Rob Van Dam says he bonded with Bret Hart over smoking weed

That’s actually how I bonded with him at first — when I learned he liked to smoke. We had a mutual friend, a wrestling promoter in San Jose named Kirk White. Kirk became Bret’s agent and would book him at conventions. So I would see both of them a lot at cons, and whenever we had the chance, we’d smoke.

I did an episode of RVD TV with Bret in a hotel room on the road somewhere, and I think we smoked during that. Maybe not, though — I don’t think I was even smoking on camera back then. I thought it looked too ‘dirty’ for people to handle

And then there’s Lou Dog, a friend of ours from that area, who would show up with the loudest buds. Lou Dog, bro. He’d come by and you could smell his weed through an entire building. One time we were in a big gymnasium early in the day before anyone was there, and we smelled it so strong that we looked around and saw him all the way at the very top row of the bleachers, sitting alone in the corner. He’s an excellent grower.

That’s how I first bonded with Bret — just mutual trust and respect right away. At one point he even offered up his house in Hawaii, on the Big Island in Kona. He said if my ex and I were ever there while he wasn’t, we could stay at his place. And we did.

It was an awesome experience: just smoking, watching lizards, cats, birds — all the animals that would pass through his yard every day. That was my TV set for several days. Since the porch was upstairs, I could see over the trees and out into nature.

I don’t really have any funny stories, but that’s definitely one of them. He even told me, ‘My neighbor downstairs — if you need anything, let them know.’ And of course, you know what I needed: weed.

Bret’s a good guy, a good friend, and I’ve definitely got his back. I think he’s being more honest than bitter.”