I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but our favourite bull headed scotsman, Gerry MacNutt, died in a freak accident this past weekend. I'dve posted something sooner, but I literally just found out when my mother phoned me from Salt Spring asking if I knew a guy named MacNutt.
Apparently he was photographing a motorcycle drag race (as he often talked about doing) and one of the bikes flew out of control and struck him.
Here is the story on the local Salt Spring newspaper:
<blockquote>
A high-powered motorcycle flew out of control and claimed the life of 50-year-old islander Gerry MacNutt while he was photographing a sand-drag race in Lake Cowichan on Sunday.
“He was a photographer and he liked to get the picture,” said MacNutt’s friend Marve Brimacombe, who witnessed the incident. MacNutt was standing on the edge of a 100-metre sand track near the finish line and taking pictures of the race when a rider lost control of his motorcycle, Brimacombe said. “The bike was veering and instead of jumping one way, he jumped the wrong way.”
According to a press release from the Lake Cowichan RCMP, MacNutt received immediate medical attention from first-aid attendants for numerous injuries after emergency services were called to Meades Creek Sand Drag Track at 12:38 p.m., but he succumbed at the scene. Both MacNutt and the motorcycle rider were members of Brimacombe’s Mental Racing Team that participated in the sport of sand-drag racing with 350 horsepower-plus, nitro-methane fuelled Harley Davidson motorcycles. “Gerry loved being around the nitro bikes and the filming of everything,” Brimacombe said.
Gerry truly lived his life to the max. I am sad to see him go, but I am glad he passed on doing something he loved.
I never met the man (exchanged a few PM about cars and bikes), but I can't believe how much of an effect his death has on me. Its has put me in a sombre mood to start the day.
As a tribute, I hope people will post some of the great photoshop work that was done with his picture. The "Macnutt Comes Alive" pic was great. I sure could use a smile. I was always laughing reading his over the top posts.
RIP Macnutt
I'm sure you are blasting through the gates in a muscle car of some sort.
I am stunned. My fellow Scot with whom I formed a friendship here on ehMac is gone and I grieve.
Gerry and I shared an interest in collector cars and it just so happened we both owned the same model, a 1970 Monte Carlo. I once mentioned to Gerry that I had been having trouble finding two rubber inserts for the rear bumper on my Monte. Two nights later my phone rang and there was Gerry, babbling excitedly that he had come across an old Monte he was using for parts and had removed the two pieces just for me. He sent them to me prepaid and wouldn't take a dime for them.
That would be the first of many parcels I would receive from him over the past few years, many included slick videos of his sand bike nitro racing team adventures. While he narrated the videos, he was always behind the camera and never once showed his face in the videos.
His penchant for calling me at all hours of the night with another anecdote on whatever had transpired that day was legend. I never minded getting up to chat as we enjoyed "a wee dram" each while on the phone.
The last parcel to arrive contained a surprise. It was something he had never mentioned and I think it took some time to build a trust between us before he parted with it. It arrived one day with no warning and was completely unexpected.
Here are the photos of it. I apologize for the size, but it needed to be large enough to read the post it note attached to the back. Thank God I kept it right where he stuck it. Sinclair is my real last name, thus the gift. It also contained the last words I will now ever read from Gerry and I wanted to share it with all of you:
This comes as a real shock and a great loss to his friends at ehMac.
We never interacted much, but I read many of his posts, and got a pretty good idea that he presented himself as a genuine fellow here on ehMac.
There is no doubt he will be missed.
I remember pondering his offer to send his spring water to any ehMac member, and I now wished I had taken him up on the offer.
Judging by the dozens of affectionate responses here in this thread, it is a given fact that he won't be forgotten.
Mark
dear old Macnutt, I gave up trying to argue with the stubborn old bugger a long time ago but always enjoyed reading his comments and points of view, he really livened up this place.....he will be sorely missed.
And what a guy too for sending over those bottles of his water too.....top man
He was doing something he clearly loved, so that is perhaps some consolation.
ehMac is a wonderful community and he was one of the people who gave the community such depth and strength - simply because of the way he expressed his deeply held views.
I somehow felt I really knew him.
To those of you who were close to him, my deepest sympathy.
Mr Mayor, for the last election there was a special section on ehMac. Perhaps for future elections it could be named in his honour. I am sure that would make him laugh.
I can't say that I really knew him, aside from occasionally reading his posts. What I can say though is that I doubt we'll see anyone like him here at Ehmac again - he was truly one of a kind. I send my heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.
Though my attendance on this board has been irregular at times, I always thought MacNutt would be here arguing, sharing a joke and just being a leading character in a warm online community.
Though my attendance on this board has been irregular at times, I always thought MacNutt would be here arguing, sharing a joke and just being a leading character in a warm online community.
I hear what you are saying. I have posted sporadically over the years, but whenever I come on I know I will see MacDoc, Posterboy and Macnutt going head to head, Dr.G playing the good cop, Sinc chipping in with his vast life experience, Gordguide and his amazing insight...etc. You just always expect things to stay the same, because of the great entertainment value, and for me the educational value. I've never been into politics, but over the years i have really learned a lot from this board, not just with politics but on a vareity of issues.
"... Dr.G playing the good cop ...." Maximusbibicus, actually Gerry and I had a little "game" going on when we would "poke" at each other and sort of "egg" on the others to get to the point and state their views on certain topics without resorting to anger. We shared a few PM's about this, and this was our little joke that we shared. "The World According to MacNutt" shall now be silenced with his passing, as this world is a little poorer for his death. Still, we are all a bit richer for his having shared a bit of his life with a bit of our lives.
I feel like I've been sucker-punched. Kinda figured this cat would always be around, though of course we all know better. I too always suspected that this professional forum blowhard was a gentleman in the flesh - as has been already said earlier, probably a great guy to have a beer with. To me he was always a sly agent provocateur who enjoyed getting a rise out of people... he believed in much of what he said, certainly, but there was also an aspect of sport to many of his taunts and casual hyperbole. He was, I like to think, a far gentler sort in person than what his online persona usually suggested.
He was a genuine Canadian, our MacNutt. There was a real archetypal quality to his online character that I recognized immediately and came to respect, even if his deliberately weighted statements often had me rolling my eyes. I will miss the consistency and dependability of his online character, and it's too bad I'll never have the opportunity to knock back a pint with him and witness the gleam in his eyes I always suspected was there.
"... Dr.G playing the good cop ...." Maximusbibicus, actually Gerry and I had a little "game" going on when we would "poke" at each other and sort of "egg" on the others to get to the point and state their views on certain topics without resorting to anger. We shared a few PM's about this, and this was our little joke that we shared. "The World According to MacNutt" shall now be silenced with his passing, as this world is a little poorer for his death. Still, we are all a bit richer for his having shared a bit of his life with a bit of our lives.
I will miss the consistency and dependability of his online character, and it's too bad I'll never have the opportunity to knock back a pint with him and witness the gleam in his eyes I always suspected was there.
Wow. Very shocked and sorry to hear of this. ehMac has lost a significant section of woodwork, here. He certainly gave these forums an identifiable personality.
Peter, I think I took it in your intended way. You were perceptive in your posting. Gerry and I chuckled online and via PM re my "The World According to MacNutt" postings. There were times I worried that he felt put down by these postings of his supposed books, but he took them in stride and actually liked many of these fictional citations. He shall be missed.
Maybe we could make a collective donation in his name to a cause that MacNutt was passionate about...? I wouldn't know how to set something like that up, but I would certainly chip in.
WOW!! I'm in shock and with a tear in my eye. I haven't been hanging around ehMac for some time now (a Shang alumnus), but something this morning told me to just check in and see what's going on. BANG!..first topic is this thread and I got a lump in my throat, hoping it was just another "Gerry bashing", but strangely suspecting something more dire.
I have to say that Gerry was a person, although controversial, that I always respected and he generated many chuckles for me and others who appreciated his candor, writing style, rebellious nature and tongue-in-cheek sarcasm. If the stories were all true, he experienced things that the rest of us will never encounter (or want to) and he was proud of this. He dedicated much of his sometimes limited spare time to this forum and participated in many discussions that may have otherwise gone nowhere without his relentless "pot stirring" :clap: He challenged and stood up to others having eloquent and diabolically opposed views on almost any topic...a real scrapper at times. I say these things with full admiration for him.
His unwavering views and debates generated long threads that I and many others followed, broadening our horizons of political and social issues and making us re-think (or re-enforce) our opinions. In short, he was very instrumental in readership participation and "education by discussion". For that I say, "Thank you Gerry et.al. for the thought-provoking discussions".
To say Gerry was a character would be an understatement. He was "Gerry" and made no apologies for it. He was part of the personality of ehMac and this place will never be the same without him. He was much too young to go and will be greatly missed by those who knew him (or even thought they knew him). My thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends.
May you rest in peace, Gerry. Whenever I hear the Steppenwolf "Born To Be Wild" lyrics, I will think of you. Trust me on this.
He certainly loved Saltspring Island, and it's pristine water and wilderness. But I'm not sure Gerry would approve of donating to 'some tree-hugging hippies' in his name
Perhaps the EhMax can contact Gerry's brother, firstly to pass on the condolences of the EhMac community, and secondly to ask if there is a fund to which people might contribute in Gerry's name?
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