Mammoth Overload?

It seems like the PanicREV.org website is on Mammoth overload! Once we got home from our Mammoth trip last week we published thousands of racing photos, a race report, and yesterday we published the first batch of wallpapers. This, however, is the first time I have really sat down and written something out on the trip itself.

We will be publishing a Mammoth Ministry Report within the week with some exciting detailed information on the ministry that took place while we were in Mammoth … so I will save those stories for later. I would like to use this opportunity to share a little about our trip.

John Parkinson headed up to Mammoth on Monday June 21^st. John held down the fort and led the morning chapel service until the rest of the ministry team got into town on Wednesday night. Making the drive up with me was Jeff Jetton, Reid David, and Brian Wilkinson. A few weeks back, this same group of guys made the trip to Hangtown for round number two of the AMA National series, so I knew we were in for a fun drive. The drive up proved to be a solid time together sharing numerous laughs and having a genuinely good time.

Once we got into Mammoth and found our condo we ran into a little drama. We were unaware that we had to inform the condo management that we were bringing a small 10 foot trailer with a dirt bike in it. The condo manager, who later picked up the nickname Grumpy Gary, was quick to come point out our oversight and bring to our attention that “motocrossers” were not welcome in this particular condo complex. This was to our surprise being the owner of the condo is a friend from church that knew we were coming to stay in Mammoth to do ministry at the motocross event. Gary went on to pretty much tell us off before we concluded that this was an issue the owner needed to work out. Once the phone call to the owner was made everything worked out; however, it is needless to say that was not how we were hoping to get the week started. In the end we had a great stay and the condo and we are very grateful to have found a place to stay that we could afford.

Once we settled into the condo we headed over to Grumpy’s for dinner. We had a good time and hung out with a number of people. It was a good opportunity for us to just relax a bit and let people know we were in town; not to mention get the word out on what we had planned for the week.

Wednesday night was over before we knew it, and the sun was rising on Thursday morning bright and early. Sadly we woke up to find that we had a flat tire on the van. Without missing a beat, we loaded Jeff’s bike and gear into the MSR van and headed to the track. We were all pretty excited. Mammoth Motocross has to be the most beautiful track in the United States. It is impossible, for me at least, to not be in awe and reverence of God while there. Thursday Practice went smoothly. That day at the track we really just hung out with the racers, their families and simply took some time to just enjoy the day.

Thursday night was the first scheduled PanicREV event. We hosted an MX Untamed Tournament at our condo. It was a good night of competitive racing, even if it was all digital. After battling their way through the qualifiers it was Travis Baker and Bryce Vallee going into the main. Both riders, or is it gamers, looked fairly evenly matched. In the end Vallee cracked under pressure and couldn’t handle the relentless speed from Baker. So there it was, Travis Baker was crowned the first EVER PanicREV Untamed Tournament title! After the awards ceremony Baker stated, “I would really like to thank XBox for putting out such a great game and giving me a platform to display my skills.” In the end, it was a pressure filled environment, but we all walked away safe. Good times for sure.
Once Friday rolled around we pretty much recognized that morning chapel just wasn’t going to work. With the way the entry into pits works, everyone was just too pressed for time to make it to the morning chapel service. At first I realized that was the case and was pretty bummed out; however, it soon hit me that we just needed to spend that time in the morning walking around the pits praying with the riders and their families … so that is what we did. It turned out great. Not only were we able to find the time to pray for lot of people we were able to really stop and talk with them. It was an incredible time for us to really build relationships and get to know people on a deeper level.

Friday night was really the climax of the entire trip. On Friday night we hosted a free dinner, night of worship, and Bible study. While we were planning the trip I really didn’t know what to expect; however, I knew that God was going to move in a big way. Friday night was it. It is hard to even put into words, but the Spirit of God was so evident: people were singing; people were opening up; people were connecting and truly worshiping God. It was an incredible experience. There was not one person that could have left that place without feeling God’s presence. People left the condo that night genuinely excited about the Lord. It was amazing to be a part of it.

Saturday morning came around and we all began to feel the grind of a busy week of ministry. Every night we were up until 12 or 12:30AM, and we woke up every morning at 5 or 5:30AM. Not to mention the incredible high we had experienced the night before also took a lot of energy. We stayed the course, however, and continued to honor our commitment to be at the track and set up by 6:30AM. Both Saturday and Sunday was a great time for us to connect with people and just be there for them in a loving way. Some times that was simply taking the time to listen; sometimes it was being there when they had fallen and were injured; and other times it was just hanging out and sharing life together. In the end our trip to Mammoth in 2008 will be one I will never forget. I look forward to writing more about some specific open doors for ministry. Keep an eye out for that Mammoth Ministry Report later this weekend and a Mammoth video that In The Moment Media is putting together for us!

Until then,
Scott Parkinson