I went viral with 22 million views... and I didn't even get a free pint

A year after Black Sabbath's final show, a Metallica anniversary gig reminded me that real life is a lot more important than numbers on a screen.

Last summer, a video of me standing next to Jason Momoa in a mosh pit unexpectedly racked up more than 22 million views.

Friends found it hilarious.

The internet compared my hair to somebody's grandma.

I still didn't get a free pint.

Looking back a year later, here's what I actually took from the whole thing & what happened after I accidentally went viral with Jason Momoa? Last weekend, my twin brother and I went to see Metallica.

We've been going to Metal gigs together for about 25 years now, so it felt quite special. It also marked exactly a year since we were at Villa Park for Back to the Beginning — Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne's final ever show. If you're into your metal, you'll know what a huge day that was! Looking back now, it feels even more significant knowing Ozzy is no longer with us.

It was one of those gigs you know you'll still be talking about years from now.

What I didn't expect was that one of my lasting memories from the day would involve Jason Momoa.

Before Pantera came on, Jason was on stage introducing the bands. My brother and I were where we usually end up at metal gigs — near the front, waiting for the mosh pit to kick off. Pantera have been one of our favourite bands for years, so we were never going to be anywhere else.

The music started, the pit opened up and apparently, Jason Mamoa decided to jump off the stage and straight into the pit.

The funny thing is... I had absolutely no idea.

At the time, he was just another big bloke throwing himself around in the pit... all being a huge one!

That's kind of the beauty of it, really.

In a mosh pit, nobody cares who you are.

You're all there for exactly the same reason.

The bloke next to you could be a Hollywood actor, a plumber, a teacher or an accountant. Once the music starts, none of it matters.

Thinking about it, that's not too different from our gym.

Nobody walks through the door wearing their job title.

Nobody cares what car you drive, what watch you've got on or how many followers you have.

You're just another person trying to become a bit stronger.

Anyway... I digress.

Somebody filmed the whole thing. Actually, lots of people filmed it. One clip in particular ended up everywhere.

There I was, bouncing around next to Jason Momoa, having fun like usual.

The video ended up being viewed more than 22 million times.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/e027f8_8e1b514074154616907671812d2a4879/file

Twenty-two million!

It's a ridiculous number when you stop and think about it.

Friends kept sending me links, family started texting, my phone didn't stop buzzing for days.

The comments were brilliant. One memorable comment compared my hair to somebody's grandma's.

The internet can be wonderfully creative. Did I care?

Not really.

The internet has always felt a bit unreal to me. Twenty-two million views are still just numbers on a screen. Real life carried on exactly as before.

I was back coaching the next day.

I still had the mortgage to pay.

I still had my kids climbing all over me.

And, perhaps most disappointingly, despite being recognised by the barman in my local pub...

I still had to buy my own pint.

"Can I ask you a weird question?" he said.

"Go on."

"Were you the bloke in that Jason Momoa video?"

Apparently I was.

I was even recognised once in an airport by someone asking exactly the same thing.

It's all been quite surreal and, if I'm honest, pretty funny.

But something interesting did come from it.

A couple of people who'd been following Taking Care Of Fitness for a while finally decided to join.

When I asked what made them take the plunge, they both said something along the lines of:

"I kept seeing you pop up, then I saw the Jason Momoa video and thought... this guy's the real deal."

That made me smile.

Not because of the video itself, but because it reminded me that people don't join gyms because of flashy marketing.

They join because they trust the person behind it.

If a daft moment in a mosh pit helped a couple of local people find a gym they now enjoy coming to, then I'd say those 22 million views were worth something after all.

As for last weekend...

Standing beside my twin at another Metallica gig, a year after Black Sabbath's final bow, and with one of the guys from the gym who joined due to that video.

I found myself thinking about how lucky we've been.

Twenty-five years of gigs.

Twenty-five years of fun.

Twenty-five years of still being fit enough to throw ourselves into the mosh pit without thinking twice.

That's something I never want to take for granted.

The Jason Momoa video will eventually disappear into the internet like everything else.

The gigs, the laughs, the people you share them with and the memories you make...

Those are the things that actually last. If you've read this far and you've stumbled across Taking Care Of Fitness for the first time, we're a coaching-led gym based a minute from Tooting Bec Underground, helping people get stronger in an environment where nobody cares what you lift, only that you keep turning up. Cheers!