Leave of Absence

That's a shame, but I can understand. I'm not a Kershaw customer, but do enjoy when reps are members of any board.

Take care and hope to see you back,
John...
 
I am truely sorry to hear this, but I DO understand. It really IS a sad thing to loose a wonderful member such as yourself. This really is a loss to BF, and I am sad to see you go.
 
Geez....sorry to hear that. I enjoyed reading your posts and you sharing your information with us. It was really nice. You really helped me out personally by responding to the problems that a few people experienced with their Leeks.
Thanks for your help again and I hope you still continue to post.
-Nick
 
The Mastiff said:
It's a shame. Your presence wil be missed. Have you given thought to designating someone to fill in for you here. I know for a fact that you helped sales. I personally bought several I otherwise wouldn't have even heard of if it wasn''t for your presence here. Good luck in the future. Joe L.
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Mastiff,

1. Knife companies are lucky to have ONE person like Thomas onboard. Sal Glesser is not a manufacturer's rep, he OWNS Spyderco. There is only one Sal Glesser, only one Les DeAsis, only one Chuck Buck(CJ is a mere shadow of THAT man, Chuck is AMAZING).

Thomas was here because it was fun, and interesting, being able to have interaction with end users. Then it started becoming thankless work, and life is too short for that. He is in a unique position to give the answers to questions that he does, in order to have someone "fill in", he would have to train them, and that would take away from what they, and he gets PAID to do at Kershaw.

2. Thomas didn't come here to stir up sales for the end user. He came here to get feedback from the end user. I hope that everyone can see that. It is hard enough to be diplomatic and personable to people that you might not like in order to sell large quantities of knives, it is harder to be diplomatic and calm when people are slamming you/your company, in the anonymous void of the internet. I certainly would not be able to do that, which is why I have learned to keep my passion for knives, and my need to make a living as separate disciplines.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Thomas W said:
Moderators please move this if it is not in the correct place for this thread, but since a bunch of Kershaw traffic is run through General, I'll post here.

I felt that it was necessary to make a short announcement concerning my
leave of absence from BF's. It may in fact be permanent, time will
tell.

Without getting into any specific details, I'll just say that my
work is intruding on the fun that I have on Blade Forums, and so is my
being on the defensive, rather than my being able to share Kershaw knife knowledge.

Thought you all should hear it from me, rather than notice that I
just no longer post.

Thanks to Spark for letting me share my Kershaw propaganda, I wish him
and BF's the very best. Also thanks to all you Kershaw supporters and
general knife nuts, you do make our world go round for sure.

Be safe all
Click to expand...

That's too bad, I will say that you have done a fantastic job here and have been a huge part of bringing Kershaw into some new refreshing light, in the minds of many here. I personally thank you for letting me and others here feel that we have been apart of the ZDP TI Leek project which is now my favorite EDC and seems to have been a huge hit. Remember when you asked if we really thought people would spend $199 for a leek? We all said hell yes, although many of us has found it for cheaper.

It's a shame that much of your time has been spent here in defense, I know that I (without sounding gay) will miss ya.

Hopefully the good folks at Kershaw know how important you are and how you have contributed to their success, and pay you your worth.

Hopefully your wife dosen't think all those hours you spent here were not in vain.

Hopefully people here have appreciated you like you should have been and understand what a shame it is to loose such an ethuisiastic, professional, and carring person as you are.

It's people like you that make this biz great and keep us knife nuts happy.
You get :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

Best wicshes and Good Luck to whatever you do!!!
 
A big loss for all of us Kershaw fans. I hope that all of these positive responses are showing you that the majority of members really appreciate your presence here. For those that criticize you or Kershaw, just be aware that they are the immature few. Don't let them ruffle your feathers. I know that I have been glad to have access to an insider when I had an unusual question about a Kershaw knife. There is no question that Kershaw's sales have benefited from your informative posts, and I hope that they realize what a valuable contribution you offer to the company. Signing on to BF should not be something that you do with a feeling of obligation or trepidation, but please know that you will be welcomed whenever you do. :thumbup:
 
This sucks! Thomas posting here was an incredible resource. It is too bad he feels that he needs to respond in any way to criticism of Kershaw. I think he could still have fun here and get the real feedback he is looking for while ignoring the "drive by" critics. His presence here IMHO gave Kershaw a feeling of connection with the knife community that could only help improve their product but also sales and respectability in the long run. I would have never bought a ZDP Leek had I not found the interaction with him here. I get the feeling that there is more to this anyway, like some higher up feeling that his posting here was hurting Kershaws reputation and I could not disagree more. I hope we still get a ZDP Cyclone out of the deal!;)
Thanks Thomas,
Jason
 
The ZDP Cyclone and G-10 Offset are still on!;)

I also saw a pic of the Uncoated Offset Blade on the current handle.
 
I'm sorry to see you go. Your input was just beginning to get me interested in trying out some Kershaw knives.
 
Thomas, for all you did to raise Kershaw's image in my eyes, I would like to thank you. You have been an excellent ambassador for your company. The knife community is a better place when it has people like you in it.

Take care.
 
Mastiff,

1. Knife companies are lucky to have ONE person like Thomas onboard. Sal Glesser is not a manufacturer's rep, he OWNS Spyderco. There is only one Sal Glesser, only one Les DeAsis, only one Chuck Buck(CJ is a mere shadow of THAT man, Chuck is AMAZING).
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No lectures please. I'm aware of how valuable he was to us, but more so to his company. I also know that a company should have a designated presence on the forum. Do you give up if your kershaw because you can't have Thomas? Not the way I think, sorry.

While we're at it why did your friend leave? Noone was rude to him and he had one run in with cliff. He was doing really well.

I've been in his position for a smaller ( much) company so I know what a PITA it can be. People put up with a lot more than he did every day for jobs that pay much less money. Put him on a pedastal all you want but it doesn't change the fact that Kershaw needs representation on the web, and here in particular. Most companies don't use exec. VP's to do that kind of thing though. Sal, well he's not a living member of a hall of fame or two for no reason. Regards, Joe
 
Easy there people, let's keep this friendly please. I haven't seen anything that calls for hostilty so let's all chill a minute. Breathe.

It looks to me like a combination of a few things pushed over the limit in recent days. I'm pretty sure Kershaw is the type of company that would replace the position here with someone else if they thought it valuable enough to do so.
There is also another Kershaw rep from RnD here. For all I know Thomas did this on his own and incorporated it into getting our data inside. At least that's what I gathered from the relationship. Am I wrong?
 
It seems pretty simple to me. Thomas came here the same as the rest of us, to talk about knives. Since he does work for Kershaw, he talked about Kershaw knives, even if that's not his job at Kershaw. But if the forums decide to use him as a one-man Kershaw forum, it doesn't leave him much time to enjoy the rest of the forums.

And even if it's good for Kershaw, and consequently good for Thomas to be here, there comes a point when the forums just become too demanding, too inconsiderate, and too much like work. At that point, it's time to take a break.
 
G3 said:
Easy there people, let's keep this friendly please.

For all I know Thomas did this on his own and incorporated it into getting our data inside.
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Exactly ... :)
 
Sorry 'bout that Thomas.

I for one, was proud to see the efffort, and you were certainly an asset to this forum.

However, I must say that I understand.

sal
 
THANK YOU THOMAS!!!!!!!

You have been an excellent influence and source of information on BF . Not just for Kershaw but for the knife community in general. You will be missed, but we all understand when enough is enough. Turn off the PC and throw the laptop in the freezer and relax with the family.

Best of luck in the future and thanks again:D :thumbup: :thumbup:
 
Esav Benyamin said:
It seems pretty simple to me. Thomas came here the same as the rest of us, to talk about knives. Since he does work for Kershaw, he talked about Kershaw knives, even if that's not his job at Kershaw. But if the forums decide to use him as a one-man Kershaw forum, it doesn't leave him much time to enjoy the rest of the forums.

And even if it's good for Kershaw, and consequently good for Thomas to be here, there comes a point when the forums just become too demanding, too inconsiderate, and too much like work. At that point, it's time to take a break.
Click to expand...

You are exactly right!!!

I would rather have Thomas gone from the forums and still at Kershaw, than the other way around. He knows what we as Kershaw Fanatics want in a good knife, and he knows that the few people chronically unhappy with Kershaw will remain so. As long as Thomas is National Sales MGR of Kershaw, we are in good hands, whether he has a voice here or not.
 
First, thanks for all the support and kind words, I really take that to heart.

This is pretty simple, I have a lot of responsibility at work, and time is precious. I worked BF’s during my work day, my travel time, and my off time. I tried to give BF’s as much attention as I could, and I did that. It was a bit overwhelming, but the interaction was rewarding for the most part. The job continues to put demands on my time, I have stated before, we run a very lean executive crew at the factory, with much dedication and time management being required. I was overloaded with juggling both the job and BF’s (not to even mention my personal life).

As far as interacting on the forums, I found it challenging. Most of you all don’t really know me, but I have a bit of a hair trigger, and wear my emotions on my sleeve for all to see. A politician or diplomat I will never be.
Unlike you, I can’t post how I truly feel, as I will get the business from you all for doing so. As a representative of Kershaw, I found myself feeling like I could respond but with one hand bound behind my back. I’m not wired like Sal, and don’t feel and react like he does. Sal and I spoke at length about this very subject at Blade this year.
It’s just not me to be able to ignore or walk away from pre-planned digs and irresponsible or biased posts (posters). I understand the majority of the posters and threads don’t fit that scenario, and also understand we are not perfect in everything we do, but even the occasional lack of respect with some took me over to a place where I had to ask myself “why was I busting my ass for this”?

At this point, no, there will not be a regular Kershaw voice on the forum. Craig and Tim will not take this over believe me, in truth nor will anyone else. I’m sure there will be some lurking, but it’s best for us/me to take a break for now.

Hopefully you all understand.

BTW, if the “interacting on the forums” part came off a little harsh its cause my 2 team parlay just blew up in my face.

Thanks again all.
 
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