This has been a fabulous month for me. This may be a bit long but there's so much to speak of.
The weekend of April 26th I had a normal NBL national in Virginia. I came away with a 2nd and 3rd place that weekend. That Sunday following the race I had a photo shoot with Men's Journal magazine. This was a very cool shoot and I've seen a couple of the pictures that will run in the July issue. The photographer, Christopher McLallen, does rad work as you will see.
Monday, I made my way to New York City for a bunch of awesome activities. I stayed at the Essex House and just to let everyone know, 3 minutes after I entered the lobby, Ben Stein walked past me. Saaweeeet! Later that day I went on CNBC's Mad Money with Jim Cramer! I didn't just stand outside either. For some reason I was allowed to ride my bike on the set and speak with Jim for a few minutes about my sponsors and how their stocks were doing and other smart investing strategies for young adults. I was nervous. Jim is an awesome guy, the Mad Money producers were amazing and they even gave me my own dressing room- plenty of gummy bears to snack on... Haha. And I also got to sit in the same makeup chair as Donny Deutsch and Suze Orman- crazy! Not sure when my part will air, but I'll keep you posted.
The following day Kyle Bennett and I did a photoshoot for Flaunt Magazine. This took place right under the Brooklyn Bridge and Kyle and I were definitely stylin'! Guess who we saw ride right past us as we were taking photos?! The Blue Falcon, Brian Foster! He was there riding with the Fit crew and it was great to see him. Later, Kyle, Arielle Martin and I, made our way to ESPN The Magazine for a little tour and video blog/interview, it was a great time for sure. We then headed over to NikeTown for a bit of athletic wear. After NikeTown, Kyle and I had a nice sushi dinner with a few great ladies from NBC. We love the Peacock card! It's wonderful how many great people I have met on this BMX Olympic journey.
Wednesday April 30th was our big day. Kyle, Arielle, myself and a few amateur racers were featured on the Today Show! Wow. Ann Curry, Al Roker, Meredith Vieira, Tyra Banks, etc. all stood within 5 feet of me. I was star-struck. I believe I had 3 segments on the show. I know that some markets didn't show all 3, but I was able to model the sweet Nike BMX Olympic uniform and speak a few times on national television about BMX Racing and that was a great honor! Go to the Today Show website and view some clips.
Right after the show I hauled butt to the airport where I headed back to Chula Vista, CA training center for a few days.
May 5th, USA BMX headed to Copenhagen, Denmark for the last World Cup race before the Olympics. This was a roller-coaster of a weekend for me. Starting out in time-trials I qualified 8th- decent. So, we have 3 motos, then the top 4 riders (out of 8-man heats) qualify to the quarters, then 4 from there go to the semis and 4 from there go to the main event. In my first moto I crashed and got 7th. The next lap I got 5th. Keep in mind, 11-13 points is normally the max points you can have to qualify to the quarters. After two laps, I already have 12 points. If I have any hope of making it out of my heats the I need to win this third round. I end up winning my third round and luckily end up being the last rider to qualify to the quarters. From there I end up winning my quarter, getting second in my semi and then I went on to win the main event! This was my third World Cup victory and a good thing since the Olympics are right around the corner. I definitely give all the credit to God for making that happen for me.
Here is the race:
Now, I am back home until next Sunday when I head to Beijing, China for the BMX World Championships.
Donny
