Brad Baker

Board

I grew up in western Washington and started racing flat track when I was 5 years old. Since the day I started racing I had the desire to become champion at the highest level. I was very fortunate to be able to make that dream come true when I won the grand national championship at just 20 years old. From there my career really started to sky rocket as I got picked up by factory Harley Davidson where I represented them at the X-Games and I also started to travel the world to race against world champion stars like Marc Màrquez and Valentino Rossi. I truly started to feel like a rock star. But when all this fame began, so did a long list of injuries. In a matter of 5 years I had 2 complete elbow replacements, a broken and dislocated left shoulder, a separated right shoulder, a broken left leg, a broken jaw and multiple concussions. I fought through all these injuries and remained competitive for wins and podiums and, through it all, Rookie's of 79 was there to support me. If it wasn't for their help during the time I was recovering I would have suffered a lot more financially and could have came into some hard times since I had basically been on my own since I was 18. Then in 2018, tragedy struck when I was competing at the summer X-Games. I was racing for factory Indian Motorcycle at the time and I had my eyes set on winning the gold medal as I had received the bronze medal the 3 years prior. On the last last lap of the final qualifying session, I hooked a rut that put me in a tank slapper and ultimately threw me over the bars. I could have landed a million other ways, but I landed directly on top of my head, which folded me up like a pretzel. The impact compressed my spine so bad that my T6 vertebrae exploded, which unfortunately sent a bone fragment into my spinal cord. Once I woke up on the track I immediately knew I had broken my back and when I couldn't feel or move anything from the chest down I knew my life had just been changed forever. The recovery after suffering a spinal cord injury is the most difficult thing I have ever been through. I'm still trying to recover from it today. It will be something that I will need constant care and therapy for the rest of my life if I want to remain strong and healthy. With that being said, it cost A LOT of money for all the special equipment and professional care needed to do this. Rookie's of 79 and all the amazing fans that have supported the charity have been a huge help to make all of this happen. Without them, I would not be able to continue to spend $1000 a week on therapy. This therapy and equipment will hopefully allow me to regain my ability to walk one day. I stood at my wedding, so anything is possible. The people of the charity and the supportive fans have became like family to me and are near and dear to my heart. That's why I try to support Rookies in every way I can and I hope you do too.