A little Poem for Giant Man
There once was a man named Frank
He rode his bike like a tank
But he was quick and agile for big ol’ rascal
For him we have his wife to thank
But on “serpentine” trail, it only took three pedal strokes
To put the hammer down.
Poof! He’d drop you like a sad clown
And yeah, good luck keeping up.
With laughter, kindness, and deep sarcasm:
An uncommon blend of superpowers
Such big shoes to fill. He left too soon
In my heart there’s a lasting chasm
Jeff Mergler, June 2025
Sometime in 2005 I attended a meeting at Wally Tunison’s shop out of a desire to be involved in mountain biking advocacy. I remember thinking at the time that JORBA was struggling to get a foothold maintaining trails and advocating for mountain biking in many of the parks, JORBA as an organization and a brand was only strong in a few areas (Allaire was one) but even then the local clubs were the brand. JORBA was a distant parent. But I didn’t know Frank before that meeting but I know that I spoke up at the meeting and most likely advocated for a strong statewide organization and strong JORBA brand. I’m sure I ruffled feathers but not Wally’s because he introduced me to Frank. Wally did the talking and got me talking with some pointed questions while Frank stood and listened very intently to what I had to say. Frank had look when he was focused. I remember Frank watching me with a look of “who are you, what are you here for, will you be of any use to us?”
Frank later told me he was just sizing me up for “greater things”. At the meeting I volunteered to take over the JORBA website and overhaul it which I did that year. Frank and I talked a few times a week about the content details of the site and then we would talk almost daily where I would complete a page and have him review it and add his changes. This went on for a few months and we rolled out a much improved dynamic website that replaced a static HTML website that was hard to maintain. This project developed into a multi year working relationship then a deep friendship with Frank (who was the Allaire trail boss with Wally) and might have been a VP in JORBA at the time. We also talked incessantly and daily about how to improve JORBAs presence and brand across NJ, minimize independent unsanctioned tails in the parks, and create a more unified and legitimate voice.
Later in 2005 I ran for Executive Director with Frank as President. We were both elected and re-elected to these positions for about 6 years. As ED I was in charge of the day to day while Frank as President was officially the Chairman of the Board. However, we did not operate in the CEO/President classic sense. I was constantly on the phone or emailing Frank and we worked on all initiatives as equals. When he felt I was off or going too far, he reeled me in. When I felt there was another angle to take or a technical solution to a problem he was my biggest Champion. Basically we operated as co-equals and my ideas were tempered with Frank’s sense of what’s possible and what was unwise. We focused on recruiting more people into advocacy of their nearby parks through becoming a park leader/trail boss or becoming more active in trail work. We also identified parks that needed adoption or parks that needed guidance or training. We utilized IMBA to come to NJ two more times and do trail building workshops using their “Trail Care Crew”. These were always well attended, creating enthusiasm and instilled proper sustainable trail building techniques into the regular JORBA trail crews.
Between all the projects with JORBA, with all the successes and failures we always remained very close friends. He was the easiest person to work with that I have ever met. He was supportive and added value to projects and he was constructive and critical at the right times, always pointing out a risk or an overreach. But beyond that we got to know each other so well that we could predict each other’s reactions and comments. And the sarcastic comments and comebacks, these were early often and legendary.
Besides JORBA we would go on many many rides over the years. I lived two hours away but I probably rode with Frank 1-2 times a month from 2005 to 2012. We would meet in the middle or he would come up north when he wanted some of the gnar. We rode Six Mile, Chimney Rock, Allamuchy, Ringwood, Jungle Habitat and Wawayanda. We also downhilled at Mountain Creek and went to Stowe and Kingdom Trails in VT. Sometimes we’d meet other JORBA people or it would be just the two of us. We’d usually fall a lot and sweat too much and get too many mosquitoes, black gnats or ticks but it was always GREAT to be with Frank.
When I think back to those days, they were the best moments on the bike with friends.
The work we did turned into a lifelong friendship that 2000 miles and 3 time zones could not kill.
In 2012 I resigned from JORBA as Executive Director and as the Jungle Habitat co-leader. I moved to Spokane in 2013 and Frank came out for a visit in 2015. We rode for 6 days. There is no sarcasm out in the west. It was great to have a little sarcasm again.
My last big ride with Frank was 2024 at Sterling. It was a long day: I was out of shape and Frank had chemo the week before. We both suffered. It rained hard. No one complained. I was really proud of him and he finished strong.
Ironically I didn’t ride at Allaire that much. I think that Frank’s involvement in his local park and the fact that he did 8 group rides a week there, he was itching to get elsewhere and we did. It’s only when Frank got sick later did I spend much more time at the local park Allaire that he loved so much. And these rides were all the more special because it was his home turf and in the back of my mind I never knew if this was the last time I would ride with Frank.
My last full ride with Frank was in 2024 when Frank was able to ride his ebike and it was at Allaire. Chris and Ken were there too and Ken took some really good photos of that day.
TBC
