It was Sunday April 27, 2003. The race was an Arenacross in Houma’s Civic Auditorium. I was announcing the 125 beginner class. This is usually a dangerous and crowded class in the sport of motocross racing. This race proved to be a true reflection of that pattern. Fourteen powerful motocross racing bikes were lined up at the gate. Nervous riders revved their engines, watching the starter, Jamie Dishon. All eyes in the arena were on this veteran starter as he pointed down the line and got the nods of readiness from each racer. After he was convinced that all were ready, he quickly made his way to the release bar hidden at the end of the line. The crescendo of horsepower reached its peak as he dropped the gate. Clutches engaged, knobbies spun, dirt flew, and bikes broke loose and gained momentum to the fearful first turn where the high speed bullying and jockeying for position began. One rider became a victim in the chaotic action. Chris St. Pierre, a local rider was taken down. Usually the riders bounce back up and get back into the race. But Chris was motionless. Since the injury looked so serious and he was right in the middle of the track, the red flag came out to abort the race. Medics came running. Flagmen were flagging. Women screamed. Then the crowd fell into a hushed anticipation. The other riders made their way back to the line cautiously killing their motors to wait. An eerie silence had fallen upon the smoky arena like a dark mood. As announcer, I dared not try to fill the time with more prize give-aways or witty remarks. I just announced his name. “Chris St. Pierre is down.” I hung my head to pray as he was being attended to. The three minutes seemed like thirty. Finally, the crowd began to applaud. I look up to see that Chris was being helped to his feet. “He’s getting up – Chris St. Pierre from Houma,” I cheerily announced. As he was helped off the track I turned to grab a ticket out of the box for another prize givea- way as the entertainment resumed. A voice crackled on my headset. “He’s getting back on his bike.” It was Charlie Pausina, the race referee. A glance over to the gate confirmed this surprising news as Chris was swinging a leg over his bike which was now at the line. “He’s gonna race again,” Charlie said in an unbelieving tone. Even before I could announce it, the crowd erupted into a roar of approval as they watched the teenager put his goggles back on. The gate dropped for the restart. My co-announcer in the tower relayed the news first, “Chris St. Pierre into the turn first!” Sure enough, this young man got the holeshot and held on to win. I called for the officials to grab him and send him back into the arena for an on-track interview. When he finally returned, I stuck the microphone in his face and asked him, “What happened?” He said, “I got a calf injury, but it must have just been a ‘charlie horse’. I just HAD to get back up.” Again the crowd roared its approval. A few races later, in the 50cc open class, a 6 year old rider from Westwego charged up to the front of the pack and won his race. Right as he crossed the finish line jump he crashed. Flagmen scrambled over to assist. Dillon Dufrene slowly began to crawl off the track. His Dad, Blue Dufrene had come running onto the track to pick him up. He checked him out, and then put him up on his shoulder for a victory ride back to the pits. I stopped them and asked Dillon what happened and placed the microphone under Dillon’s helmet for the reply. “I just had to get up.” I asked a smiling Dad, “How do you feel?” He answered smiling, “It’s great. He did it.” Blue Dufrene had a heart attack at a race in Fernwood, Mississippi a year ago. He said they lost him on the operating table. But prayers were answered. He came back to us. He got back up. This night he enjoyed watching his son win an Arenacross race. How things can change. They looked bad, there was pain, but they turned out good. We all were reminded again about the value of human life and relationships. It’s not “if” you will go down in life, but “when.” We all live in this world, and we will all face trials, setbacks and suffering. Whether we caused it or were just an innocent bystander. It’s part of life. If we will accept this fact and be mentally and spiritually prepared, it won’t seem so bad when it comes. Life’s knockdowns don’t have to be fatal. We CAN get back up. What’s the secret? Read Matthew 14:25-31 and look for Peter’s mistake. He took his eyes off Jesus and focused on the problem. As soon as he did that, he started to sink. Then Jesus had to rescue him. When life deals you the “dirty blows”, here are some answers from God’s Word: 1. Ask God for help. Don’t try to rescue yourself. 2. Keep your focus on Jesus. They don’t call Him “Savior” for nothing. 3. Look at life from God’s perspective. This is a “long distance race,” not a sprint. Just because you fall behind, or crash doesn’t mean it’s all over. 4. Read the Bible. In it is story after story of people who struggled and failed, but got back up. (David, Peter, Paul, Timothy, John, James, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, etc.) Quote for the day: “Real champions are not judged on how they handle winning, but how they handle defeat.” (R.J.)
