The perseverance and kindness of the late BMX Freestyle legend Dave Mirra inspired people from as far away as South Dakota to honor his memory.
Hundreds gathered at Jaycee Park Sunday for a memorial celebration and the official dedication of a statue honoring Mirra that stands outside the Extreme Park BMX/Skateboard Park.
The event included tributes from Mirra’s family, friends and professional BMX riders, a demonstration by the BMXers who rode with Mirra and a raffle of Mirra memorabilia.
Mirra’s children, Madison and Mackenzie, were surprised by the turnout and the stories people shared about their father’s influence.
“It’s definitely a bigger event than I could imagine. Just seeing it come to life, how he impacted everyone; it’s not just in Greenville, it’s all over the world,” Madison Mirra said.
“I think it just proves that anyone can impact anyone,” Mackenzie Mirra said. “You don’t have to be ‘known’ out there. You get impacted every day by someone, it makes a big difference.”
Tim Mirra, who was studying at East Carolina University when his brother came to live with him, said he was pleased.
“I know it’s been a long time coming and I’m glad we had a lot of people show up today,” he said. “I want people to take away what he stood for and how hard he worked for what he accomplished. Just understand if you believe in yourself and keep going for what you want to do.”
Mirra, who would have turned 50 this year, died Feb. 4, 2016, from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. It was later determined he had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a disease caused by brain injuries such as concussions, which can affect memory, cognitive function and mood.
Many at Sunday’s events still mourn Mirra’s loss, but they celebrated the inspiration he provided.
Kris York of Canton, S.D., traveled with his wife and two daughters to spend several days at the Outer Banks before arriving in Greenville for the ceremony.
“I grew up watching Dave ride, I’m talking 10, 12 years old. I looked up to him … and was absolutely heartbroken when he passed away,” York said.
He never met Mirra, but York was inspired by how Mirra lived his life, taking on new challenges such as rallycross racing and triathlons. He said Mirra always persevered.
York tries to follow his example.
“With work, sometimes you want to give up when it comes to getting up and going to work every morning. I own a business now and you have to keep going and keep digging,” said York, who owns a tree-cutting business.
Lauren Everett, Mirra’s widow, said she was “blown away” and humbled to learn people drove for hours from Kansas and Florida to attend Sunday’s event because of the emotional connection they felt with her late husband.
“After eight years, it’s kind of nice to hear different perspectives on how Dave impacted other people,” Everett said. “I feel like in a way we learn about him in different ways each time we hear a new story. It helps us remember things maybe we don’t remember off the top of our heads. We miss him.”
Wendy Hylton of Hampton, Va., met Mirra about 30 years ago when he would practice at the skatepark she operated in Hampton.
“We became very good friends. We would both Woodward Camp in the summers. I was the gymnastics coach, he was obviously the BMXer and my husband (Matthew Hylton) was a skateboarder,” Hylton said.
“Dave was just a really good guy. He was a dear friend of ours, we were kind of with him through his rise to fame and glory. It was just so cool to know somebody who had a video game named after him.”
Hylton said Mirra was a “happy, fun-loving guy who was kind-hearted.
“He would give you the shirt off his back. He was just really a kind guy. We all adored him. He was genuinely a good person,” she said. “He wanted to win. He would work hard and give it his all. He was really just an awesome guy. It was so sad to lose him.”
Hylton said she believes Mirra would have enjoyed Sunday’s celebration and be stoked to see the people who love him.
Bryan Adams, a retired U.S. Marine who lives in Topsail Beach, said watching Mirra compete encouraged him to take “a lot of positive risks” during his life.
“I wanted to pay my respects because if it wasn’t for people like Dave, I wouldn’t be the person I am today,” Adams said. “Seeing him succeed the way he did, it made me want to push myself and a lot of blessings came into my life because of that.”
Adams grew up in a rural California town outside Reno, Nevada, which had few options for entertainment. Riding BMX bikes was how children got around.
While serving with the U.S. Marine Corps, Adams was stationed at Yuma, Arizona, which had a BMX track.
I got into doing pump track quite a bit,” he said. “Dave’s presence, when he came out with the video game, I was obsessed with BMX at that point.” He never competed professionally, but Adams said he did become an expert.
Today, Adams is a Christian surfer and part of a group that holds church services on the beach. He hoped to have a chance to talk to people at Sunday’s ceremony about his faith.
Will Straub, a former BMX rider who later produced videos with Mirra, recorded a video for the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
He and his brother first met Mirra in the winter of 1995. They lived in Raleigh and their father drove them to Greenville to ride at the BMX park. Suddenly, they saw Dave Mirra riding in their direction.
“Dave couldn’t have been any nicer, anymore patient with us. We must have been like annoying little kids asking him to do all these tricks, asking him about his bike. But he could not have been any nicer, any more genuine to us. He pretty much put on a freakin’ demo for my brother, my dad and I,” Staub said.
At the end of the day, Mirra autographed a magazine that had his photograph, Staub said. He included his telephone number and urged the boys to call him so they could ride together the next time Staub was in Greenville.
“That had such a lasting impression on my brother and I … It was a nice and generous thing for him to do.”
BMX Pro Mike Mancuso said Sunday’s turnout shows that Mirra’s legacy lives on.
“When you see someone with a passion and drive like that you just want to be a part of what he is doing. Whether it’s celebrating his life, supporting his family or supporting the local skatepark. The skatepark is here to stay,” Mancuso said.
Kristi Overton Johnson, a former water skiing champion, author and missionary, became friends with Mirra and his family. She said the statue, with his arms outstretched, reminded her about “the dash,” the period of a person’s life between their birth and death, and that Mirra’s life was well-lived.
“If you listen today what you hear is that Dave was a champion, but not just because he had metals, but because of who he was as a father, who he was as a husband, as a son, as a brother, as a friend,” Johnson said.
“There are a lot of kids here who aspire to be like Dave. When you walk past this (statue), I want you to think about what it takes to be a champion. It takes perseverance, it takes being willing to take a risk to fall. Dave was not afraid to fall. I fell every single day of my life when I trained,” Johnson said. “You can’t learn unless you are trying, unless you are falling.”
Strive to be like Mirra in humility and perseverance, in kindness and in patience, she said.
Greenville Mayor P.J. Connelly said he isn’t sure Mirra knew the impact he would make when he moved to Greenville to live with his brother Tim.
“BMX riders all around the world descended upon Greenville to ride with the best in the sport. Many even made Greenville their permanent home,” Connelly said. “It was not uncommon to find some of the world’s best here at Jaycee Park riding with aspiring young riders. That is one of the greatest things that separates a sport like BMX from the mainstream.
“There will be a statue that will be here and the legacy of Dave Mirra will continue to live on as we look behind us and there are children on their BMX bikes living out the same dream that Dave did,” Connelly said. “On behalf of the city thank you everyone for being here, thank you Mirra family and thank you to Dave for the legacy he left our community.”
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