning cup come out. She did not want to see it. My my dad left and I was like, this this sucks, but in how often you're just Me and the boys had a long conversation because we had three friends that were in there for the game, and they hightailed it out of there. And I think with the way it ended Can't blame them, but looking back. They were outside smoking the smoking the polymers with my mother. But also those same people were high tailing it out of there when they were losing to Toronto in the first round, and then they were scrambling to get back to their seats and nobody. That's is that ⁓ that is that Dave Grosher's most famous call? Yeah. Bergeron. That's a good one. I still tear up every ⁓ day. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That was that w ⁓ you know, but I tell you, like those are some really good days to experience Boston Bruins hockey. Yeah. And just hockey at the NHL Pinnacle, like the like obviously it's changed quite a bit over the last like twelve years. Not as yeah, you don't see as many fights, not as tough. Like that year the Bruins had the most most fighting majors. Mm-hmm. I mean, who who's who's gonna go after Bergeron or Craigie with McQuaid, John Thornton? Kevin Miller. You go on. There's a there's a lot of this. And then Greg you haven't even got the chari yet. Greg Campbell, Boychak. That defensive core was nasty. Boychak? Nasty. Ference was on that core. You ⁓ would have to be crazy. Every time they walked over to us, I was like, and he's a giant. Yeah. Right. Yeah. Tim Thomas fought that year too. Yeah, yeah. That was at that game, yeah. Well, fine. Well I mean, but like you reminisce about all those good times and and that that year, obviously, that was the twenty thirteen year. And that was just the year that the Red Sox and hot like Red Sox brought everybody together, but the I mean, the Bruins just did so much for the city. For what they represented, you know. Yep. And and honestly, it's like blue collar type hockey, blue collar type city. Get it the right way. And that's what they did. They sang everyone sang the anthem. Yeah, chills. Yeah. I mean, now talk a little bit about that because that was the one year you were sick and didn't didn't you ran ⁓ without Matt. Yeah. And it wasn't too long after you crossed the finish line that the bombs went off. No. you know, a very, very beautiful day, like the days I was running for the Boston Bruins Foundation and ⁓ I remember talking to ⁓ you know, it was just a bizarre day that like how it started. Kerry Collins, who was the ⁓ The CEO at the time or the executive officer of the Bros and Bruins Foundation. ⁓ She got in a car accident before and had to get escorted to the to the garden early that morning. So a state trooper like picked her up in her car, took her, you know, got her, you know, to the bus. She's on her way finally to the starting line with the entire Boss and Bruins marathon team. So all right, like here we go. Like, and there's like three people with shin splints. They're like, ⁓ my God, I got shin splints. I'm like, all right, we'll get that fixed. Hold on. You know, and like I had like KT band tape and I just wrapped it up, got a bunch of ice, put their shins in ice, and I'm like, you're gonna have to run like that for the rest of the if you want to complain about shin splints, you're gonna have to run like that. All right. See you later. They're the worst. All right, and it and then ⁓ we get to the starting line. My corral was like. And like the crazy part about this was like, this was before like people were really adamant about bandits running the Boston Marathon. Right? Nobody cared. Like, ⁓ I was in wave three. I got into wave one and I was gone. I'm like, I just want to get back to have some fun. And that's what I was doing. ⁓ I don't care. I get my buckle on and be buckle strong. Here we go. You know? Put on your fun hats. We're on our way. ⁓ But like the the ri the run was every like the day was so nice and like I remember like ⁓ getting through Natick, I'm like, ⁓ I will be. ⁓ at this place, and I will be at Daisy Buchanan's on Newberry Street by two o'clock, and I will be ISB'd by three. And in case nobody knows what ISB means, that is short for I smell blackout. So needless to say, like I'm a huge fan of like Captain Morgan and Ginger. And once I get those flowing. Stay the fuck away. Like like I'm serious. Like it is a good time. But don't get me too excited. Like it's not like in a violent way, like in a very fun way. Like, ⁓ fucking start falling on these. All right. ⁓ that's so good. Hundred percent. Maybe more. Saying this right in front of a bar. Right. I'm sorry. What was that guy's name in the shining with Jack Nicholson? I don't know. With the bot did I go in with that? It's fine, right? So like I'm like, I'm running. I'm this is great. All right, I turn Boylson Street. I had a flag in my hand and I raised it up before you know we finished the the race and I'm like I finished the race and like this dude from the medical tent's like are you sure you're okay? I'm like, yeah, dude, I just ran 26 miles. Leave me the fuck alone. Like I'm fine. And then all of a sudden, one explosion goes off and nobody knows what the fuck was going on. Like nobody nobody understood what was going on. Like somebody thought it was like a Like a sewer cap blew off or something like that. Or like a ⁓ Transformer or something. Under Underground Transformer. Like nobody knew what was going on. But the crazy thing about it was I was going out with somebody at the time and ⁓ I was explaining what an explosion sound like what an ID sounded. Like I had watched this movie and I'm not shitting you. Like I had I didn't really want to watch it just because like I didn't want to watch it. ⁓ but It was Friday. I needed something to do. So I was watching the movie Zero Dark Thirty. And there was a scene in the movie when the the car went to Camp Chapman and it fucking blew up. And and I and I'm just like, it's fucking leaning to one side, and then all of a sudden, boom, like fuck. And then it's just like I'm like shit. I go just sh just everything's fine. It's good. It's just a movie. But I had to explain to somebody what that actually sounded like. And what it would feel like, right? And sure as shit, like Boston Marathon that day, reality struck the city of Boston and the entire world. And the logistics behind it were like another one goes off. And people are like, ⁓ they're just shooting off cannons for the marathon this year. No, there were like Where above the marathon, you see people running and shit like that. Like nobody knew still what was going on. There people were ripping down the barriers. Like I had tended to about like twelve or thirteen people. ⁓ Matt's father, ⁓ Mike was ⁓ had seen it. It was ⁓ you know, I'm in a Boston Bruin singlet, like working on people, moving people out, all lower extremity injuries. people with trap and like Glass broken out from all the front stores. you name it. It was just like it was the worst possible case scenario you c you could have ever seen. But to have a medical trauma background in a combat zone, how do you put somebody into that situation after finishing a marathon, right? So if you really look at every little thing that you've done to try to get to that point, right? It was shattered. Like every person's accomplishment to train for that marathon. The emotion was taken out of every person's body. Like, you know, even worse than the 1986 Red Sox, for God's sakes. But like any emotion that you would have had for personal accomplishment and loving the city, an individual like Matt Brown, like we all do in the city that you love so much and your teams that you love so much and the Boston Marathon that you love so much was just Dashed. Yeah. And everybody was like, why our city, right? You know, like everybody's asking, like, what what do we do? Right? You know, it it took a little bit of time, and it was one of the most impressive shows of like, and I mean this of of support to get back everybody's emotion for the following year. Carry on the rest of that torch, Boston sports teams, city of Boston, and everybody. Put all this bullshit aside. Go out there and live your life. I'm like driving by strangers who are running on the side of the road, going, yeah, let's fucking go. Like, let's go. Let's go. I can I'll get out and run with you. And like, I'm running around the Boston College pond, like with Matt's chair in not this one, but like the racing chair with like weights in it and shit like that. And like. It was like, I'll be honest with you, like, it was the most surreal scene that has changed people's lives forever. Okay? And it's still remembered as one of the darkest days in this country's history. Okay? Yeah. Like right here. But I'll tell you what, in typical Boston fashion, gentlemen, the city came back. Yeah. The marathon came back. And they fucking rocked it the next year. With the most runners, what the most intense outpouring of security. Yeah. And pulled off one of the best marathons in the entire fucking world. Okay? I remember in twenty twelve I ran, you know, first one ran you ran run with headphones in, get pushed with headphones in, and you listen to music here and there. I I turn off my music. you know, that first mile in twenty fourteen, just to listen to the crowd the entire the entire the entire run in. ⁓ that that city and that marathon route from Hockington to Boston was alive and it was i you you could not get non emotional. Like you couldn't help but get emotional after every mile you got closer, knowing you're gonna get closer to the finish line. that was a really ⁓ unbelievable outpouring of support that we saw and ⁓ you know thirty five thousand runners saw that year it's it that's one that sticks into my mind to this day. ⁓ yeah. And it's it was just sorry about the F bombs, Mark. Geno. ⁓ Josh. We encourage I I get it. But like I'm Matt knows it's emotion. Hey. I know. But like I I just like I wanna just like that was I ⁓ so much emotion for like the city that day with Matt and like here we were like We were running for the Travis Roy Foundation too, and it was the most I've ever felt like as part of a team. Thanks to Map Brown in this city. 'Cause I don't think I'd feel any I'd I think I'd feel different any other way. And I don't and I would never want to change that day. No, of course. I I think you're right in that. You know, it it was such a horrifying event. Good dude. That's awesome. ⁓ but you're right. Boston You know, it showed what kind of city we have. It does. And and what kind of people we have. Yeah. And ⁓ you know, o of course the David Ortiz moment. You know, ⁓ the Red Sox winning that year. The Bruins go to the Cup. I mean it was i And the Red Sox went down Boyleson on their parade. That's right. That's right. Yeah. I mean I just got chills. Yeah. Because I forgot about that. How cool is that? Unbelievable. And and so it was a horrific event but again Every horrific vent has, you know, the other side of it, it showed what what kind of city we're made of. Do you know the next premier marquee running event was after that? No. The 2013 New York City Marathon. We've done New York City twice. Boston will always be number one in my eyes. Right, right. Always. But here's the here's the shitty part about the New York City Marathon. Well there's a crazy part and there's a shitty part, right? It's in New York. Like nothing. We gotta go on New York. Right, right. I know. There's a crazy part and there's a shitty part. But there's a funny known fact behind it. So, Matt, I I forwarded Matt like a couple emails the other day. And I've always really kind of kept it confidential with Matt's father, Mike. Like, hey Mike, this is what what we kinda like led up to. This is where we kind of like This is what got us to this point at the New York City Marathon. Matt, did you s was that the first time you actually seen those emails at all? First time seeing the emails, but I I had known that they they were not letting us run because I technically couldn't push myself. So because I couldn't technically push myself. That's the shitty part. They they they gave us some flack and said No, you're not in. And we said, okay, we have an army behind us that is going to hear this and it's not gonna sit well with them. ⁓ are you sure you wanna do this? And they said, bring it on. And we went no shit. Yeah, they said bring it on. And we we got we got news outlets, we had blogs, we had ⁓ postings and social media posts, and quickly they realized that they made the wrong decision. ⁓ and they they allowed us to participate in the twenty thirteen and then the twenty fourteen ⁓ New York City Marathon and now they have one of the biggest duo ⁓ duo ⁓ programs ⁓ in in marathon in the marathon world. Wow. So that was Boston always had you know quotes, right? They always had the dual thank God for them. Right. Rick and Dick Hoyt we owe we owe and we're not the only ones that owe so much to them, but they said they they as their as their motto is yes you can. Yes, you can and and and Dick got out there with with his son Ricky and they did I I don't know, thirty Boston marathons. Wow They've done close to that. Thirty plus easy easily. And they they sixty plus marathon and and and they opened the door for folks like us to be crazy enough to say yes in two thousand eleven and run that run that Boston marathon in two thousand twelve and It's it's a day that Lucas and I look forward to every year. Yeah. Did they ever explain how the hell you were supposed to push yourself? Yeah. I know. Well which is never had they never had somebody like us challenge their whole outlook of it, right? So it's like, all right, so Josh Golden, hey man, you you can't run the New York City marathon like pushing put pushing Mark Riley. Like, well, why not? All right, well, we're gonna get somebody behind it like our friend Gino. Gino is gonna get behind this and push this to another another level where it needs to go to, right? So Andrew Ferenc got on his Twitter. ⁓ again, thank you, Andrew. ⁓ we had other people from Hannity get on our side. We had the executive producer from Hannity directly email the New York Roadrunners, all right, with a very stern statement. We had the mayor of Boston at the time. call the New York Roadrunners at the time. I don't know if you guys ever I don't know if you ever knew that part of it, but ⁓ that happened. So it was just like we found out what they were trying to do. They were telling everybody else that ⁓ That that was their policy. Their policy was to be pushed on pushed under your own will. Or you need to be in a manual wheelchair. Yes. Because you use my arms. Right. You need to be able to self-sustain yourself to be part of that marathon to compete in the New York City marathon. And I'm like, this is not gonna sit good with me. So I ended up like ⁓ figuring out. what we had to do and I really I looked into it and I'm like, all right, so like you look into the American Disabilities Act and you figure out that I I said I went to a law a a law library for like a month. I'm not kidding. Like, I don't want to be the shocking most shocking part of the world. Right. Like, bring something to read to? I I kinda needed some I got cliff notes. The librarian hated me at the end of this. I'm like, I need something for this. Yeah, you're gonna find that over there. I'm like I've been here for a month. I I go I I'm like best friend with you. Like, no? She goes to me. Where are you going to law school? I go, ⁓ I'm assuming somebody. To the you to the university of Bunker Hill. The United States. I threw I threw it. I did go to Bunker Hill. That was a pretty school, by the way. Going back to Andrew. Yeah. Andrew was so smart that he went back and found runners in gumby suits and and folks that were dressed up in like it was Halloween and Andrew made a point where he said, like listen, you're letting these guys do it and then he showed pictures of us in the in the Boston Marathon. Like we were in it for the right reasons. Not not saying that their twenty six point two miles is you know means any less, you know, than ours, but like they were they made a mockery of it in in their in their costumes. Like we were in it in a in athletic gear and he and he just made a point where he said it would be a travesty and a a ⁓ big, big mishap if you don't, you know, let these guys in and then it spread it spread. It spread like crazy. So so we've I ended up thank you for putting that out because that's an important part of what got us to the next level as well, Mark, Tino and Josh. So like The whole looking into it, I had found out that it was just a a a written policy from the New York Roadrunners that created that. It wasn't a it wasn't a law that they were exemplifying that we couldn't do that. So we found that out. We had somebody with credentials, not me. Not you actually email and they're like, okay, yeah. Like and I got and I got the email directly from the person who was saying no, that they would welcome our invitation to the New York City Marathon within ⁓ less than a minute. I had sent that to Mike Brown and I had sent that to Matt. I go, guys, get ready to go to New York. ⁓ We're going to run the New York City Marathon. And those two were cool. And they were great. We got the right tires and everything. Yeah, it was good. It was good. It was good. Motorized. But it was good. ⁓ But that was crazy. The Red Sox were going down Boyleson Street, and we were going down. ⁓ over one of the bridges. So like ⁓ it was a memorable moment to set the tone for others to follow and it was such a great experience that I would I wouldn't I don't know. I do it again with Matt, but I I would definitely say I was grateful for the opportunity that we had in New York. Especially when the Red Sox just won the World Series. ⁓ yeah. And and so you were the first duo in the New York City marathon. I don't know if it was the first duo. You weren't the first duo. It was the first duo duo. But I I I I would go back and say I think it was the first duo in a situation, you know, like mine where okay. Where, you know, like th they they had duos before, but nothing like the ⁓ I I think maybe a situation like mine. and, you know, breaking down that policy, ⁓ You know, hop we're hoping that it opened the doors. We're hoping it opened the doors, you know, for more folks in situations like mine that could that could ⁓ that could participate. Yeah. So they they allowed us to be the first registered duo participants. ⁓ they had grant the Hoytz had done it before, as I I believe I I forgot like how they had put it, but we were the first registered duo participants in the New York City marathon. The poids were probably special guests or something. They were they were allowed like a guest. They were they were participating ⁓ I forgot what they what the woman said to me like ⁓ on like like a well I know they did it. Well they're like that it they technically weren't registered marathon participants, Mr. Car. I'm like Okay, well, you know, we we are. So It it led f it led the it opened the door for a lot of people to raise a lot of money for du ⁓ for duo categories and you know, here we are, like talking about another victory in New York. Yeah. But you so two New Yorks, a bunch of Bostons, Hyannas. Yeah. Any other places you guys Chicago. Yeah. I haven't done that yet. So that's on the list. So Chicago's on the list. Yeah, we we've we have fifteen under our belt. ⁓ yeah obviously the twelve Boston, two New York and that one cold one down in Hyan is that that ⁓ that February morning. But again that that got us into Boston and it's been ⁓ it's been awesome. Then you got the seven, seven and seven coming up. Yeah. Try that next year. Seven continents in seven days. Yeah. Seven marathons. Yeah. We'll have to get we'll we'll get you in touch with Becca and she runs the marathon. Do I get those ⁓ miles? You should get the air miles, everything. Yeah. You get the points. Yeah, you get the points. And you get first class, he's in the coach. That's right. I I'll I'll start working the crowd. It's wild. Since she like since she's been on, like we it's gone twice. So like I Follow with her on Instagram. It's absolutely insane. Like they're getting on buses and yeah, really cool. It's it she s I I always s people say, What's your favorite episode? That's one of them, yeah. Hundred and five or whatever we've done. And I'm like She was the most impressive ⁓ athlete we've had on. Yeah, I would say so. And all the people we've had on. That's really cool. Seven marathons, seven days, seven continents. Seven continents. Twice. Twice. I know. Seriously, man. Let's just get going. Let's you know, let's just get those miles going. Hey, we're in the sky right now, man. I wanna come just to watch and there. And I'll probably still pull something. But I can make it to the first country and go, yeah, I'm good here. Josh, like I a side note question. So like here we are. So Josh Dolan, great dude, big Bill Burr fan. And I'm still to this day, I'm still to this day, like I sell text of money in the walls. It's random. Well, like random. ⁓ I got money in the walls. The funniest thing about like you know he's dying laughing on the other end of the phone. Yeah. And you're saying got a helicopter on the roof, up and out, baby. You get an apocalypse. And you're reading it at dinner time thinking, where is this coming from? He's in his truck giggling. Yeah. Yeah. Right? So we we talked about 2014. Josh Dolan was on the radio, the Hillman Morning Show at 107.3, W A F in the morning. And ⁓ we connected. Through God bless him, I love you, buddy, LB. ⁓ still to this day is is is painful. But we connected just before the 2014 Boston Marathon. And for every time that we still connect and we still laugh at each other, we still have this story where LB wouldn't take the pen cap off of Gene Simmons' Sharpie. And it's still the funniest thing that like kind of ties like a lost pastime together. Like, what do you mean? Yeah, like it was at the witches, was the witches brew cafe. Like, wasn't it? It was the witches brew cafe in Salem. I'm on leave, by the way. All right. And like, and there's a live broadcast on the Hillman Morning Show. And I started drinking beers with LB at like 7:30 in the morning. And Yeah, I that's because he said it's a work at the lunchtime. We started drinking beers and like 9 30's coming around. Everybody's hey, like get it together. Gene Simmons is coming. And I'm like, Gene Simmons, like, how awesome is it for somebody who wears makeup on their face and puts high heels on? Loser. And he's like kind of walking in behind me. Like, and needless to say, like, I know not like I didn't think he heard me. I know he heard me. All right. Like, and I I know, I know he did because Greg Hill's like, but like in the back of Greg Hill's mind, like, Greg Hill's like, this is good for me because I I got beef with this guy anyway. So like, whatever. I it's fine. But that's just how it was. But it got better. And it got 10 times better. And like everybody's clearing out of the way. There's a line forming. Gene Simmons is sitting down. I'm here, LB right here, dude sitting, Gene Simmons right here. Looks back at L B and I. ⁓ And and and I'm like And L V is like I'm not taking your pen cap off Gene. ⁓ Why would he want to take the pen cap? Because he thought he was like that special. ⁓ yeah, I ain't taking your pen cap off, Gene. Crushes his beer, puts it down on the table. Five minutes later, like you could see he's kind of ruffled. ⁓ the girl, I'll take that right off. All right, that's fine. ⁓ five minutes later, there's a woman walking by with like a poppy seed muffin on a on a tray, like two of them. And Gene Simmons goes, ⁓ those look like really good poppy seed muffins. And L V goes, Yeah, hey Gene, if you probably asked the waitress for one, she'll get you one if you want. And it was just like, and it was just like the best, like chirp. with no like intentional feelings to hurt yours, especially after we said no to your pen cap gene. And it's still like it's still like the funniest story that Josh remembers like yesterday. And obviously like Brownie, I'm not gonna lie, like we were we were 10 sheets to the wind. And we still had to go to like a live concert that Kiss was playing that night at the garden. And I think they had just like recently changed it over to the garden. And I'm I'm like, where the The fucking garden's been like long gone guys. Why are we going? ⁓ they just renamed it. Bullshit. I get there. There's a big sign. Welcome to the garden. Like, ⁓ fuck. Not the fleet center. Not the fleet center anymore. That was horrible. it's so the worst I never called it the fleet center. It's still the worst ice in the NHL. I I Yeah, it's pretty sure. Montreal is the best. I thought Edmonton and Calgary was. I never made it up that part. I was gonna say it sits nice and flat, but yeah, I'm not taking your pen cop off, Gene. Cheers, LB. I love you, buddy. And ⁓ as we would always say, feed me. I'm hot. That is awesome. Right? And it's funny because he had no idea who LB was. And L. He's just like He didn't know. Like, and it would and it helped because, like, like, dude, you're Gene Simmons from KISS. That's it. I wanna rock and roll all night. ⁓ shut up. You know. We're definitely tagging Gene Simmons in this video. Yeah, I hope so. Hey Gene, his real name's Emmett, I believe. Emmet? Yeah, and he looks like you look at his Google picture. He looks like a gremlin. He does. He really does. I love it. Right? I guess we can cross off any donations from ⁓ Wait a minute. We kissed the side. I I get it. I kissed Someone would have to take the cap off to write the track. That story never happened. Never happened. We just made it up. Well it's funny that you have a story with Josh, and then we have the story from the Clatter Cup. ⁓ God. From I don't even know how many years ago. Ken Casey's Clatter Cup. That was twenty twenty fifteen. That was 2015. Yeah. And I was I was coaching. Yeah. You were the celebrity coach. You were the celebrity coach. I was a celebrity coach back in 2015, which is hilarious. ⁓ God. This is why I love people. You know? I fucking But we had a that was a weekend too. So with another great person, guard control, Kevin Joyce. ⁓ Joyce. Right? Kevin Joyce was probably the most on earth individual you you'd ever meet. One of the best. It's the one of the coolest dudes you'd ever meet. Yeah. Matt. And he like was the one who brought that whole team. He put he like handpicked. I got a Facebook message from him. He goes, I would love for you to play in this charity hockey tournament. All right. Like Kevin, I'll sure I'll play and he like We got like a chat group and the name of our that team was called Healthy Scratch. Yeah, yeah. Okay. Yeah. That was the name of the chance. Right? And he got he got past the coach. Yeah. Right. Because back then my bat I couldn't play, so I I I coached. ⁓ yeah, because they beat the shit out of you in the other day. Yeah, yeah. Is that what happened? Settled out That back issue still still with you. That back issue still with me. But that's why that's why I was coaching. ⁓ I thought that was one of the and Bobby Orr was there and ⁓ an entire fight broke out with the dude from the Jack of Diamonds. Jack of Diamonds. Jack of Diamonds was the name of the hockey team that really wanted to win this. Charity talked about it. They they were all about There's nothing about showing up at a charity game and really ⁓ trying to win. That's true, that is true. I do cheat in every every golf event too. That's a good point. ⁓ by the way, Bob Yor, LB would take his package. I don't blame him. I think he did. So funny. Gino. Like Mark brought up a really good point about like this this hockey tournament. Like there was a fight, like dudes, gloves off and everything. How do you perceive that in a hockey tournament? Worse than the Boston ⁓ the worst than the New York firefighters and cops the other night? That was a good kill. That happens all the time. That happens every year, but that happens every year with them. Like that was there was some history there. But not even close to like somebody like Brian Leach was on that team. Yeah, Leach was on that team. I was shit talking that team so much. More than whoever was refereeing. I knew the referees. And I was torturing those guys. That's awesome. And we had a blast. And our good friend Brian Haran ⁓ was also involved. Yeah, he was very much so. He was he was a very vocal candidate ⁓ on that team that day. And Brian Haran, this buds for you. Yeah. ⁓ but That was probably like I think for the most part, like that was just a coming out of like here we are with hockey. Yeah. And here we are. This is what brings us together. And I think for a lot of viewers today, like, you know, again, hockey brought out a podcast today with Matt Brown. Yep. And I think the best part about like what we're talking about and what we're doing today is that like we are all together one way or another, brought together by one of the greatest sports in the entire world. By by but also by one of the most inspirational people too. Seriously, gets you a little lost gets you a little lost halfway through the ⁓ podcast and brings you right back right back the landing. He knows how to set ⁓ up and knock ⁓ down, baby. Artist, absolute artist. You know what? You know what's funny? Like, let's be honest with you guys. Like we'll cut this. No, no, no. We'll cut this. No. You know, I know it's I I know here we are, right? I'll get my lawyer involved. Yeah. I I'll go to the library again if you need me to. You guys know something, like his chirps are fucking still there. Yeah. Okay? He is chirping like still. Listen, can't can't swing the mitts, I gotta knock knock you down. I love it. Right? I've gotta knock you down somehow. I knock you off the game somehow. I I I would like I made like some stupid comment like 'cause I'm like under wind I'm like winded and shit like one time and like the el the the elite runners went past us and I like like got a glimpse of like a couple of like of the elite women runners and and I'm like, ⁓ my god, they're flying, huh? And I like got a glimpse of like one runner and I was just like, Hey Nice earrings Yes ⁓ Listen, listen, that pin drop that you just heard. That pin drop that you just heard is the same. Same on the chorus. It was like, did he just say that? Like that is awesome. The girl turned. No. God no. She was trucking doing four minute miles. Yeah. See it. When she finished though, she was like, Some asshole said nice earrings. Nice earr. So she does four minute miles. That mile was three minutes and thirty seconds. I think that was three fifty. ⁓ And she did not go to Daisy's. No, shities that year, Gino, but like let's let's the the whole that was pretty funny, Matt. You you got us that's awesome. That was good. Well, it ⁓ there's so much more we wanted to get to, but we'll have to You'll be a repeat guest. You'll you'll have to come on again. ⁓ Absolutely. 'Cause I wanted to I I you you know military, that's like the you're my heroes. ⁓ you anyone who served. Dude. ⁓ we got a great connection with the Warrior for Life Fund and the Navy SEALs and ⁓ I wanted to kinda get into that, but we'll get into that. You got two minutes. You know? We well, no, we're good. We can st we can do what however we're We'll just we'll do a couple minutes 'cause you know's gotta get going. ⁓ you do? Yeah. I'm sorry, I thought that's That's alright. Do you guys talk about the the that was your jacket? The Army Ranger jacket that the Bruins used. Yes. That's in his house. Yeah framed. That was my next question. Fuck. Yeah, so you know, Lucas was I'm sorry man, I fucked that up. You didn't fuck anything up. Lucas you got nothing. Lucas was able to bring that jersey into that twenty thirteen team and you saw them up after at at every postgame player of the game, everyone was wearing that jersey and ⁓ it you could tell it meant a lot to them. They were honored to wear it. And ⁓ I was lucky enough, you know, when when Andrew left Boston and he was on his way up to Edmonton, he asked if he could stop by one day and ⁓ He ⁓ came to the door with a bag and who knew what was in it and he he brought it out and he said, you know, this this this jacket needs a resting spot here in Boston and ⁓ and he said that, you know, with with the attitude that I had put in at that point for the three years, not you know, not letting this injury win. ⁓ he he mentioned that ⁓ he asked if I would if I would if I would take it and ⁓ It's in the basement right now, behind glass, finally. ⁓ I I I had it above my bed for years and years and years. And when I went down to school, I always had it above my bed at school and lived with eight kids on the hockey team, junior and senior year, and that first and second weekend junior year, we'd come in on a Saturday night, 1, 2 a.m. The boys were feeling pretty good, and they would they'd they'd come into the room and be like, hey. Do you mind if I throw one on to send a picture to my dad? Send a picture of my boys? And you know, that that jacket made a lot of people happy and ⁓ you know, being able to ⁓ look at it, you know, every time we were in the basement, ⁓ really means a lot. Yeah, it really means a lot. Very cool. There were there were four of ⁓ there were Four of them custom made during a trip that Lyndon Byers, Andrew Ference, myself, and Sean Thornton was actually supposed to go on, but he ⁓ had other plans during that trip. So ⁓ that was ⁓ it was given to Andrew Ference at the 75th Ranger Regiment headquarters. ⁓ and it really like meant a lot to some of the guys who were there. ⁓ and the Army Ranger Training Brigade. ⁓ it meant a lot to the guys there that watched these pro athletes think that you know they had so much belief and ⁓ and what they did to protect the country and like the instillment in that still is truthfully speaking. I like we all come from very patriotic families. I will literally fight beside any man and I will die for any woman and I will will take that to my grave with me everywhere I go. But that day meant so much more. To watch these Army Rangers who've done like multiple deployments since 2001 have that made up and hand that off to those individuals. That's cool. That's really cool. And now it sits in this young man's basement, framed in glass, with metals, badge, skill badges, and it is in there with the scripture of how it became and how it was created. And if you ever want to visit it one day, get a hold of the address. Get a hold of us. You can give us that out off camera. But yeah, it was ⁓ my stalker might be out there. He might he was a little disappointed at first when I took it to he's a where'd the jacket go? I had to put it in a frame, man. Yeah. That was where it is also I think what did you give the giant flag that was in the studio is is it yeah so ⁓ in two thousand and nine it was our we s this is a this is a story for you know your viewers and whatnot. In two thousand and nine we ended up watching all of the American forces full pull out of all the major cities in Iraq. And I was watching that from a Black Hawk for a little while and like obviously You know, big world news is gonna be like, you know, just gonna show everything. But like everybody had already like pulled out of the cities before the news even was like reporting that we're moving out of all the major cities in Iraq. And for some of us who were just like still sticking around and kind of watching all this, it's like we were watching like the country just like still be unified, still be patriotic. And we had a flag with us that ⁓ the crew chief took on the took on a plane. It was a 160th crew ⁓ one one sixtieth SOAR crew chief. And ⁓ he was from Massachusetts and ⁓ and I kinda like told him about what was going on. And he goes, dude, I'm gonna fucking put this thing. We're gonna fly. You're gonna be on the manifest and blah well there was a really ⁓ a manifest. We just kinda went out and did it and he goes, we're just gonna go around and like, we're just like going around like areas in Iraq that like were desolated by like years of bombs and IEDs and you name it, like it was history in the making that is subtly like combined an American flag right now that we as a group all got to see. I got to technically really share that with some of the coolest people and it went to the ⁓ we We had given that the day after we presented the Boston Bruins with a flag on the ice that Andrew Ferriss was also there for. He's got a lot of chirps for this one today, isn't he? So, but Mark Stewart, we originally ⁓ I had known Mark Stewart prior to that. ⁓ did an on-ice presentation of a Boston Bruins flag that's still in their locker room. But we took a flag the next day and gave it to ⁓ Carrie Hale, Mistress Carrie. gave to the WAAF studio ⁓ as our victory to the American people ⁓ for what we experienced over the the last call it eight years and it was the best little humble victory that we all got to embrace with everybody in the WAAF studio at the time and members of the Boston Bruins. ⁓ as well. And ⁓ you know, it was probably the most humbling experience we've actually we've actually had to fly a mission from scratch, put it in a frame, bring it to its final destination. And there's the man who can witness it. Yep. Right there. It was the the coolest. Kurt Schilling was in the studio that day. He was wearing a first infantry division shirt. I'm sorry, a fourth ID shirt. He goes, Who are you guys? We're like, ⁓ we're like just dudes who were just dropping off a flag. Like he knew who the fuck we he fucking knew who we were. He pitched with a cut on his ass. Come on. Like you don't know. No, you fucking know. I got a shirt on. Who are you? But like it was the it was the mo it was the most humbling experience, like to like I really like think about it in this in this context, like in such a short amount of time, there was that and then there's Matt's injury and then not long after that, here we are running fucking marathons and we're celebrating a victory every day. I just I am the luckiest person to have the opportunity to run for the Matt Brown Foundation and be part of the Chirpin Zebras podcast that I Life isn't perfect, but this is perfect. And I really just like can't thank you guys enough like for everything this the community's done for Matt and the military. So very very humbling experience and a very lucky experience to be here and Thank you, Brownie. Thank you for having me guys. Thank you. Now, if someone wants to make a donation or get involved with the foundation or the marathon, how do we do that? You can go to mapbrown foundation.org. ⁓ on the home page there's the ⁓ rundown of you got we got we have in our events, we have ⁓ the giving gain up there. ⁓ you know, Lucas and I have the duo bib, we have five other runners as part of the official charity bib, part of the official charity. found ⁓ program. ⁓ so there's gonna be six or seven of us out there on marathon Monday and for those like real quick, you know, going back the marathons on is is a two is two weeks from today, on the April twentieth, but they're th this process starts months and months and months before and it takes dedication, sacrifice and you know, for Lucas and you know the our five other runners, for them to, you know, sacrifice some of their time, their efforts, their blood, sweat and tears, all for us to make someone's day a little bit easier and a little bit better tomorrow. It's ⁓ I can't thank them enough. That's awesome. So you go to map around foundation dot org. It's on there, get in touch. ⁓ if you wanna if you wanna think about maybe running next year. I'll think about it. Yeah. Gino. I I already thought about it. How about you, Josh? I'll wear my nicest here. Just just make sure you know, don't don't put any pen caps around us. That's all. No, I'll take it off. Don't ask to take a pen cap off. And this will drop before the marathon happens. This will drop ⁓ I think ⁓ not not this coming next week or whatever. But ⁓ it'll be out there so people can cheer you guys on if they see you passing by. we'll be at the after party. ⁓ we got the invite. Good, good, good to the after party. I might be going to the Red Sox game. ⁓ my ⁓ wow. Who's are they where what place is? 420, right? No, no, free tickets, man. I'll take it. ⁓ Listen, I'll t I'll take any anything to go hang out with my college roommate who I haven't seen since yeah, for almost a year. Who Willie Hayes? Ricky Vaughn? I'm not gonna watch one pitch. I probably won't even watch one pitch. I hope I hope not to be sober walking in. You're gonna go get the lobster mac and cheese fries or whatever they have. You're gonna be up like foolishness. ⁓ man, that's just like the Red Sox, really? Like, Jesus. This guy here is dead. Cross him off then. These guys suck. I think the the like That movie, so that's we feel like though. Major League. ⁓ it does the best. The Indians. I don't know. A set of white walls. The funniest one liner of that entire movie. And I like still laugh at it right now. I still laugh at it to this day. Like it's when Harris comes up to Pedro Serrano's locker and he he looks he looks around and he looks down and he goes wouldn't leave that rum sitting around this crowd of us. He like does it so perfect it's like and he that was not scripted. No. There's no fucking way. Like wouldn't leave that. Rom sitting around this group, how are you? So good. Very bad. It's Rom. Very bad. He gets hit with a bat. I think he should go to acting next, man. No, no no no. Not not with a guy who's like trying to like impress somebody with an earrings comment. And she's running three fifty nine minute miles. There's chance of catching her. Hey, may maybe improv's not your thing. Maybe scripts are. You've been working on stand up as long as I since two thousand fourteen. ⁓ man stand up that's his next thing. Yeah, I know. Mark, I need some help. He'll call me. Six months haven't talked to each yeah, he'll call me and just start doing pit staddies and nickel. We got it we we had a we got it? Y you know what? Pat Collins got me into that crap. Well, I listen. ⁓ I'll be I'll be back with you. I'll be in the back with the tomatoes. ⁓ Okay, I got it. You you help me with the marathon, I'll help you with the stand up. Let's go. And only one of us is gonna succeed. We should do some. Yeah. You got some one liners in there. Got a few. You got the timing. Twenty five. Like to be honest with you, like I think Gino is like the silent deadly killer out of like everybody. I'd be like, ⁓ my god, like that guy hasn't really said much, but I think he's taking it in right now. We're all gonna be dead soon. What? Yeah, he just said something that blew my mind. Like all right, that's cool. Well I mean yeah he is from South East. I know I know a few people. He knows people. I know his people. This is great, seriously. This is the short notice. No, we're we're happy to have you on and and our endings never no we they always go on and on. Good. So we you know what I mean? So I gotta go run. It's been awesome. Well ⁓ Gino came, Gino went. But we just an amazing story, an amazing two people. Like we said, just the hockey community and the hockey world is just a unique place. I feel like the next time we have them on, we should just have Andrew Ference here with us. Right. Right? I mean he was on the show. A lot of love given to ⁓ to Andrew Ferrens for Strong for good reason. A lot of love given to a couple of people in the hockey community we lost. Kevin Joyce, you know, it's the it we say it all the time, and we're biased. We're hockey people. Yeah. But the hockey community just rallies in a way that not other sports do. I always wonder that too, if I'm just biased or like we're biased because we're hockey people, but there's been a lot of people lately that know nothing about hockey and have kind of brought them into the hockey world. And they they have said that where they're like, whoa. This is not like Yeah. Football or like like nothing. And not to take anything away from the other sports athletes, right? Yeah. And plenty of athletes do things and you know and do amazing things in all the other sports. But hockey is that one community, you know, y everyone knows someone that knows someone. And it's small community and a weird one where we don't want new people. Yeah, well let's be honest, that's a Boston thing. ⁓ you know, or air is where you are from. ⁓ Yeah, but ⁓ we ⁓ but ⁓ another great one. We're on a heater. We are we are on a serious heater and and and ⁓ even though we were at a bar, no one partook in any alcohol. No well me and you don't drink, so well that's true. That's true. The tap water's gone. A couple episodes ago TR, I think, drank enough for ⁓ he drank enough for everyone at the parade. So still a great episode. If you haven't seen it, check out our episode with Terry Ryan and Dolo. ⁓ but ⁓ that's gonna wrap it up. Coming ⁓ again, we want to thank the range here in Hangham. ⁓ great place, great ⁓ space back here, function space, a great ⁓ restaurant. They got the driving range here, ⁓ all made possible by Kevin Mason ⁓ and ⁓ Granite Lynx and the Marina Bay Management Group. So we want to thank them. Want to also thank AOA Studios ⁓ in in Beverly and also want to thank our sponsors, the referees, Creese and Damon Financial LLC. Want to remind you to find us at chirpingzeebers.com, check out all our merch, and also like and subscribe on the YouTube and find us on all the social medias, the Instagram, the Facebook, and of course the TikTok. Thank you. ⁓ and that's the sign that we need to go. Money in the walls. Josh Dolan, Gino Bender Jr., I'm Mark Riley saying so long. We'll see you next time right here on the Tripping Zebers.