Bass and Bikes – Tim Commerford [Guest Poem]

Y’all know we range far and wide on Kaplifestyle. Music, sports, fitness…it’s all fair game. Sometimes the three come together exquisitely for a post.

My music tastes are eclectic, but Rage Against the Machine has been the soundtrack for the finest of my workouts. Several years ago, I met Rage’s bass player, Tim Commerford. Our kids go to school together in Malibu, and we discovered several overlapping interests. I play bass (poorly); Tim is a big sports head. He loves the Broncos and thinks that Steve Atwater hit harder than Ronnie Lott. Whatevs; I can’t have everything.

Beyond the music and sports interests, Tim and I share an obsession with training. He started lifting with me at “the Dungeon,” our nickname for the weight room located under the Pepperdine third base dugout. He was already in superb shape, but Tim must have added 5 pounds of pure muscle mass over a single summer. He was looking freaky ripped. The transformation speaks to his astounding appetite for the pain/pleasure combo.

As I shared weight training with Tim, he exposed me to his passion for mountain biking. I would never have taken a step like that without him. Endurance sports aren’t my bag, but I found Tim’s enthusiasm for the grind of riding alluring. Quite simply, I’ve never known a man with greater devotion to a hobby. There’s no money or fame to be found, but he has a full-fledged addiction to his bike. Thrashing through the hills is his high.

Tim is a gifted beast of a rider. I consider myself to be a decent athlete, but next to him on a mountain, I’m a child. I once decided to race him, 1000 yards up the Pacific Coast Highway. I think he spotted me 100 yards, and he still wiped me out in the uphill sprint. If you’re ever out on the fire trails of Malibu, you may spot him keeping pace with some of the best mountain bike riders on the planet.

I’m forever grateful for the years I spent riding with Tim. He inspired me to step out of my comfort zone and clip into the pedals. He didn’t stop there, however. He shared with me a poem he wrote about his love affair with riding. I was moved by his work and asked for his permission to share it for all of you to enjoy. What follows is our first ever work of poetry at Kaplifestyle. I hope you appreciate it as much as I do.

“CHURCH”

Duplicate days

Germinate essays

Seven will leak from the pulpit

Speak in resin, spoken in rhythm, rhyme with the pedal tone

Sintered metal owns the choir

Chromoly expired

Exotic begat exotic

Then carbon lifted the spirit molecule

Stiffer than steel, it rolls,no rules

That’s my religion

The mountaineers mission

Speaks in resin, spoken in rhythm, rhyme with the pedal tone

Roam in the wild, feeling stoned

Alone against millions

With every year I’m a child

Growing stronger

Born again as sacrificial

That strength is a token

Bent, not broken

Speaking in resin, spoken in rhythm, rhyme with the pedal tone