BMX star Pat Casey died Tuesday while training at a motocross park, the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s Office announced.
Casey, 29, “lost control” of his motocross bike and was ejected at approximately 2:30 p.m., the medical examiner’s office said. He was listed as having died approximately an hour later, after paramedics were unable to resuscitate him.
A Southern California native who leaves behind a wife and two young children, Casey won a 2021 X Games gold medal in an event held at his own “Dreamyard” course in Riverside, Calif. His competitive accomplishments also included two X Games medals and four top-five finishes between 2012 and 2014. In a profile for an action-sports marketing firm, he said he had been riding since he was 2 years old and turned pro at 14, listing his signature trick as a big air double tailwhip.
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“We are deeply saddened by Pat Casey’s passing and our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife, children, parents and siblings,” the X Games said Wednesday on social media. “A true legend in the action sports community, Pat will always be a member of the X Games family and an inspiration to everyone’s life he touched.”
“It’s hard to find anyone as talented as Pat was on a bike, with complete down to earth humility off it,” Nitro Circus, a prominent action-sports entertainment company, said on social media Wednesday. “From competition to free riding, Pat’s flow and positive energy helped set him apart from the rest. He wasn’t content with just seeing himself progress in the sport, serving as a mentor to those around him as well as the next generation that rode his dreamyard.”
Casey’s death came less than two weeks after that of BMX and scooter rider Luke Burland, who also performed with Nitro Circus. A cause of death for Burland, an Australia native, has not been made public.
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A California Highway Police officer said Tuesday (via NBC San Diego) that Casey’s motorcycle appeared to have fallen on him after he missed a landing from a jump. The incident occurred at Slayground Motocross Park, a private facility near Ramona, Calif.
“The world lost one of the baddest to ever do it,” veteran BMX rider T.J. Lavin, better known to many as the longtime host of MTV’s “The Challenge,” wrote on social media. “I’m so sorry for his wife and kids. [Casey] will forever be remembered for the down to earth sweetheart of a guy that he was.”
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