Welcome back Mike Leiby?

Bobby thanks for posting the video and Jay for sharing it. I wish I could have been there to see Mike's expression first hand. Thanks to Mark for his initiative and mostly to Mike Leiby for his service to our country and passion for our sport.

I would like to second that.

Thanks again Mike.

That was very cool of all you guys to do that for him.

very cool.

Mx people are the best people. Thanks for your services Mr. Leiby

Dr Mark and company that was a very classy act.

Can someone fill in the blanks? Sounds interesting. He got a pretty cool bike! How come?

That was awesome. Seems like a way cool guy that gave a lot for our country and the recognition was well deserved.

Great thread.

Mike just got back from a 15 month deployment in Iraq and Dr. Mark organized a bunch of people from Mototalk and Motodrive and other friends of Mike's to put together a welcome home and thank you for your service suprise. Just goes to show that Moto folks are some of the best people around. Dr. Mark is a pretty cool guy to have as a friend as well, never met Mike or Dr. Mark except through the boards, but from what I can tell, great guys.


Welcome Home Mike!

I was honored to be a part of this whole thing, what a great day for motocross!

I'll post up a full story tomorrow.

It was cool, and a lot of fun...pretty much the best of message boards in action.

I too was honored to be a part of it all.

Welcome home Mike.

Bump

I'll write up a post later about the whole dealio, but for now I have to say that was one cool friggin weekend!! Mike deserved it all!

x2

That was awesome

Welcome back, Mike, and good for you AZ guys making it a celebration on two wheels.

Wow, just freakin wow.

Let me put things into just a little bit of perspective. You all know I just finished a 15 month tour with the usual heartache, boredom, frustration, homesickness, ass busting work, and depression that goes along with it. Some of you also know that my brother was killed on his bike 4 months ago while I was over there which just put this whole experience over the top. A seriously low period in my life.

Coming home was such a huge relief and just getting used to normal life back in the states with my family and friends has had my head spinning for 2 weeks. I could have never asked for anything more than the unbeatable pleasure of being home again.

Then you guys go and spring this whole thing on me. I have to say I am completely blown away. I can never thank everyone enough but I want to say that I am truly amazed and totally appreciate all the selfless thought and work that went into making this happen. I actually think I got "neck-pump" from how much I was shaking my head in disbelief!

You always hear the stories about how the Vietnam Vets were never thanked for their service. Well, I am one Soldier who can definitely not say that! I only wish that every person coming back home could receive such a kick ass welcome. To all my other military-moto brothers and sisters, I want to thank you for your service as well. I've got a spare bike that you can ride if you're ever in the area.

So, how do I like the swag? The helmet is a treasure I will never part with. David Bailey has been a hero of mine since I was a kid and has always inspired me as an awesome example of the great things humans are capable of.

The bike, wow. Unreal. I used to love riding 125's when I was a kid and was actually pretty fast on one. However, I've only ridden 250's and 450's since about 1993. DrMark picked a YZ125 all based on 1 night of riding. The last chance I had to ride before I deployed he let me take his YZ125 out on the track. I had so much fun on that thing it took me right back to being a kid again. So he decided to get me a 125. It was like being a factory rider. Donny at ZR1 suspension had it all set up for me and ready to rip. It had brand new tires and Mark had gone over every inch of the bike and set it all up. PD441 and the guys at DeCal works did an amazing job on the graphics. I was seriously blown away. There were also lots of other goodies donated by GuyB and the VitalMX sponsors. Too much cool stuff.

The track was simply awesome and the riding day was a total blast. It was really cool to see so many people from all over the world there and everyone was having a great time. And this was all before the weekend was capped off with more partying and some good racing at the SX.

Times like this remind me that moto people are the best people in the world and there are actually a lot of great people on this board. Even before this homecoming, lots of moto-folks helped me through my tour in Iraq with encouraging emails, care packages, and even pictures of their kids and dogs! You would not believe how much that kind of stuff means when you are over there.

Again, I want to say thanks to everyone who pitched in or helped me in any way during my tour. Your care and brotherhood is recognized and deeply appreciated. Thank You.

Welcome home Mike.

Watching that stupid video made the stupid watering truck over-water my stupid eyes.


There was a VERY special vibe in the air that day.

Mike came home safe and now he's back home with his motocross people.

And that's alright.

I was lucky enough to see that in person and Rup is right. There was a very very special vibe. It was such a great day! Seeing that to start off the day, then riding all day on that awesome track and after TJ's house! Thanks for the invite again Dr. Mark!

Welcome home, Mike! Your service is very very appreciated, you deserve everything you get from here on out. Kudos, to all who participated in this great event.

"Welcome home friend."

Welcome home Mike.
A few weeks ago when we heard you were coming home, I suggested some one lube your chain and filter and have your bike ready to go. It looks like you got the bonus plan, enjoy it.
Thanks for your service, and helping to keep us free.

Welcome home Mike, sorry we couldn't make it out there, the boss is a real dick here at work.

Big props go to Dr Mark on this one also!

Yep was an awesome day. Managed to catch up with Mike after the Phoenix race as well. Top shelf bloke and look forward to hopefully having a beer with him in the future again.

Thanks to everyone involved in organising it, TJ, DrMark.

What a great weekend! It was awesome to see people come together from all walks of life and enjoy a common bond. Never under estimate the power of the moto board!

Welcome back Mike, it felt almost as good to give that stuff than to get it.... almost

Thanks to Dr Mark for setting up the bike and TJ and his family for having us over.

It was an awesome weekend for sure...thankful for the opportunity to be a part of it.

I am very honored to have been a part of this .. Mike I have never met you but your a moto bro who has given of himself to protect me and my peeps .. God Bless you bro

Burrito