INDIANAPOLIS — Michael Waltrip can live with the risks taken by Travis Pastrana. He just thought the action sports star and co-owner of his Nationwide team was indestructible. Think again, Michael.
Pastrana, the Maryland native with a shelf full of X Games gold medals, two world-record stunts and a relentless passion to try almost anything, took a nasty spill at the X Games on Thursday night, severely breaking his right leg. He was scheduled for surgery Friday and had to postpone his highly anticipated Nationwide Series debut in Clermont, Ind.
“When I think of Travis Pastrana, I think of Superman,” Waltrip said Friday as drivers practiced for this weekend’s Brickyard 400. “I just assumed it would all be OK.”
Pastrana’s hectic weekend schedule, hyped as the Pastranathon, sounded downright crazy but was intended to expose him to more mainstream sports fans.
Pastrana was scheduled to compete Thursday and Friday in the moto X best trick competition, then fly from Los Angeles to Indianapolis for Saturday’s race. He was scheduled to fly back to L.A. for another X Games event on Sunday, rallycross.
After four years of trying to perfect a trick with a 720 called the TP Roll, Pastrana desperately wanted to hit it at this week’s X Games. The 27-year-old missed on his first attempt, got up and tried it again on a second bid with far worse results.
“When he fell over the first time and got back up, I’m like ‘Perfect, that’s Travis. He’ll get there,’ ” said Waltrip, who was watching it play out on television. “Then, on the second attempt, obviously, we weren’t so fortunate. I got an amazing, sweet e-mail from him last night saying how devastated he was, but how passionate he was about putting that behind him and getting on with his NASCAR career.”
Though it’s not clear how long it will take Pastrana to get back, Waltrip said the team hopes to have Pastrana back for the Sept. 9 race at Richmond (Va.).
