I never met Dave Mirra, never shook his hand, never watched him ride.
I never walked up to him and said hello, yet I find myself struggling to say goodbye.
It’s amazing how much of an impact somebody can have upon you without any personal interaction.
I grew up messing around on my bike.
Before I was ever a die hard park rat in the winter time, I was deep into bmx.
It was everything to me.
My transportation, my fun, my outlet in the good times and the bad times.
Dave Mirra was somebody I looked up to.
I spent several summers, from dawn to dusk, digging bmx trails through the woods.
When his video games came out, I played them religiously.
This morning Dave Mirra was found dead.
When I saw the news earlier this evening, it wasn’t real.
It couldn’t be real.
When you are a child, your idols are superhuman.
Dave Mirra achieved so much in his sport, could he really be mortal?
When I heard the news tonight, there was none of that.
One word hit me harder than anything else, “Suicide”.
Many times people say things like “You have this or that, you shouldn’t be depressed”.
The truth is, that we don’t really know enough about depression.
It’s a discussion that’s easier to sweep under the rug and ignore than bring to the front.
It’s not a fun topic, it’s not glamorous, it’s not exciting.
Unfortunately it is something that impacts millions of Americans.
As much as we might wish, it will not go away if we ignore it.
Thoughts are with your friends and family through this difficult time.
You will be sorely missed.
