Donald A. Proudfoot, ex-owner of Titan Motorcycles (second era), was shot in the head and killed this Monday morning in his girlfriend’s home near Anthem (north Phoenix), Arizona. His girlfriend Hope Smith was not injured and called 911 at 4.30 AM. The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Homicide Unit is still investigating the shooting in the 300 block of West Irvine Road. The Sheriff’s Office said it was not clear if the incident was a home invasion. At this point, Hope Smith is not a suspect and nobody has been taken into custody. As the homicide investigation progresses I will post more details when they become available.(see local Arizona News Video).
The original Titan Motorcycle company began production in 1995 and was the first custom motorcycle company to produce in volume. Original Titan owners went public on the NASDAQ in 1997 and some would say that was the beginning of the end. The management failed, then dealer and customer support failed and Titan filed for bankruptcy in 2001. Donald Andrew Proudfoot owned the largest Titan dealership in Florida and stuck with a lot of inventory went to events sell it. He also went To Titan’s headquarter and bought the company in July 2001. It is not clear if he paid anything to acquire the remaining assets. Titan number 2 was born but was never very successful due to inferior products, new competition from companies like Big Dog, American Iron Horse and many other Harley clones companies, and also because of a declining American motorcycle market since the beginning of 2006. In January 2007 Titan Motorcycles Cie (TMC) filed a voluntary petition for relief under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code. In August 2007 an asset purchase agreement was signed between TMC (Titan Motorcycle Cie) debtor in-possession and Arizona Motorcycle Works as buyer where all assets of Titan were sold to Arizona Motorcycle Works. An Arizona bank called FNBA filed an objection to the proposed sale of now-bankrupt Titan’s assets to Arizona Motorcycle Works claiming it has a first rights lien on Titan’s assets and that the sale price undervalues the fair market value of the property. The bank also claimed that Titan’s owner Don Proudfoot and Hope Smith, a principal in Arizona Motorcycle Works, have a personal relationship (girlfriend) and that the latter company was subtenant of Titan’s and that this relationship had not been disclosed. These two allegations called into question that the proposed sale represents a good-faith, arms-length negotiation” between the two entities, the complaint claimed. At the time, FNBA stated that Proudfoots’ company, TMC Acquisitions, owes the bank about $813,000 on a $1.5 million business loan that the company took out in February 2006. At the time Don Proudfoot commented in my Blog to answer accusations formulated against him by some of his vendors, dealers and clients.
My condolences go out to the Proudfoot family in their time of sorrow. Rest in Peace Donn.
Over & Out,
Jeff
Condolences go out to Hope as she is a great woman.However as many people as Donn screwed this is not a overwhelming surprise,sorry he died, however it seems he burned or pissed off everybody he did business with leaving them holding the bag and his pockets full!
Wow- the FNBA is putting out hits now? TARP money must be getting pretty thin……..
Guess he wont have to be in court in Florida(17th dec,2008) on FELONY charges of altering VIN #’s….and he told his “buddy” they were going to florida to “work on his house”….maybe tryin to keep his ass outa the BIG HOUSE
Wow, I am still in shock after hearing this news this morning. Hope, you are in our thoughts and prayers, Donn will be missed………
Hi Cyril,
You may remember that we met at the V-Twin Expo a couple of times? Bar any acts of God, I will be there walking the floor this year, too. I like your BLOG and started one of my own about a month ago. Please take a look at Diamondback Bobbers and I hope that we can have reciprocal links. Please wish me well.
However, as for the Don Proudfoot post, I am not one bit surprised… The only remorse one should have for Don persoanlly is that they wish his family well and that their fellow brothers and industry members that helped prop up Titan & Don, through his bankruptcies, get some monetary recourse. As you may well be aware, Don almost always operated in a chagrin manner and screwed many suppliers and people in the custom motorcycle industry. The records speak for themselves. May the ashes to ashes and dust to dust settle where it may. Boss Hawg
Why drag up dirt on someone who is gone from this earth even if the crap is true. When somone passes it’ s best to just let it all go.
Hearing this news is very sad, at one time Don was a customer of mine, by the way I ran my company it did not allow people to steal from me. People can only steal from you if you have bad business practices. Rest in Peace Don.
Burn in hell Don
Terri, you’re pretty stupid to say that people with bad business practices get are the ones who get stolen from. Good people get stolen from all the time whether its personal or business. that was a VERY STUPID comment. Doesn’t surprise me that someone finally got him. He got what was coming to him. This should be a lesson for manufacturers in the biker community, that what ever BAD business practices, you do to screw your dealers, catches up to you.
“LET HE WITH OUT SIN CAST THE FIRST STONE” I am surprised I did not know there was so many saints on this blog. You assholes should be ashamed of what you have posted here. Whether it is true or not he has family that may see this and they have enough to deal with right now. Go in peace Don and may God Bless your family in this very hard time.
Concluding many bike / finance / warranty deals with Donn, I can only suggest that some days were better than others. Nonetheless, Donn had a certain way about him that made one almost like him, to a limited extent and always with a cautious “aces and eights” posture. So be it.
We spent much time in Sturgis this past summer with Donn and Hope.
Plenty of fun, always a surprise, and never a dull moment.
Regardless of the stuff that made us all say “What the F*#K, Donn!”, he was one of a kind.
Bottom line: Ride on, Donn! See ya on the other side.
Hope, all the best to you and please go easy. Our thoughts and prayers always.
Aloha!
T.
THE WORLD IS A BETTER PLACE
Twin Gears, sorry that the truth hurts. Obviously, you were stolen from by not being smart.Good people or bad people , doesn’t matter. You can only be stolen from if you set yourself up to allow it. Alot of people in the industry, do not have good business practices and that is why they were taken advantage off. justmyopinion great comment. Enough said.
I had the pleasure of meeting Don and doing a few shows with him and Hope and Bruce earlier this year…….It doesnt matter how bad of a business man he was, its really sad that someone’s life was lost due to it………I really feel for Hope she is a really nice good person………
I know there is allot of negative talk out there about him, but I really liked the guy personally……..he had that personality about him……..
Rest in Peace Don………..
Yes, Don was not a loved man when it came down to his business ethics
However,in his personal life he was very friendly & allways conducted himself as a gentelman.
Despite all of his indiscresions, I still shed a tear for the cruelty of his fate.
My deepedt sympathy to Hope & his Family
Chel
Still the world is a better place
Shame on all of you for bad mouthing him. Clearly you didnt know him as well as my family and i did. He was a great friend and alwasy there for us and helped us out wit anything we needed. Donn had a great personality and could make anyone laugh. He also was doing business with my father and nothing went wrong. We miss and love you donn and for hope we are here if you need anything at all. And for the people that were saying he got what he diserves, how dare you say that about him. wishing and thanking he is gone, because the people that say though’s things always get theirs too! Rest In Peace Andrew Donald Proudfoot. Always in our hearts.
I have read all of the above comments and would like to say this… Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. To Each, Their Own. I have known the man on a personal, business, and intimate (relationship) level for many years. Yes, It is true that you can only be screwed by someone if you LET youself be screwed….. In that reference, yes, Donn did a have a certain quality about him, and yes, he “posed” himself as a good business man, and yes, he got the better of a LOT of people… Fact is, he was one of the biggest self-absorbed, egotisitcal, controlling, cheating people that one can only hope to never come across in their life. Thing is, Donn had a gift; to spot people that he could easily manipulate (or control). Please know, I don’t mean any disrespect towards the people, or businesses that got suckered by Donn, as i’m sure you’ve worked real hard to make an honest living and to be where you are today.
Donn always placed himself high up on a pedestal keeping everyone else below him, where he thought they belonged. He had no respect for anyone, including (sorry to say) Hope. He always wanted more without taking the time to appreciate what he already had. What happened to him IS, indeed, a tragedy and VERY unfortunate, but c’mon….. Everyone who knew him well knew it was only a matter of time before Karma caught up to him and kicked his ass. My heart and purest condolences do go out to his mum, for no parent should ever have to experiance out-living their child… and also to his (ill-legitmate) child(ren), whom he never wanted anything to do with BUT did send those monthly child support payments. And, from the bottom of my heart, i do hope this case does NOT go unsolved!!!! As for Hope, this is a terrible thing for her to have experienced but I have no doubt that she will make it through, as now she is set for life (being awarded what should have actually gone to the banks and other suppliers Donn owed).
Sadly, what’s done, is done. No matter how good or how bad, life must go on!
Had a lot of good times working with Donn on the road and as a Dealer for many years. Donn was not perfect, but none of us are. Hope is a great person and was the best thing that ever happened to Donn.
Donn DID NOT deserve this!!!!
I will miss him
Rest in PEACE DONN
IF THERE IS ANYTHING I CAN DO FOR YOU HOPE, PLEASE CALL ME
LUV YA
I was shocked but not surprised!
Donn burned me personally and a whole lot of people.
I do not like to see bad things happen to anyone.
When someone has hurt me, it’s never a good feeling
to see the karma come around. It seems to always come
back to the other person worse than I would ever want to see.
Hope has always been nice to me and I feel for her and Donn’s family.
Wow! What a holiday so far……
May we all find peace this Christmas season.
Seems like that name Titan has a little curse to it. Never met or dealt with Don, I worked with the original Titan owners and they were bad enough by themselves. I will say that even though everyone is entitled to their opinion that maybe one could temper what they say in a public forum where the family and loved ones he left behind can see it. Never thought it was good karma to speak ill of those that have passed on.
Donn:
We all will miss you and all the FUN we always had when we all partied. Remember Key West bike runs, bike weeks, white water rafting, blue ridge mountain runs ect. That’s the way we will always remember you and may your rest in Eternal Peace and have the Lord Jesus Christ give strenth to all your family, relitives and friends.
Love & Miss you Forever
Hope,
I’m so sorry for your loss and what you must be going through. You and Donn were always kind to me and others. I don’t think most of the people posting here know how you guys would take down-and-out people in, give them a roof over their heads, and take care of them. How you would always come back from all the Shows with gifts for all the employees (I still have all the kewl shirts and jacket). It’s sad they never got to see what I saw when I was around you guys. Sure Donn had his moments like all of us and was a tough businessman. I would guess that the pissed off posters here are exactly the same way. Usually, if something pisses you off that much, it’s something you do yourself that you are in denial about and can’t accept. You guys did everything you could to try and save Titan and the employees that worked there and we all appreciated it. I wish you only the best and am truly sad about this whole thing. Stay strong beams 🙂
Love Always…..
The largest memory I have of Donn was how after 9-11 he asked all the suppliers to donate materials for a bike to benefit the families involved. After S&S, Area 5150, Daytech and others donated new parts and paint, Donn built a bike out of scrap from the Titan shed in the back and used the new parts to build a bike for profit. We sadly joked at the time when he had a poster commissioned, “Remembering is not enough”, no, Donn had to profit from it. A real class act. Donn could be engaging and charming for sure. But in the end, he was petty thief and pathological liar.
Not surprised.. Nor sad about it. I agree.. the world is a better place with one less person to take advantage of good hard working people. Never is it a good quality to BE ABLE TO take advantage of people trying to make a decent living, and they put their trust in a person. Truley, this murder, was not a mistake, nor was it something that wasn’t coming.
To all of you who have said bad things about Donn. His mother is still alive and she is taken this death very hard. What is worst is that she is pallitive. Please remember that if this was a family member of yours you sure wouldn’t want anyone typing bad things about your loved one. Yes there are evil in our world but we have to sometimes look pass that in the end of someone life expecially in this time of terrible homicide that took place. Hope you are a very nice person and you made Donn happy and hope that in this time of sadness that you have us here you know where to find us. See you very soon Hope.
I’ve known Donn for 26 years.I was fortunite enough to meet Donn when he was in the Hair Business.He was a Blast.We partied and laughed so hard I hurt.He was The Greatest Guy !We then Rode Harleys for years Laughing & Partying .Never a Bad Moment .He was always so generous to all around him .He couldn’t give enough to his friends and Charities alike.He talked of Love for his Mother allot.He loved visiting her in Canada.He sold the Hair Business and the Real Fun began. The Boating & Trips started.He demanded we all show up to go Boating .He again was so generous to his friends and the funniest person that I know for years and years.The Trips to Key West, the trips to Daytona when we rode 24/7 and laughed 24/7 …The Vegas FUN Laughing Trips.The Bahamas FUN Gambling Trips.I have never laughed or felt more loved in my life than being in Donn’s presence .He was a Blast to so many.He had friends all over the world that Flew in from everywhere who loved him deeply and he made you feel Loved and wanted .I logged in Thousands of the FUNNIEST , BEST , Most Terrific hours of my life with Proudy !
All of a sudden this all changed as he had to buy Titan.We all tried to talk him OUT OF IT ! It was changing him.He wasn’t the Donn we had all loved.He was different.He was out to prove something to Everybody that he NEVER NEEDED to do… He made Millions in Hair and he made Millions in Real Estate. He needed to keep doing Real Estate and go back to RIDING his Motorcycles NOT BUILDING them to Go Broke .His friends started shaking their heads.The bad stories started surfacing , one by one.We pleaded with him to get rid of it. he wouldn’t.He was on some kind of STUPID MISSION
I am so sad to read any bad press about Donn here .If you had known him before this Motorcycle Mess you would’ve Loved him and laughed with Him..He was a Blast. He was a Very Generous Man.He became very Humble in the last year as he returned home a few times in 2008.He was done with this Nightmare that was breaking him and changing his FUN Personality .The unfortunate nightmare was that the Nightmare wasn’t done with him Yet . I spoke with him 2 days before he died.I’m glad I did .The Old Donn was coming home for a couple of months to actually Party like the old days. We were all so excited ..The Motorcycle Nightmare was about over for him..He was starting over back in Real Estate that he knew so well.
Unfortunately , someone decided that his losing Millions of self made dollars wasn’t enough of his Fate and decided to end his life as he was moving on . I’m so Sad for his Mother and Hope who tried and only did POSITIVE things to help Donn . I’m sorry that the Courts couldn’t be used instead of a Gun.
I’ll miss my friend that I knew 26 years. I’ll miss the Fun that we had and the New Fun that was coming yesterday as he didn’t board the plane.We also talked about Canada Next Summer the other day .
Everybody has a few bad years..he had 8 out of 54 …
I feel for his enemies as he even got me once too. He did appologies to me later and made up for it 100 Fold in his generocity … I’d like to call his Motorcycle ownership – BiPolar ..If you were his friend , he couldn’t do enough for you. If you were his client or employees ..It seemed it wasn’t a good thing.It was disaster , Bad Bi Polar behaviour …
I hope more of his friends will find this Blog and post more of the fun and the old days. His new days were stolen ..He never deserved this no matter what happened. people on Wallstreet & Mainstreet have SCREWED us all 1000 Times worse than Donn and they weren’t Killed. They got us for TRILLIONS not Hundreds like you to a few Bikers .I guess it’s all relevant. Hundreds to a Biker is like Trillions to RICH White Collar People… It’s relevant in the Big Picture of NEGATIVITY leading to your Death in the Motorcycle world .
God Bless you Donn and Family and Hope and your Blood Daughter.
Donn,You will be Missed by Thousands of people that you touched in a Positive Way before this Motorcycle NIGHTMARE that did you in!
No one can take away the Laughs that he permanantly Imbedded in my Brain…. Thanks Donn ..
God Bless !
Hey Chrome,
Wow. You must have known Donn better than most. Thanks for the insight that there was a person below what many encountered as a very evil person. Unfortunately, I only knew and worked with him during his “dark” period and that’s the only memory I have. I guess the old proverb rings true for Donn: “For what shall it profit a man to gain the whole world but lose his own soul”. Hopefully now he has his back.
Chrome!
I hear you, and we feel the same way! Donn and Hope are awesome friends of ours and we have become very close over the past couple of years. Never had a bad incident at all with him. He has been so generous, open and always lots of fun to be with. He is like a big teddy bear, I cannot believe some of these comments and we are in shock to read them. Maybe he had a bad time with the company and sometimes as human beings we do things that we think are a good decision and we wind up hurting someone, but I do not believe it was intentional.
We spent good times together riding to Rocky Point, having fish fry dinners and Christmas together. We have met his other Canadian friends and they are all awesome too. We just saw them Saturday and spent time partying at the Christmas party and talked on Sunday. Plans were made to go to Florida to meet up with them and ride to the Keys. This is such a terrible tragedy to such a good friend, I just cannot believe its real. Whoever did this to him will have to live with this guilt for the rest of their life and at the end of the day whatever Donn did to this person can never be taken away, returned or reversed because they are the one that has not let go or moved on. Taking someone’s live does not change any of it, it only hurts the people that are left behind.
We love him to pieces and he will be dearly missed.
My prayers go out to Hope and all the extended friends that knew him like we did.
Best Friends forever
WHO ARE WE KIDDING WITH THIS LATEST SITUATION IN THE DYSFUNCTIONAL BIKE WORLD? THIS INDUSTRY IS FULL OF SNAKES,LIARS,EGOCENTRIC BACKSTABBERS, AND WORST OF ALL DREAMERS! IT IS A SHAME THAT THIS HAPPENED TO DON BECAUSE HE IS WAY DOWN ON A LONG LIST OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE SWINDLED, CHEATED, AND RUINED PEOPLES LIVES. IT SEEMS THAT THIS IS “BUSINESS AS USUAL” IN THIS INDUSTRY. AN INDUSTRY THAT POUNDS IT’S CHEST AND SCREAMS BROTHERHOOD, IN THE END MOST MANUFACTUERS, BUILDERS, SHOP OWNERS ETC ARE JUST OUT FOR THEMSELVES AND HATE THE BUSINESS THEY HAVE CHOSEN. WHO’S TO SAY WHAT ANOTHERS FATE SHOULD BE? AND WHAT IS FAIR? I KNOW THIS ,THAT OVER THE LAST 10 YEARS THERE HAVE BEEN A NUMBER OF CLASS A FUCKINGS BY MORE PEOPLE THAN DON. HOW ABOUT THE AMERICAN IRONHORSE CRASHING?, OR MAYBE KC CREATIONS BURNING UP?, OR APC, PARAMOUNT, ULTRA, SEXTON, IRON EAGLE, AMERICAN EAGLE, WILD WEST,FOUR HORSEMEN,CREATE A KUSTOM,SURGICAL STEEDS,INDEPENDANCE, AND A BUNCH MORE……..IF YOU THINK ALL THESE THINGS CRASHED AND DIDN’T PRODUCE A HELL OF ALOT OF CASUALTIES THINK AGAIN? I WONDER WHO WE WILL READ ABOUT NEXT? I DONT THINK THERE IS AN HONEST BUSINESS IN THE MOTORCYCLE BUSINESS. DON KEPT THINGS BUSINESS AS USUAL AND HE WILL BE MISSED BECAUSE HE WAS FUN TO WATCH……..
Donn..
I had the pleasure of being one of your friends, AND I DO MEAN PLEASURE.
He had a strong side which made him rise above most ignorant business people. If you were taken in by him..then you are to blame not him. He earned and had my respect. I would have remained his friend even through all his darkest hours.
He made 2 bad decisions, getting involved in Titan motorcyles and opening his door to someone with a gun in his hand.
God Bless you Donn..and your family and all the true friends you left behind. Your at peace now.
You will be missed and Earth is NOT a better place.
Reality Check,
Ever hear of these company’s:
Enron,
Ford
General Motors
Chrysler
Freddie Mac
Fannie Mae
Washington Mutual Bank
Bank One
The Wall Street Group
Harley Davidson
The United States of America Federal Operating Budget
etc, etc, etc
It just isn’t the motorcycle industry that is fucked up ….. the entire economy is screwed. Unfortunately, in business, some that play win and some that play loose ….. while all others standby on the sidelines and armchair quarterback.
Whatever Donn was or was not is moot at this point ….. he has already answered to his God for his actions in life. The bottom line here is, we all should be respectful of the Proudfoot family as it is they who have lost a loved one.
Over & Out,
Jeff
The Donn I know was warm and kind. I was his nieghbor, tentant, riding buddy, bartender, and friend. Donn was always good to me! I remember lots of laughter, some great dinners, birthday partys, and riding. My heart gos out to Hope, and Donn’s family, and friends. Donn I sadly raise my Hieneken to you. ride free brother.
its a sad day when ever this takes place, i had many great times with Donn and yes like the rest of you i had to always look out for my best interest with Donn. I got Donn into the Harley family and sold him his first Harley, we really had great times and even with the tough business stuff i will remember the fun. RIDE HARD DONN.
He was a thief. Now he’s a dead thief. That’s fine with me.
It’s all about THE MONEY. Many have said they have been screwed by Donn, I am acquainted with some in the “Biker Culture”, but let’s put it in perspective people, he was human, and humans make mistakes. The people he conducted business with in a an inappropriate nature are naturally angry. This outburst of hatred damning him to hell over MONEY??? Now, that is appalling in all respects of decent human behavior. Read the posts of the people that knew Donn before the acquisition of TMC and the disaster that followed.
I met Donn last Spring just before AZ Bike Week. I was visiting a friend from Ft Myers who moved out, etc. they were old friends…….we spent a lovely afternoon together with Hope as well who also knew a good friend of mine here in Ft Myers. I would just like to say it was a wonderful day, Hope is an extraordinary woman. I am so sorry for all that you have endured
As for the others on this blog. (the idiots) K A R M A …………GOOGLE IT
dMy opinion on this whole subject is #1 this is a terrible horrible thing that has happened. I believe that no matter what someone does this is by far worse than you could ever wish on a person, their family, their friends, their business, and their employees.
#2 I think it is quite obvious the position of the industry. This is a tuff world to live in, a tuff economy, and an even tuffer economy. But, as someone who tries their hardest, and also someone who comes from a family that tries their hardest to maintain an honest business and working relationship with anyone that comes across my name or business name, It dissapoints me to see something like this happen regardless of mistakes people have made in the past or in this industry period!!!
I absolutely hate the idea that we are working backwards in the motorcycle community. So what that Don has hurt people (and I say that very lightly) but, I am a firm believer that what goes around comes around, so in a sense if you keep your nose clean and you walk a tight straight line, no matter who you encounter or who gets the better of you. You will come out on top eventually. Granted we are in a position today that it seems farther from the truth, but, that needs to be a top priority. “Do unto others as you would have others do onto you” I look forward to a long career in the motorcycle industry. I don’t like any negativity brought into this industry because we all know we could use a bright shiny light at the end of our long struggle ridden tunnel we have in front of us.
I guess my point is I think this is an unfortunate loss to many, as anyone’s life usually is. My condolences go out to all his friends and family that understand and are suffering for it. I would like to maintain a positive momentum for all of our sake. Remember people are human, business is business, and when it comes down to it, nothing is worth your lives or mine.
Thanks
P.S.
Sorry but I just noticed I can’t spell for shit. I will blame it all on Jack Daniels
Our life on this earth is the result of our own past actions and our own present doings. We ourselves are responsible for our own happiness and misery. We create our own Heaven. We create our own Hell. We are the architects of our own fate.
when you screw people trying to get your product sold, get ready to get screwed back. There is no action without a RE-action. people on here talking about how they “LET” Donn screw them over. Bullshit. Bad things happen to good people all the time. It’s always the good people that are taken advantage of.. the good honest working people. What happened to him is a result of his actions. Crooks in the industry.. hopefully you all learn from this. True it may not be something to wish against someone, but are there ANY people (REALLY?) who are NOT surprised by this news. Your fate is what you make. No matter what you do, it will always come back to bite you back. Even if its good. In this case…….justice was served…. it always is.
Hope I truly pray this garbage isn’t killing you.Weak people will always look for a kink in your armour to stick the knife in to the hilt and twist just to make them selves some how seem more in the mirror but the mirror never lies so move on get over yourselves people life is what it is and its way to short to try and hurt Hope and those left behind. Hope 08 Sturgis was great and so were You and Don,Roll on BabyGirl your a shining star so just call if you need me Dogg
Donn is a four letter word. I discovered donn ripping people off when i worked for him 6 years ago. Grinding off vin numbers, voiding mso’s,altering build books and selling our beloved motorcycles as much newer machines is not questionable business practice. It is just plain wrong. He was a canadian citizen adopted into a wealthy family who never worked a day in his life. He made money by cheating the Hard Working American Biker while pretending to be one of us. I agree the world is a better place and i am sure there are many good bikers waitng in hell to make his journey more miserable than he already is.
What goes around, comes around. I get that, but unless you are a sex predator, rapist, or murderer NO ONE deserves to meet their fate the way Donn Proudfoot did.
Yes he was a very shrewd business man, we know that. He made many enemies along the way. He was also at times a very kind, generous, caring and in a silly schoolboy way ,a humorous individual who would light up a room while bringing smiles to everyones face.
I pesonally could slam his name to hell like many of you have, but I’m a BIGGER PERSON than all of YOU. HOW DARE YOU ALL.
When someone passes they pass. The ones left behind pay the price to live with the good and the bad memories of someone who touched their lives. How ever they have, knowing they can never reach out to touch them again.
To all that responded in such evil, heartless ways let it be known if this is how you felt about Donn you are all in the same boat he was. If to disrepect his family and friends online for all to see gives you gratitude may you all meet in Hell.
To everyone I had a chance to meet through Donnie, I share your sorrow and grief. May he finally find that something he thought he never had.
May God bless his family and let them know his friends are still here to spread the joy their beloved spread upon us. We are truly saddened by this occurance and our hearts go out to you. May we all live in peace.
All my love, concern, and sympathy,
Ice
Fort Myers Beach
Only a thief would deny that every time a thief dies, the world becomes a better place.
Objective Observer; you don’t seem to get it when you bad mouth Donn you don’t hurt him he is gone he will not read this stuff. it is his family you are hurting and they did nothing to you. So I guess that makes you the piece of shit now. Think about it, what you are doing is wrong. And like I stated before “let he who is without sin cast the first stone” are you telling us you are the saint among us because I for one dont think anyone on this blog is better than any other. we all have done and said things that are not right. The secret to life is learning not to do it over and over again.
Everyone makes mistakes but no one deserves to be murdered for those mistakes. If you felt cheated you should have taken it to court not here on this blog. So grow up and act like a man and stop trying to hurt the family that is already hurting.
HOW DARE YOU. Him dying does not change all the wrong he did. Him dying does not change the fact the he did not care or have remorse for all the wrong he did and the people hurt by him.ya’ll making me sick defending his life. truth is the truth, dead or not dead the man was a bad human. He gave no respect for who he wronged and earned the celebration of his end. Him dying was the only way he was ever going to stop infecting the world. with his ways. Ya’ll defending him are either in on it or u just haven”t discovered what he did to you yet. Do you honestly think you were so special he wouldn”t fuck you over like everybody else? He wouldnt do that kind of thing to you cuz you partied with him and he said you were cool? Dead or alive. I will give him all the disrepect and dishonor he put all of his energy into earning. If he cared about his family or his legacy he would have lived his life in a respectable manner, So how dare look down on us? look down on him. he did these terrible things, we are victims who are happy to see the end of the source. HOW DARE DONN ,FOR ALL THE WRONG HE DID, HE HAD NO RIGHT. HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN ASHAMED. and we all know he wasn’t. who shot him anyways? bet the list of suspects unmanageable.
So after reading all of these posts I have to ask myself how bad could Don have been, really. I’ve been in this industry for 20 years now and I’ve been screwed over by people, most of them being clients, guess it’s not always the shop owner that’s a bad guy huh? Sure, there are a lot of pirates in this world and they seem to be more prevelant in this industry than most, well except the banking world I guess. The diference to me is none of the people I’ve had issues with in the past or even currently would deserve to be shot for their transgressions. Now a shot in the mouth maybe, but then again we’ve all needed that from time to time. Like I said, I never met Don, not to my knowledge anyway. I knew about him and always wondered what the hell he was thinking trying to revive Titan. That was a doomed piece of shit bike company from day one and anyone that knew anything about that company walked away when they could. I did, long before they became huge and really stupid.
I’ve had serious issues with people and once they’re gone it’s done. I didn’t go bitching about the person to their loved ones left behind, wasn’t them that did me wrong. Bad form and bad karma in my book but to each his own.
I guess maybe it makes you feel better slamming a guy that can’t defend himself. How many of you that had these issues with Mr. Proudfoot actually met him in person and talked with him to his face about them? That’s how I handle these issues and I think it’s become a lost method of dealing with things, like a man face to face. Most people would rather just write something on a blog or forum and use the anonymity of the net to shoot off their mouth.
That’s my 2 cents and we all know how far that gets you in this world.
During this Holiday season I’d like to send my condolences to the loved ones Don left behind, nobody deserves what he got and those he left behind don’t deserve to have to read about people slamming him like this.
For years the Harley Dealers charged $3000 -$5000 over RETAIL Full sticker .They made EXTRA Millions and Millions.Isn’t this the exact same as what Donn might have done in your minds? No offence but no one shot and killed and Murdered these Harley Dealer Owners who ripped off the Bikers also for Megabucks over the years.
I guess what they did was OK since it was Harley BFD Davidson NOT Titan.
You might want to use more common sense before you accuse .If Donn got someone for $1000 here and then it’s chump change to what The Harley Dealers got you Bikers for like $3000 – $5000 Per Bike ..Most of You bought 3-5 new Bikes over 14 years.. Do the Math..They Financed their Rip off so you’d care less.
Donn looks like an Angel compared to this Grand Harley Rip Off ..
What a Joke…
People actually partied with this loser? And thought he was a good guy? I’m surprised that no one has mentioned how vain he was. Glorifying himself like he was some actual bad ass. Put himself in his own made up videos, paid some band to put his name in a song, even made posters promoting Titan with a drawing of his likeness on it. The dude was a little travelocity elf. Eventually, the good Lord up above decides when its time to pull the bad people out of this world, when he’s decided that they’ve done enough damage, they’re OUT OF HERE!!! I agree with retired president. I can only imagine the list of suspects. I bet the list was longer with enemies, than he had friends.
I remember folks driving by and shooting at his dealership, must be because they loved him LOL. I remember the pig head somebody put on his car, must be because they wanted to give him a thank you gift LOL. I remember him taking money for extended warrantees, never truning them in and laughing while putting their money in his pocket, must be because he was looking out for them LOL. I remember when i went into his dealership all of them ( His workers) and i mean all of them laughing and saying how glad they were he was out of town, must be because they loved him so much LOL. I remember all the lawsuites he had going, must be because he wanted to be close to them LOL. I remember him crying like a baby when he got his ass kicked, must be because he was so happy someone was paying attention to him LOL. It is sad his Mom has to go thru this, but that is something HE SHOULD OF THOUGHT OF. Give me a break with all the bleeding heart good guy stuff Father don did LOL. What?, just because he passed on now he’s a great guy LOL. I knew him as long as most of you have and if you want people to say decent things about you, then you should live a decent life and that is something he was to arrogant to do. He always thought he was slick, i guess he was wrong. The only people i ever heard say nice things about him were the leeches on his side getting a free ride. You don’t get to live your life like a thief and burn folks and expect to have nice things said about you. YOU HAVE TO EARN IT. The truth hurts. It always is and will always be, what goes around comes around. Your not bad mouthing a guy when it’s the truth. As for Hope being part of the dealership in FL. Thats news to me and i would know. I wonder if it’s hot where he is? Oh and buy the way, i didn’t know if i robbed a bank it was ok as long as i didn’t steal alot of cash. Thanks for the tip chrome bro’s LOL.
Well, one thing is for sure, Donn you got what you wanted. You wanted notoriety in this business. You got it. Some loved you, some hated you. Maybe being notorious gave you all that. Maybe being the life of the party and picking up the tab for your friends gave you that. Maybe squashing people, dealers, employees, customers and suppliers gave you that. You see, we all had our reasons for dealing with you. Some are bitter, some are hurting, and some are wondering how life can deal the hand that gets dealt.
Why do good things happen for bad people? Why do bad things happen to good people? I believe only God knows. I have seen you at your best, and at your worst. Everyone has a good and bad side. Everyone has a white dog and a black dog. How will we know which one was the strongest? Because that is how we will be remembered.
Many here have passed judgment on you. In the end, it’s above our pay grade.
RIP Donn
i was one of the honest people who trusted the ” o so nice don ” got taken for $16,000.00 from the boy. i feel for his family though. i wonder how many of the bleeding hearts in this blog were screwed big by him and still say he’s a nice guy.
How about everyone shut the fuck up. I am getting sick and tired of hearing from people that he “got what he deserved” or “the theif is dead thank God”. Go fuck yourselves. Grow up and grow some balls. Why couldnt you tell him to his face when he was alive? Oh because youre a pack of pussies and the only time you feel “safe” is when the dead cannot dispute back. Let the dead rest in peace and I pray to God that his family is not reading the comments some of you selfish pricks are writing down. I really wish Cyril would close this commentary down because I am getting very pissed as well as many others.
Grow up people, how would you feel if your family had to be put through this situation and had to read all the bullshit that you are putting down on this blog?
Maybe you should think about the “what if” factor and regroup your thoughts.
Most opinions, one way or the other, have been expressed. Consequently, I close this comments section.