Why I Do What I Do

Why I Do What I Do

The Day That Changed My Life —by Dr. Richard Smiley

I’ll never forget the day I found Fuel. Or maybe I should say, the day Fuel found me. I was at the Townie Grill, slumped over a half-eaten plate of low low-carb nachos, fading in and out of consciousness. I was on my third fad diet in 5 days, and I was completely delirious. In a rare moment of clarity, I looked up and saw something on the TV I’d never seen before. And it was beautiful.

Like a vibrant beacon of pure goodness, there was surfing and skating and snowboarding—all in one place. Motocross was there, along with his little cousin BMX. Wakeboarding even showed up for a bit. Graffiti-type graphics danced across the screen and it spoke to me. What was this Fuel? I’d never seen anything like it before – both pros and amateurs going nuts, hanging out, rocking out, living the good life—the life I wanted. For a moment it made me forget about the fact that I was just face down in a plate of stale nachos. Was Fuel a half-hour TV program? Was my happiness limited to one show a week? I watched. I waited. 29 hours later, it was still on. And I was a changed man. Or so I thought.

The next thing I knew I was lying in gutter outside. I must have tripped over my shoelaces again and hit my head on the curb. As I rose to my feet, I started to panic. I couldn’t see out of my left eye. Fortunately, it was only a postcard from the gutter that was stuck to my face. But it wasn’t just any postcard. It was a postcard from Fuel TV. Now this was strange.

Card of Destiny.

On one side of the card was the Fuel TV logo, just like the one I had seen on TV. On the flipside was a description of what appeared to be the greatest channel on Earth. It was all starting to make sense. Much like how that guy Moses never forgot what was written on those biblical stones, I never forgot what was printed on the back of that postcard. I just can’t remember the exact words right now. Something to the effect of promoting and not exploiting talent, music mixed with all your favorite action sports, and being on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. All I know is that it looked really cool and that’s what make it stick. Literally.

I had felt the power of Fuel. The words spoke to me like a jockey speaks to their horse, and at that moment I knew that I had to find out more about the channel that saved my life. It was a sign, more like a postcard, pure and simple. I sold my earthly possessions, except for my suit, van, TV and satellite dish, signed up for Fuel, and started watching action sports television 24/7. We were like a match made in action sports heaven. Fuel would keep dishing out the unbelievable lineup of shows, and I would keep gobbling them up. Insane interview shows like Firsthand, international video diaries like Props, 360º Surfing, and Core Culture, and enough skate shows to make anyone happy: American Misfits, Concrete Wave, Logic, and Project Detention are still among my favorites. Plus, Fuel even had an entire week devoted to showcasing the best full-length movies action sports has to offer, called the X-Dance Film Festival. I was living the good life.

Fuel had finally helped me find a lifestyle that I could relate to: the action sports lifestyle. I wanted so badly to skate, surf, and jump dirt bikes like the pros. Fuel gave me all the insider knowledge I needed to talk the talk, and with so much behind-the-scenes lifestyle coverage, I felt like I knew everybody already. I was ready to live the lifestyle I always wanted. But there were a few small problems. For starters, I have arthritic knees and a bad back. I also have dyspepsia. And several irrational phobias, including a fear of the outdoors, a fear of going fast, a fear of heights, a fear of dirt, a fear of water, and perhaps most crippling for the budding action sports enthusiast, a fear of scantily-clad women.

Rather than let the dream die, I decided to make it my mission in life to spread the message of Fuel to any and all who hadn’t yet seen it with their own eyes and ears. Namely, the youth. I sent off for my motivational speaker certificate and within 4 weeks, I was on the high school assembly circuit telling my story and I’ve never looked back. Sure, it gets hard living out of my van, not knowing where my next meal is going to come from or if I’ll ever have a girlfriend, but seeing the amazed looks on young people’s faces makes it all worth it. Fuel TV changed my life and it can change yours, too. All you have to do is say YES.