Packers' Corey Linsley, wife showing that training camp 'bike buddies' can become family
Arguably, one of the best traditions of NFL training camp happens in Green Bay, where every year Packers players get a “bike buddy” and ride a kid’s bike the quarter-mile from Lambeau Field to practice at Ray Nitschke Field.
It’s a tradition that dates back at least 50 years, and sometimes players and their buddy keep in touch well past a player’s time with Green Bay.
And sometimes, a buddy becomes family.
Corey Linsley randomly picked a new friend
A story by the Green Bay Press-Gazette’s Kendra Meinert offers the details.
In 2014, Corey Linsley was a rookie center with the Packers. At the start of training camp, he randomly chose Travis Kohlbeck, then 10-years-old, as his bike buddy.
On their first day together, Linsley discovered that Kohlbeck’s mother, Alicia, was in the hospital with a brain hemorrhage.
A couple of days later, Linsley used some of his downtime to take Kohlbeck shopping for a new bike, as a way to take the boy’s mind off his mother being in intensive care.
John Kohlbeck, Travis’ dad, wrote about Linsley’s gesture on Facebook, and a friendship was born.
That Thanksgiving, Linsley and his wife, Anna, celebrated at the Kohlbeck’s home with Alicia, John, Travis, and the couple’s three other children. Since then, they’ve spent birthdays together, shared other dinners and tailgated together.
“When you move to a new city, you don’t know the culture or the people there, but I think that the culture of the people of Green Bay, at least from our experience, has been very open and welcoming to us. I feel like that was the Kohlbecks in general,” Corey Linsley said. “They invited us into their home. They were thrilled that I bought Travis his bike... but in addition to that, they were just good people in general. I feel like we were very fortunate to have met such a wonderful family, but I feel like a lot of people are like that in Green Bay.”
Emergency room visit
A month ago, the Linsleys went to dinner with Alicia and John. The Linsleys were eagerly awaiting the birth of their first child, and the Kohlbecks had a spring break trip to Florida upcoming.
But a week after the dinner, Anna got a text from Alicia: she’d taken John to the emergency room. John had been treated for an infected boil on his leg, but three days later he couldn’t get out of bed, and Alicia insisted on bringing him to the ER.
It was a potentially life-saving trip. John was diagnosed with necrotizing fasciitis, a rare bacterial that leads to the death of soft tissue and spreads quickly. It can lead to death when not quickly discovered and treated.
Doctors removed nearly all of the skin on John’s left thigh, and some on his calf.
He was air-lifted to a hospital in Milwaukee, and has been in a coma since March 3. John has suffered small strokes and undergone multiple skin-graft surgeries.
In recent days, Anna was told that John has been able to open his eyes and is aware of visitors, which is encouraging; he’s also been moved out of intensive care and into the acute trauma wing.
But there is still a long road ahead for the family. There are no facilities in Green Bay that can accommodate John’s long-term care needs, and he’ll likely have to go to a skilled nursing facility for rehab.
Benefit planned
The Linsley’s son, Seamus, was born on March 14.
Anna Linsley is using her background as an event planner - as well as the uneven sleep schedule of a newborn - to put together a benefit to help the Kohlbecks with their medical bills.
On April 17, they’re hosting “Rock for John” at Badger State Brewing Co. in Green Bay, which will have a silent auction, raffles, t-shirts, food trucks, and hopefully, appearances from other Packers players.
Anna even plans on singing some rock songs by female artists, and local band Johnny Wad will perform.
“The reason I thought of a concert was because John loves the Grateful Dead. He actually has two Grateful Dead tattoos. He loves ’80s rock, so that was kind of where the whole idea came from,” Anna said.
The Linsleys have been overwhelmed by the response so far, in terms of the number of auction items donated, and the time and space donated; Johnny Wad is not charging for its performance.
The contrast between the joy of their first child and seeing their friends suffer is difficult for the Linsleys.
“The baby has been a beautiful reminder of how precious life is and the same with John’s situation. Things can just change in a flash,” Anna said. “I had been home with the baby for a week, and I was actually sitting in the rocking chair with the baby and I started crying talking to [John’s mom], because that’s her baby that’s in that hospital bed. I know he’s not a baby anymore, obviously, but once you become a parent, your perspective just changes so much.”
You can get more information about the event here or visit a GoFundMe page here.
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