Part three: The Loop
It was during the filming for an episode of Jackass. Tony hawk and Matt Hoffman were going to attempt the loop. As everyone else stood back and watched, Bam was amazed. He decided that he was going to try the loop as well.
"I am seriously going to die right now." He said into the camera as he stood on top of the ramp. "I'm seriously gonna try to land this."
Everyone else stood back and watched as Bam went down the ramp. He made it partway through the loop and fell onto the pad. When he stood up he was hurt and disappointed, and determined to try again. Tony came up to him to give him some pointers.
"Just ride it as one track, like a roller coaster. You won't really know when you're upside down."
"Ok."
Bam stood on top of the ramp with his board and held his breath. He closed his eyes, trying to picture himself landing the loop like Tony and Matt did. Opening his eyes he stood on his skateboard and dropped down onto the ramp. Somehow he just knew that he wasn't going to make it. He landed hard on the pad and sat up as best as he could.
"What's your name and what are we watchin'?" Someone from behind the camera asked.
"Give me a minute." Bam laughed.
He stood up and grabbed his board. He was going to try again, and he was going to nail it.
"No Bam you're done." Someone else said, stopping him from going to the ramp. "You're just going to get hurt."
"Fine." Bam dropped his board. "I'll just try again tomorrow."
The next day the guys went back to the loop. Bam was going to try again. The cameraman was ready to capture it, and of course there was someone ready to push the pad into place for Bam to land on. Bam stood on top of the ramp with his board. The anxiety was growing inside of him as he stared out at the loop. It seemed to be taunting him. He took a deep breath and remembered what Tony had told him the day before.
"Just ride it like a roller coaster." He said to himself. "I can do this. I can do this."
The wheels of his skateboard seemed motioned as he rolled down the ramp. It was such a great rush that he almost didn't want the moment to end. He could feel the wind blow past him as he rolled halfway up the loop. His skateboard went out from under him and he saw the pad being pushed into place as he came crashing down. His body missed the pad completely and he landed hard and flat on his chest. The pad wasn't put in place at the right time, and had been pushed over Bam's arm. Even though it was a large cushion, the pad was still quite heavy.
When Bam landed he had the wind knocked out of him. It took him a minute to realize what had happened. He turned his head as best as he could to look at his arm that was beneath the pad. The other guys rushed up to him to check him out. When they asked him if he was all right, all Bam could do was groan.
"I can't move." He finally managed to say.
"It's ok Bam just lie still."
The pad was moved off of Bam's arm, and someone took Bam's helmet off for him. Just by looking at Bam's arm, they could tell that it was broken. Bam tried t lift himself up with his good arm, but someone held him down.
"No Bam don't try to move until the ambulance gets here."
"Ambulance?"
"Just try to stay calm and DON'T MOVE. Got that?"
"Yeah but…"
He lowered his head and closed his eyes, trying to block out the pain. He felt like he wanted to cry but he couldn't produce any tears. The whole time he kept his eyes closed tight and listened to everything that was going on around him. At one point, someone he didn't recognize started fussing with him: poking and prodding at his arm and whatnot.
"You're arm is definitely broken." He heard him say. "Not only that but your shoulder is dislocated. Hold on and we're going to try to flip you over onto your back."
He was picked up and gently placed on is back, but he wasn't in the same spot as before. He felt something go around his neck.
"That's only a neck brace, Bam. Just to hold your neck in place as we transport you. We need to keep your spine straight."
"But I didn't land on my back. I…"
"We know. It's just a precaution."
Bam opened his eyes and watched the sky roll by overhead as he was pushed on the stretcher. It was such an odd feeling, not being able to move, but watching everything about him move instead.
It was the first full day Bam got to spend at home since his failed attempt at the loop. He was miserable, having to spend much of his day in bed. The doctor told him that, because of the broken ribs he'd suffered, he had to limit his movement. The most he was able to be up and about was when he had to go to the bathroom.
As if dealing with the broken ribs wasn't bad enough, he also had to endure a broken arm and wearing a neck brace for a week. He didn't even want to look at a skateboard at first, which made him even more miserable than he was.