'He was just one of the guys'

What started as a motorcycle ride-turned Good Samaritan act became a 24-hour viral whirlwind for American Legion Rider Dan Barkalow. And now Barkalow is ready to settle back into his normal life.

On Veterans Day, Barkalow – a Sons of The American Legion member and Legion Rider from Monmouth Post 54 in the Freehold Borough of New Jersey – fellow Legion Rider Bob Grigs and their friend Ryan Bailey took part in a ceremony at the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial in Holmdel in New Jersey.

Barkalow said that since it was such a nice day the trio decided to take a ride to Manasquan before returning to Freehold. On their way back home they came upon a man and his disabled motorcycle.

“We stopped to see if we could lend assistance,” Barkalow said. “Pretty much as soon as I got off my motorcycle I looked over and saw it was Bruce. I approached him and said ‘I know ya.’ He just kind of shook his head and shrugged his shoulders.”

“Bruce” was Bruce Springsteen, the New Jersey-born rock and roll icon who has sold more than 120 million albums worldwide while earning an Academy Award and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Springsteen, who was born in Freehold, also was out for a ride when the battery on his motorcycle died. After being unable to get Springsteen’s bike going, they put him on the back of one of their bikes and took him to Mulligan’s, a nearby restaurant.

“We sat down, had a couple of beers and basically talked about old Freehold,” Barkalow said. “He was great. Myself and my buddies are all from Freehold, and he was born and raised in Freehold. That was just an added bonus.

“We asked him a couple questions about some of his concerts. It was unbelievable. He was just one of the guys, a basic down-to-earth kind of guy.”

Before Springsteen’s ride arrived, “The Boss” picked up the tab, told his rescuers to keep the change, posed for some photographs and then took down each of his rescuers’ phone numbers.

A photo of Springsteen and the Riders was posted on Facebook and went viral. Major news outlets like CNN, Billboard and SPIN picked up on the story. It received mentions on Today and The Howard Stern Show.

“It went crazy,” Barkalow said. “It all started when my daughter put a post on Facebook, which I told her not to do. And it just kind of spiraled out of control. It was pretty neat, actually. But hopefully (my celebrity) is short-lived.

“We just stopped to help a fellow cyclist. It just happened to be Bruce. We would have stopped for anybody.”