Local motocross phenom Travis Pastrana has built a multimillion-dollar career around gravity-defying stunts and impossible speeds.
Now the 19-year-old faces thousands of dollars in reckless driving fines and, he said, deep regret for his role in a crash last month that left a friend unable to walk.
Standing in a large motorbike garage on his property in Davidsonville yesterday, Pastrana said that he is reluctant to get behind the wheel of another car -- at least outside the racetrack. This at a time when he is trying to parlay a hugely successful motocross career into a future in auto racing.
Pastrana, fresh from a 30-minute practice ride on motorbike trails built behind his new home, wouldn't say much about the accident yesterday, but he has bared his soul about it to his fan base.
"My friend is in the hospital because I drove too fast," he said in an open letter on motocross Web sites. "I never thought it would happen and still can't believe it did, but I have never been more sorry in my entire life."
Pastrana was driving his 2003 Chevrolet Corvette with friends after midnight June 10 on a narrow road in Anne Arundel County near his home.
Matthew Bigos, 20, a mechanic from Merritt Island, Fla., rode in the front passenger seat of the Corvette, and Paul Perebijnos, 19, of Lake Worth, Fla., a champion motocross racer, followed on a motorcycle, the accident report said. The Floridians were in town for a national event at Budds Creek Motorpark in St. Mary's County.
Anne Arundel County Police -- who served Pastrana this week with three citations totaling $2,000 in fines -- said they believe he reached speeds of 85 mph to 95 mph on Rossback Road, where the posted speed limit is 35 mph.
When the Corvette crested a small hill, it spun out of control, hitting an oak tree before landing on its top, police said.
Pastrana was thrown from the car. Bigos had to be extricated by county emergency workers. Both were taken to trauma centers. Perebijnos was not involved in the accident.
Six weeks later, Pastrana said he has physically recovered, but Bigos still cannot walk, although he has regained some feeling in his legs.
Bigos, whose Florida phone number is unlisted, posted a letter on several Web sites detailing the extent of his injuries: four broken ribs, broken shoulder blades, a deep wound on his left arm and a severe spinal bruise. "At this point I have no feeling below my waist, but my doctors are very hopeful that I will recover," he wrote last month.
