Spike "Boss Pony" Nico, founder of club Rainbow Tiger, passes on

On Janurary 13, Equino Faukland, a friend of Spike Niko, posted about the passing of the founder of Rainbow Tiger to the club's group:

Hello my friends from Rainbow Tiger. I wish I was coming to you with something other than bad news, but with a heavy heart I must inform you that yesterday Spike Nico, the Boss Pony of the Rainbow Tiger passed away. Some of you might know that Spike was sick back in June with some lung issues and was in pretty bad shape. However, always the fighter Spike pulled through and was in full recovery. However his illness resurfaced this winter with a vengeance. He died in his bed yesterday from complications of his illness.

If you had an account on the virtual world program Second Life in mid-2000s and were a furry, you were met with a vibrant club scene. Furry clubs became a staple of the landscape on the program. From the small hole in the wall, to the large monolithic dance floors, each carrying their own personality and all welcoming to the diverse and strange fandom we are.

Two of these gigantic clubs which most Second Lifer furs would go to were the Gay Yiffy Club (GYC) and Club Rainbow Tiger. One could say those two were the Pepsi and Coca-Cola of SL fur clubs. Both had similar themes of placing their welcoming of the GLBT community up front. Rainbow Tiger was true to its name though, putting the seven colored stripes at the front of its design, while its rival uses more darker black, blue, and purple tones for its design.

The scene at the Rainbow Tiger was just as colorful as its namesake, bringing in a diverse group of species from all around the virtual world until it closed its doors in 2012. But while the club was gone, many friendships created from it had lived beyond. Spike's contribution to giving furries a haven on Second Life to hang out in their colorful avatars will not be forgotten by those who found respite there.