NF: Ummm… (Pause) I’d
race against… Gary Bailey. I wouldn’t fight anyone. How about you?
MMX.com: What you wouldn’t fight
anyone? Well about me I’m a sophisticated, mature, and responsible adult,
but if you insist I’ll “try” to answer your question. (Clears throat and
produces a list entitled “People I wanna fight”) Okay, just a few off the
top of my head – Ummm Daniel Grieg; that one’s the devil. I often employ
Chris Rock’s discipline upon da ladies since I don’t hit em’ – I just shake
em’ till they get nice and dizzy.
NF: (Laugh)
MMX.com: Umm, Timex a.k.a Michael
Anderson. He’s pretty tough, but he’s kinda small right now. One day he’ll
be a lot bigger than me, so I figure might as well get in what I can right
now.
Tony “The Tornado” Cygan. He said he
could take me and Kevin Duffy on at the same time, but I think Kevin could
whip anyone provided he had a cup of hot coffee in his hand. Umm Dave
Segal’s son cuz this one time I came to the gate at The Landing and Vance
sneezed and the guy didn’t say “Bless you” to him. Let’s see one more:
Tyler Kirschner, not really to fight him,
he’s a great kid and all, but I can’t see him without thinking “Man I wonder
how far I could throw him?”
NF: (Hard Laugh) You’ve
got issues.
MMX.com: You been talking to my
shrink? Anyways, movin on what hobbies to you use to entertain yourself
besides Motocross?
NF: Right now I’m
writing for Moto Playground.
MMX.com: Really?
NF: Yeah. I’m writing
for them.
MMX.com: Excellent. Man… Don’t let
Michael find out he might want to give you my job.
NF: (Laugh) I also like
to ski.
MMX.com: Arrgghhhh you’re a
2-planker? You guys ruin it for us boarders. You guys just get in the way.
NF: (Laugh) I tried it
but I suck at snowboarding.
MMX.com: Remember, “Don’t ever give
up” Telling you man, it’s like a religion, keep the faith man. Vance and
Scooter board with me sometimes
NF: (Laugh) Well, maybe
I’ll try it again some time.
MMX.com: I’m certain that I
remember an incident at Bud’s Creek where I saw you, where not your sister,
but one of her friends fell off the flag tower at Bud’s Creek at the top of
Big Gulp.
NF: Yeah that was Sarah
Whitehair. She fell off.
MMX.com: I
remember because I was walking away from the tower when I heard a thud.
Since she fell on her back, I knew it was important not to move her and I
wasn’t sure if she
hit her head or not, so I told her friends to keep her conscious till the
paramedics arrived. The staff there is pretty good they were there almost
instantly. You were either in the middle of racing or had just finished I
believe.
NF: Yeah, we had just
got done. I saw something on the last lap and someone told me that a girl
had fell off the tower and I was worried it might be my sister so I hopped
on the back of someone’s bike and they took me up there.
MMX.com: Right, I’m glad she
turned out okay with no serious injuries. Well, lets lead into your injury
or “The Injury”. I got some pretty intense looking pictures e-mailed to me.
NF: Which one?
MMX.com: That would be the back
injury sir. Looks like it runs the entire length of your back.
NF: I broke both
femurs, my hip and my shoulder at South Fork. I had previously had
*scoliosis
and that tweaked it even more. I had to get two
rods put in to make it straight instead of crooked. Now I have a big ol’
scar.
MMX.com: are you going to cover
that up with a Spine Tribal tattoo some day or something?
NF: I’ll probably get
my number. I plan on getting Farley and 66 on there.
MMX.com: Kewl. Disclaimer – Those
of here at Maryland Motocross do not condone, encourage, support, or approve
tattooing or body art. We can neither confirm or deny that a couple of the
Staff Members “have some really Cool ones” either.
NF: (Laugh)
MMX.com: You said you’ve had some
other injuries, want to talk about those?
NF: When I was 8, I
broke my arm backwards and it came through my skin.
MMX.com: Arrgh! Compound Fractures
are never pretty.
NF: Yup. My arm went
through the handlebar pads and it broke my arm and the bone came out through
my skin like I said. I didn’t even realize it. It was Mark and Jessye
Davis’ dad that came and saw that I was bleeding. They literally had to
tape me down and stop the bleeding.
MMX.com: Yeah Mr. Davis is pretty
kewl and one heck of a Patriotic American I might add. It just occurred to
me that we never got into your age. How old are you?
NF: I’m 15 years old.
MMX.com:
You’ve been riding for 9 years, so that means that you were about 4 when you
started. A lot of kids are getting into Motocross at an early age these
days. Earlier than we would have heard about 10-20 years ago. You, as well
as many of the people we’ve interviewed are a good example of that. How do
you feel about that? Do you think it’s a good or bad idea?
NF: I think it’s great;
Starting that early. Once they start, they won’t want to stop. It’ll keep
them off the streets and out of trouble when going through their teens. Out
of drugs and stuff like that.
MMX.com: I just think it’s amazing
that they learn about clutches and shifting gears. It definitely helps them
to become a more focused individual; that will pay off if they give the same
attention to other things. I remember the first time I stole, I mean rode
Greg Duffy’s bike Tyler Kirschner had to start it for me and the kids on the
50s and 60s were telling me “put it in 2nd” and I was like “This thing has
gears?” But back to your back, how the recovery coming?
NF: Well, I have a
brace now. I have to wear it for another 6-8 months.
MMX.com: Well, for what it’s worth,
women dig a guy with scars.
NF: Guess I can have
any girl I want then (laugh)
MMX.com: There ya go, they’ll line
up for ya. What would you say is going through your mind right as/before
the gate drops?
NF: To get to that
corner first. Gotta try to be the first one there to set the pace for the
rest of the moto.
MMX.com: So totally focused on the
holeshot. Good. What would you say is the favorite part of your race
weekend? When you first get there? When you’re leaving? When you first see
your friends?
NF: I’d say when I do
my first and second motos. They usually are what’s going to make or break
me for the weekend.
MMX.com: You’re sister is a very
good racer. Does she mentor you or do you guys compete?
NF: Both. We compete a
little bit. Sibling rivalry I suppose (laugh). She gives me some advice.
She helps me train in the yard. If I’m doing something wrongs she corrects
me or tells me how to do it better…
MMX.com: And calls you a brat from
time to time for good measure?
NF: (Laugh) Yeah that
too.
MMX.com: I was looking over my
notes and I realized that you had multiple injuries in addition to you back,
could you walk me and the readers through the crash?
NF: Sure. I was with
Ryan Smith and Bob Bailey at Southfork. That Sunday the 1st moto went fine,
but then in the 2nd I came up for a jump and went for it, came down on a
lapper and went flying head over heels. All I remember seeing Bob Bailey,
then waking up in some hospital somewhere in Richmond. My sister came and
stayed with me.
MMX.com: So, is hospital food as
bad as people say it is?
NF: Oh… (sigh) it
sucks…
MMX.com: (Laugh)
NF: It really… sucks.,.
MMX.com: (Harder Laugh) What did
they give you to eat?
NF: I mostly stuck to
Chicken Nuggets, cause all the other stuff…ugh… It was nasty.
MMX.com: How do you feel about guys
that wear black socks with sandal and black clothes to the track?
NF: It’s all good, I
think it’s supposed to make their pictures come out better or something.
MMX.com: What would you say is the
deal with the “Duffy Hair”?
NF: Huh? Who? Which
one?
MMX.com: Shoot, pick one… It makes
em look all crazy like. Like a Cross between Albert Einstein and Kiss
NF: To each his own I
suppose.
MMX.com: What did the doctor say at
your most recent trip?
NF: He said everything
is going good. The uh, (laugh) surgery made me two inches taller.
MMX.com: What? I’m only 5’7”
myself, so I could go in to a Doc and be like I want you make me 5’9” cause
you gave Nick Farley a little boost. Let’s do this?
NF: No, mine was a
special case.
MMX.com: That’s crazy. But let’s
talk about that. This is a side effect of scoliosis right?
NF: Well I’ve always
been short. When I was younger I even had to bolt some platforms to my
boots so the seat wouldn’t kick me around. I was too old to ride 50s and I
was too small for the bigger bikes so I had to adapt.
MMX.com: In spite of all of this,
the things you had to overcome, I still heard that you did a pretty good job
at spanking people from time to time. You tended to stay near the front of
the pack.
NF: No. I wouldn’t say
that at all. There are a lot of people out there faster and better than me
and a lot of people better and faster than them: There is always someone
better and faster. I think I gave many people as much of a “Run for my
money” as I did them.
MMX.com: So where does your
motocross career go from here?
NF: Well, my mom and
dad won’t let me race anymore. I mean, I really can’t. The rods in my back
are permanent. If I case something real hard or crash, there’s not telling
what will happen: they could go right into my head or something. We don’t
want to take that risk. I would either like to be an announcer or stick
with the Moto Playground people and work with them.
MMX.com: Well, writing is a good
hobby. It’s fun..
NF: Yeah I like it a
lot.
MMX.com: You seem to have a good
personality for it, you know your stuff and are pretty funny, so I think
you’ll be just as happy doing that.
NF: Yeah I definitely
know a lot about injuries and I have a decent amount of experience in the
sport. Especially at Bud’s Creek (laugh). I hurt my ankle at least 3 times
a year there.
MMX.com: So when you’re racing
there sometimes you think “I wonder if I’m going to hurt my ankle today?”
NF: Yeah sometimes it
can be exactly like that. I don’t get too worried about it. I’ve been
through a lot of pain, so a little ankle injury doesn’t bother me.
MMX.com: Listen to you “I just
broke me ankle, eh, no big deal” (laugh)
NF: (Laugh) Hey Never
give up, keep on riding. When I get off the track I’ll put ice on it.
MMX.com: All right Nick, I think
I’ll leave before I get injured from being around ya
NF: (Laugh) Okay.
MMX.com: Take it easy. Well either
look forward to hearing from you over the loudspeaker or in Moto
Playground.
NF: Okay, thanks, I’ll
look for you guys.
*Scoliosis
is an abnormal curvature of the spine. Although it usually doesn't cause
pain, scoliosis or its treatment can sometimes wound a child's self-esteem.
At worst, scoliosis can interfere with the function of organs.
The spine is
an elegant structure — from the side it takes the form of an elongated S,
the upper back bowing outward and the lower back curving slightly inward.
Viewed from behind though, the spine should appear as a straight line from
the base of the neck to the tailbone. If your child has scoliosis, the view
from behind may reveal one or more abnormal curves. Most cases of scoliosis
don't get worse, and periodic checkups may be all that your child needs.
Children with more a severe curve that continues to increase, however, may
require a brace or surgery.
Scoliosis
runs in families, but doctors often don't know the cause. More girls get
scoliosis than boys. Of every 1,000 children, three to five develop spinal
curves that are severe enough to need treatment. Onset of scoliosis rarely
occurs in adults. Sometimes, adult scoliosis is a worsening of a condition
that began in childhood, but wasn't diagnosed or treated. In other cases, it
may result from a degenerative joint condition in the spine.
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