Miller 1

You Will Always Remember Your First Time!

I wasn't real clear of what actually had just occurred, but I did know t
hat I was in
terrible pain. I laid beside the supercross track for at least 20 minutes answe
ring the
questions of very eager Emergency Medical personnel.
"Leave me alone! I will be all right." I said to the medical guy that wa
s tugging at
my chest protector.
If there is one thing that I can not stand is twenty medical people tryi
ng to take all
of your clothes off for a little cut or scrape. As I was put on a backboard and
taken to the
ambulance I couldn't help wondering what had went wrong. All I remember seeing
was
my body tumbling with my bike to an abrupt halt.
I laid in the ambulance for what seemed like days. All I could hear wer
e engines
revving at high Rpm's and the roar of the crowd when someone styled for the crow
d. It
was very disheartening to know that I was in the back of an Ambulance at my firs
t
professional supercross. The only thing I could do was play the past events ove
r and over
in my head.
I couldn't believe it as I looked at a shiny gold and silver card. This
card signified
all of the rights and privileges of a professional supercrosser. Now I would ha
ve the right
to race with the worlds best.
"Dad look it finally came!" I shouted.
My dad looked at me with silly grin and said "Well you knew it was comi
ng, you
won your 25th race last month."
As I stood there with a smile bigger than the sun on my face I said "I k
now but I
am still excited about it. Just think I will be racing side by side with Damon
Bradshaw and
Kevin Windham."

Miller 2
He just smiled and patted me on the back as I turned and walked to my ro
om. I
sat dreaming of the race I will enter next month. I had no idea what was in sto
re for me at
this spectacular event.
As D-day drew nearer my mind overflowed with anticipation. I gathered m
y riding
gear and my lucky Bart Simpson doll and headed out the door. I won my first race
the day
I sat my Bart Simpson on my handlebars between races. I have done it ever since
to bring
me good luck. The ride to Charlotte Motor Speedway was what I thought a trip tha

t
would never end. As we entered the pit area I was given a special pass to wear
around my
neck. I couldn't stop looking at the card that said "Professional Supercross Ri
der". The
pit was filled with racers walking around and talking to various people while th
ere
mechanics worked hard in the hopes of bringing home a victory.
I walked about, talking to few people as I tried to get use to this new
environment.
My stomach felt like a squeezed orange when I heard the announcer say " Is every
body
ready to see the bad boys of supercross! Well ladies and gentlemen get ready to
hear the
engines roar as 250 riders bring out there talent and go to work!" When I heard
this I
knew it was time to lay all the cards out on the table.
" O.K. ladies and gentlemen her comes the 1st 250 semi final heat. Star
ting on the
right we have Kevin Windham, Jeremy Mcgrath, Doug Dubach, Jeff Emig, Mike
LaRocco, Ryan Hughes, Brian Swink, Mike Brown, Larry Ward, Greg Albertyn, Kyle
Lewis, James Dobb, Damon Huffman, Phil Lawrence, Jimmy Button, Ezra Lusk, Buddy
Antunez, Mike Craig, and from Charlotte North Carolina, Everyone give a big roun
d of
applause to your two home riders The Beast from the East Damon Bradshaw and new
comer Shawn Miller." The crowd came to there feet and roared like a pack of lio
ns. I
knew that they were mostly cheering for Damon but I enjoyed being right next to
him.
The thirty second card went up and my stomach fell to the ground. I knew the ga
te would
Miller 3
be dropping soon. I stared for what seemed like an eternity at the gate that wa
s holding
all of us back. With all of the skill I had, I tore off the start line the best
that I could. As
fast as I was in Pro motocross these guys left me like I was a rookie. Come to t
hink of it I
was a rookie. The first race I worked my way through the pack and settled into
a fifth
place spot. As I came upon the last lap I was amazed at the capacity of the cro
wd
watching this Spectacular event. These were people who paid good money to see us
race.
I felt proud just to be out there with these masters of Supercross.
"O.K., I made it, here comes the final finish line double." I said. As
I crossed this
medium size jump I laid the bike sideways in the air ,and for the first time in
my life I had
dozens of cameras flashing at me like stars in the dark sky.
I rode slowly to the pit area where my father waited with a huge smile o
n his face.
" I can't believe you have done so well in your first supercross event!"
I smiled and said " Well I still have to race the main event to really m
ake my
mark."
I got off of my mechanical wonder and sat down to eat a banana. As I pe
eled back

the outer shell of this yellow fruit of wonder, I realized how excited I was and
could not
bare to eat. I was having a new emotion every five seconds. It was like a drea
m that you
never want to wake from. Here I was, a Professional rider at a professional even
t. This
was the dream that my friends and I buzzed about when we raced as amateurs. I a
lmost
felt guilty because I am getting to live our once shared dream.
I was quickly rattled out of my thoughts as I heard the announcer ring o
ut, "We
need the 250 Class to stage for the main event in ten minutes".
I was so nervous that I felt like a long tailed cat in a room full of ro
cking chairs. I
am not sure but at the time I think that I was more scared than anything. My fa
ther
quickly handed me my riding gear and told me to put on my race face. This is a
term used
to get a rider into his racing attitude. My arms were more shaking than a old t
ime washing
Miller 4
machine. As I approached the staging area, all of the thoughts of winning and l
osing were
forced out of my head. I knew that it was time to make my mark in the world of
supercross.
"O.K. ladies and gentlemen, it is time for the main attraction of the ni
ght. Here
comes the best of the best out again for the main event. Winner takes all!", th
e announcer
shouted.
My stomach squeezed more than ever. As much as I wanted this day to com
e I
was wanting it to be all over with. I felt like a little boy in a room full of
superheros.
At the beginning of the race I started talking my way through jumps. "O
.K. I am
going to do well. all I have to do is concentrate." when I said this, the gate d
ropped. The
first time I came around my pit board told me to settle down that I was in fourt
h. This is
when I had to really come down. "I need to breath and calm down. O.K., I am se
ttled
into my groove." As I tried to gather my thoughts I was in the middle of the lar
gest race
of my life. "Here comes a double followed by the triple. Wow, look at all of t
he camera's
taking pictures of me." I was amazed by how the crowd roared as I profiled over
the
triple jump. It was quite amazing. why wouldn't it be, it hurled me over 65 feet
off the
ground. as I settled down I realized that the race would be over soon and I have
done
quite well. "Only two laps left and here comes the finish line double. Ooooh n
ooo!!!!
ahhhh!!!!!!" I found out that when I was landing off the finish line double the
defending
supercross champ, Jeremy Mcgrath, landed on top of me. This pain was weirder th
an all

others I have felt. I really didn't feel the pain in the physical sense at firs
t. I felt as if my
back had just collapsed. It wasn't till I tried to stand and return to my bike
that I felt the
excruciating pain of four cracked vertebrae.
"Leave me alone! I will be all right." I said to the medical guy that wa
s tugging at
my chest protector.
Miller 5
If there is one thing that I can't stand is twenty medical people trying
to take all of
your clothes off for a little cut or scrape. It was now that I ended my first p
rofessional
supercross................