I'm coming to you live from the Lusk Legacy Foundation gala and poker tournament here at Pechanga Casino in Temecula, California. Right now, everyone in attendance is enjoying a three-course meal and cocktails and the greatest part of it all is that the night's still young. The purpose of the LLF gala and poker tournament is to raise funds to help the Lusk Legacy Foundation build a solid base, which will enable it to start knocking out some of the early objectives.
To find out more about what some of the main goals of the LLF are, I talked to Metal Mulisha CEO Toby Bost. Toby informed me that besides the general goal of making freestyle motocross a safer sport, there are three main goals that the LLF plans to achieve. There are also numerous little, but critical services that they plan to offer in the future, but I'll get to that shortly.
The first main objective of the LLF is to provide members with medical evacuation services, including air ambulances, if critically injured. In an event similar to Lusk's accident, this type of service would be crucial as it would ensure that the rider is given proper care, no matter the location. If a rider is injured in a third-world country, the air ambulance would more than likely bring them home to the states for the best treatment from the best doctors.
The second key objective is to invest time and funding into the R&D (research and development) of protective equipment for the sport of FMX, mainly helping to prevent neck and back injuries. Obviously, with the recent development of new generation neck braces like the Leatt brace and the Alpinestars Bionic brace, the risk of neck injury's are much less than what they used to be, but there is still plenty of work to be done and that's why the LLF plans on contributing to that sector of the sport.
Ryan Leyba
Oh, and of course the ladies straight OWNED the red carpet.
The third key objective of the LLF is to organize a plan to bring the proper medical services to freestyle motocross events. Not only does that mean it will be mandatory to have EMT's on site at every event, but it will also create an offering of medical consultation by key surgeons and a panel of doctors. It doesn't matter if a rider is injured internationally or domestically, the panel of doctors and surgeons will be on call to make sure that the proper measures are being taken to ensure the riders health and safety.
So, those three key objectives will be rolled out first and once the objectives are nailed down, the LLF will continue to grow and extend its reach to help promote and evolve freestyle motocross. Now, enough with the technical mumbo jumbo, let's get to the party!
Everyone is here to celebrate the life of Jeremy Lusk and when I say everyone, I mean everyone. There are too many people to list, but icon's from FMX, MX and even Hollywood are roaming around and representing the LLF. I haven't seen it for myself, but rumor has it that Vince Vaughn is in attendance. Okay, that's enough talking from me, just check out the photos and be sure to stay tuned to ESPN FMX for more from the LLF gala, including some super radical exclusive video. I gotta get back down there before Bilko closes his bar tab!
Ryan Leyba
Not a single thing was spared when it came to making the LLF gala a first class event.
Ryan Leyba
Beau Manley and Metal Mulisha's newest recruit, Jackson Strong, strut their stuff.
Ryan Leyba
Throughout the night, a silent auction will be taking place and one of the main items up for bid is Jeremy Lusk's bike. How much would you pay for this thing?
Ryan Leyba
These be some sharp looking dudes! Ronnie Faisst and Todd Potter show the world that their closets go deeper than black tees.
Ryan Leyba
Susan Stenberg, Logan Darien, Nate Adams' lady and Nate congregate at the round table awaiting their bomb-o-licious dinner.
Ryan Leyba
What would a party be without a rippin' 80's rock cover band?
Ryan Leyba
It's Bilko!!!
Ryan Leyba
Ryan "Fluffer" Hagy and his lady make me feel really short...
Ryan Leyba
Robbie "Maddo" Maddison and his fiancé Amy get a little food in their stomach before opening up the throttle and shifting it into fifth.
Ryan Leyba
Twitch and Susan follow Maddo and Amy's lead...
Ryan Leyba
Team Australia is representing to the fullest tonight! Cam Sinclair and his lady get their grub on with the single Bilko. Ladies?
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Contributors
Ryan Leyba
Leyba is a bitter, retired FMX rider that likes to sit in his cubicle and call the professionals of the sport wussies for not pulling 360s and double backflips. He claims he quit riding FMX before flips were even invented... yeah, right.
Cliff Talley
Making FMX videos exciting is easy. Making them look good is not. Cliff Talley does both of these well and still manages to find enough time to piss off his neighbors with his Travis Barker-esque drum skills.
Chris Tedesco
You've seen his photos on the covers of Transworld, Racer X and more. You've also seen his tequila shooting skills at your local dive bar. Ladies, Chris is single and looking to mingle.
Grant "Goba" O'brien
FMX in Australia wouldn't exist if it weren't for Goba. Well, maybe it would, but it wouldn't be nearly as cool. I don't know why, but we can't quit calling him gobalobadingdong — it just rolls off the tongue.
Tes Sewell
Tes is the dude that's always involved in everything that's going on in FMX. How he does it, we don't know, but that's the reason we hired him to share his plethora of FMX wisdom in the form of a monthly column.
