We Made It Safely Through Pastranaland, But Not The Drive Home
Jason

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We Made It Safely Through Pastranaland, But Not The Drive Home

Buckle up, friends, as I share with you a tale of good times, gnarly experiences, and a ride in an ambulance—which, oddly enough, didn’t take place where you may expect. 

A few weeks ago, I made the journey out to Annapolis, Maryland, to visit my good friend Travis Pastrana for his and Lyn-Z’s annual Fourth of July get-together and to attend the Maryland premier of Nitro Circus’ newest film, Action Figures 2. The summer was going well. I was right in the middle of my Pro Motocross summertime travels, just coming off of a ten-day road trip to High Point and Muddy Creek, and only home long enough to do laundry and switch co-pilots. So, of course, I was jazzed to hit the road again for a visit to Pastranaland, then head directly to RedBud from there. I arrived in Annapolis and the fun and excitement was on. There’s never a dull moment with that crew and everyone treats each other like a big family. From going to dinner to the premiere itself to just hanging out at the pool, it’s a lot of fun.

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This trip was going to be extra special, as I learned just a day before leaving that someone whom I’m really close to, Phil “Smagical” Smage would be able to attend the premiere and hang out for the week. That sparked an idea inside me. Travis and I were going to climb in the RZR’s again, and this time we were going to “send it for Smage” and hit a jump in his honor. For those who don’t know, Phil was injured badly during the filming of Action Figures 2 while attempting a world-record RZR jump, so this was a special moment for myself. Anyway, all went according to plan while at Pastranaland, and on Thursday morning I left Maryland injury-free.

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And then…

At 11:30 p.m. at night, on I-80, in the middle of nowhere Ohio, one hour and 30 minutes from the hotel I was to stay in that night, I HIT A F#*&ING DEER! Yep, there I am, having withstood the gnarliness of Travis Pastrana and his crew of incredible humans, minding my own business, and POW, a deer steps out of nowhere and I hit it. Something to note here is that I was traveling on the freeway with the cruise set at 72 MPH—a speed that I feel is probably slow for a lot of you reading this—and had zero time to hit the brakes.

Things get a little foggy here, but here’s what I remember: One second I’m driving, the next thing I know there’s a doe directly in front of my van, so I did what I could only think to do in a split second—gripped the wheel down low, leaned back in my seat, and lights out.

No, I didn’t turn off my lights, I GOT KNOCKED THE F*#& OUT! I remember the airbag going off in my face, then my body being frozen and not able to move my legs to hit the brakes. Luckily my buddy Josh Gray from Shades of Gray Custom Painted Helmets was with me and he was able to reach over and hit the hand brake in my van and help guide us to safety. Thanks, bro! That’s kind of all I remember from that night. I remember Josh’s girlfriend booking us a new hotel at the exit we were at, and I remember (foolishly) not going to the hospital. I also remember the paramedics being cool and giving me a ride in their ambulance to the hotel; I guess they weren’t keen on the idea of me rolling down the shoulder to the next exit.

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A few days later, my doctor diagnosed me with a concussion and put me on what she called “total brain rest.” This brain rest thing was no joke. I wasn’t allowed to look at my phone, computer, watch TV, listen to music, or even read a book for two weeks. (Well, I lasted about ten days and then started trying to do things, but I was out of work for two weeks.) I’ve recently been released and am now back to work, just in time for the Loretta Lynn’s grind. My van, however, is still out of commission and is being repaired. Check out the photo below, you’ll see why!

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There you have it. Another road trip, another memory (or lack thereof). Life is gnarly when you travel often, but luckily the passion far outweighs the setbacks. I live with muscular dystrophy and physical challenges on a daily basis, so this is just another character-building step.

I’m not sure why I chose to put this story out there. Maybe it’s for entertainment, because, well, how ironic is it that I spent a week with Travis Pastana and didn’t get a scratch, but a damn deer put me in the back of an ambulance? Or maybe it’s a bit therapeutic, as I’ve been struggling a bit mentally since the crash, but either way, I’m beyond stoked to be alive and to be able to continue my career putting out content on social media for dirt bike fans to enjoy. 

Before ending this, I just want to quickly say thank you to my co-workers and bosses for being so cool and supportive while I was away, as well as to those who reached out via text and social media. Also, thank you again to Travis and Lyn-Z for allowing me to visit and for their continued friendship—and to the Nitro crew for treating me as family! As I said before, this is only a setback. I’ll see you all at the races… EVENTUALLY!