Local extreme sports athlete Lavin in critical condition after crash

No one was happier than T.J. Lavin when the Dew Tour for action sports announced early this year that its season finale would be in Las Vegas.

Lavin, 33, knew he was close to retiring from BMX bicycle racing and that it could be his final opportunity to compete in a major event in his hometown.

"There have been some races here, but nothing like the Dew Tour," Lavin told the Las Vegas Review-Journal in March. "This is amazing."

The Durango High School graduate and lifelong Las Vegan never could have imagined how the event would unfold for him.

On Thursday night, on a makeshift dirt course built in a parking lot of the Hard Rock Hotel, Lavin crashed after a high jump during preliminaries for this weekend's BMX Dirt competition. He suffered a head injury that rendered him unconscious and was transported to University Medical Center, where Friday he was listed in critical condition.

Lavin was placed in a medically induced coma after the horrific crash, according to reports.

Lavin landed without getting his feet back onto the pedals after an aerial trick and was thrown from the bike. In addition to the undisclosed head injury, he suffered broken ribs and a broken wrist.

Nate Berkheimer, 28, another Las Vegan and Dew Tour competitor in BMX Dirt, was fifth in line to ride after Lavin. They have ridden together since 1996.

"I kind of didn't want to ride, but I had to. He would have wanted me to," said Berkheimer, who competes at 7:30 tonight in the Dirt championship round. "He was really looking forward to racing in front of the hometown crowd. This event meant so much to him."

Berkheimer said the trick Lavin attempted after launching from a 15-foot high dirt mound left him with both feet on one side of the bike and only one hand on the handlebars.

"It looked like he kicked the seat with one foot when he was trying get back on and the bike wasn't completely within reach," Berkheimer said. "I've seen him do that trick hundreds of times."

The Dew Tour's reigning BMX Dirt champion, Ryan Nyquist, said Lavin might have been distracted by a tragic accident that happened Wednesday at Lavin's BMX track behind his Las Vegas home.

Ty Pinney, a graphic designer for Lavin's LavsLab.com company, crashed and was taken to UMC, where he was put into a medically induced coma for a brain injury.

"I don't know what T.J. was thinking before he rode, but I heard (Pinney's) accident really bothered him," said Nyquist, the top qualifier for today's 2 p.m. BMX Park finals. "But you can't ride like we do unless you are completely focused."

Dr. Dale Carrison, chairman of emergency medicine at UMC, said a medically induced coma is needed after a significant head injury.

"You want to shut the brain down so it needs minimal blood flow and to eliminate any stimulation," he said. "It's very, very important to do everything to protect the brain."

Hospital officials were not permitted to provide specific information on Lavin's injuries because of patient privacy standards.

Lavin has indicated he was nearing the end of his BMX career.

"He kept making comments (Thursday) like, 'Well, this is my last one,' " Nyquist said.

Lavin had helped promote the Dew Tour event and design the course at the Hard Rock.

"I really wish they would have had this when I was in my prime," Lavin told the Review-Journal for a story in Thursday's editions. "That would have been nice. But it's still great to have it now, and here."

Lavin has been riding professionally since he was 19 and won three X Games titles in the 1990s, when he earned the moniker "King of Dirt."

His good looks and charismatic personality led to a career on MTV that began 11 years ago as a host on "Real World/Road Rules Challenge."

A self-taught pianist, Lavin has also released two albums.

Contact reporter Jeff Wolf at jwolf@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0247.