David Michael Mirra (April 4, 1974 – February 4, 2016) was an American BMX rider who also competed in rallycross racing. He set the record for most medals in BMX Freestyle at the X Games (later tied by Scotty Cranmer) and earned at least one BMX medal at the event in all but one year from the competition's inception in 1995 until 2009. He also competed for several years with the Subaru Rally Team USA as a rallycross driver. Mirra rode for and was fully sponsored by Haro Bikes from the mid-1990s until he started his own bike company. He was a member of the team which won the 2014 Race Across America four-person male (under 50) category. Mirra died by suicide on February 4, 2016. He was posthumously inducted into the BMX Hall of Fame on June 11, 2016.
Early life Mirra was born on April 4, 1974, in Chittenango, New York.Blitzkrieg 1999 DAVE MIRRA @ 23MAG BMX. 23mag.com He graduated from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona).Facts & Statistics . collegeprowler.com
In the 1990s, Mirra's brother, Tim, moved to Greenville, North Carolina, to attend East Carolina University. Dave moved to Greenville soon after. Fellow professional BMX rider Ryan Nyquist moved in with Tim. Mirra and Nyquist became quick friends and would build and ride ramps together. Greenville is now home to over twenty professional BMX riders. This gave Greenville the nickname "Protown" in the BMX community.
Career While still living in Chittenango, Mirra joined the Haro Bikes BMX team in 1987, at the age of 13. Video producers Plywood Hoods featured him in their videos in 1988. Mirra gained a sponsorship from Vision Street Wear in 1989. He was also sponsored by GT Bicycles through 1991, and then joined Hoffman Bikes in 1992 before re-signing with Haro in 1994.
Mirra turned professional in 1992. He won at least one medal at the X Games in every year from 1995 through 2009, with the exception of 2006, after being injured during a practice run. In 2005, Mirra won the Best Male Action Sports Athlete ESPY Award. He tied Tony Hawk and Joe Parsons as the fastest to reach 14 X Games medals, and his 24 total medals at the X Games stood as a record until 2013. He shares the record for most gold medals at the Summer X Games, with a total of 14 (tied with Bob Burnquist and Jamie Bestwick). He retired from BMX riding in 2011.
From 2008 through 2013, Mirra competed in rallying and rallycross as a member of Subaru Rally Team USA. He had a career-best fourth-place finish during the 2013 Global RallyCross Championship. Mirra became interested in Ironman competitions, competing in his first triathlon in March 2013. He qualified for the 2014 Ironman 70.3 World Championship.
Mirra's success took him to numerous outlets besides riding his bike, such as hosting two seasons of MTV's Real World/Road Rules Challenge. He is featured in the Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX video game series and more recently appeared in the 2009 video game Colin McRae: Dirt 2. He published a photo-biography titled Mirra Images, and was once one of People magazine's "50 Hottest Bachelors". In the mid-2000s, Mirra signed an endorsement deal with DC Shoes after leaving Adidas. With his friends in 2007, he started his own bike company called MirraCo.
Personal life and death Mirra and his wife, Lauren, had two daughters. Mirra contracted bacterial meningitis in 2010. He recovered before resuming rally racing.
On February 4, 2016, Mirra died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head in Greenville, North Carolina at the age of 41. Authorities responded to a reported suicide and discovered his body inside his black Ford F-150 Raptor. He had reportedly been visiting friends in the area. Greenville mayor Allen M. Thomas called Mirra "a great friend and wonderful human being".
Mirra was posthumously diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). In addition to the "countless" concussions he suffered during his career, his skull was fractured when he was hit by a car at 19 years old, and he also competed in boxing as an amateur. He became the first action sports star to be diagnosed with the neurodegenerative disease.
Mirra's wife chose to support several charitable causes in her husband's memory, including CTE research, Road 2 Recovery Foundation, and More Than Sport.
City officials in Greenville, North Carolina planned to create an action sports park to honor Mirra's legacy. The first phase would include both skate and BMX facilities.
In 2024, Mirra's family dedicated a permanent statue of Dave Mirra at the Jaycee skatepark in Greenville, where Mirra rode BMX when he moved to the area in 1995. The memorial was created by his friends, including BMX rider Mike Laird who did the fabrication.
X Games competition history + GOLD (14) SILVER (6) BRONZE (4) Year X Games Events Rank Medal 1995 Extreme Games BMX Vert 2nd 1996 Summer X Games II BMX Street 1st 1996 Summer X Games II BMX Vert 2nd 1997 Summer X Games III BMX Street 1st 1997 Summer X Games III BMX Vert 1st 1998 Summer X Games IV BMX Street 1st 1998 Summer X Games IV BMX Vert 1st 1998 Summer X Games IV BMX Vert Doubles 1st 1999 Summer X Games V BMX Street 1st 1999 Summer X Games V BMX Vert 1st 2000 Summer X Games VI BMX Park 1st 2000 Summer X Games VI BMX Vert 2nd 2001 Summer X Games VII BMX Park 6th 2001 Summer X Games VII BMX Vert 1st 2002 Summer X Games VIII BMX Park 4th 2002 Summer X Games VIII BMX Vert 1st 2003 Summer X Games IX BMX Park 3rd 2003 Summer X Games IX BMX Vert 2nd 2004 Summer X Games X BMX Park 1st 2004 Summer X Games X BMX Vert 1st 2005 Summer X Games XI BMX Vert 7th 2005 Summer X Games XI BMX Park 1st 2005 Summer X Games XI BMX Vert Best Trick 2nd 2007 Summer X Games XIII BMX Park 3rd 2008 Summer X Games XIV BMX Big Air 2nd 2008 Summer X Games XIV Rally Car Racing 3rd 2009 Summer X Games XV BMX Big Air 3rd 2011 Summer X Games XVII RallyCross 5th 2012 Summer X Games XVIII RallyCross 15th 2013 X Games Munich 2013 RallyCross 14th
Racing record Complete FIA World Rallycross Championship results Supercar Year Entrant Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 WRX Points Ref 2015 JRM Racing Mini Countryman POR HOC17 BEL GBR GER SWE CAN NOR FRA BAR TUR ITA ARG 40th 0
Complete Global RallyCross Championship results Supercar Year Entrant Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 GRC Points Ref 2011 Subaru Rally Team USA Subaru Impreza WRX STI IRW1 IRW2SEA15SEA26 PIK1 PIK2LA16LA25 8th 57 2012Subaru Puma Rallycross Team USASubaru Impreza WRX STICHA9 TEX11LA 15 LOU 10LV13LVC6 12th 35 2013Subaru Puma Rallycross Team USASubaru Impreza WRX STI BRAMUN115 MUN214LOU13BRI11 IRW15 ATL4 CHA12 LVDNS 12th 36
References
Bibliography
External links
Online photo-biography OXY Nation Website, Dave Mirra Video The Last Days of Dave Mirra from Outside