Tommy my photographer friend gave me a holler. I walked towards him and he lead me through a door beside the Hello Deli, owned by Rupert of Late Night fame. I walked into a modest doorway and all of a sudden there we were in the Ed Sullivan Theater starring at Dave's desk and the chairs for the stars. How damn cool is this? Tom said in a very quiet voice "I just wanted you to see it because you'll be pretty busy later." Just then it really hit me. I was going to be on the frikken Dave Letterman show!

Like a bunch of bees people moved lights and cleaned up the set. There was almost as much activity going on as outside. I had never been there before but I knew every inch of the stage from watching Dave on TV at home. I spent a moment or two just standing there drinking the atmosphere in.

"Are you Henry?" I heard a voice ask as I walked outside. "Yes I am," "Great I'm Mike, the Producer for the show how is everything going?" I told him everything was going great then gave him a rundown of what was going on in detail. We then went over times for practice. "Can you be ready to go by 1pm?" "Yea, no problem -- wheels up by 1:05!" "You hear that fellas? Wheels up by 1:05," Mike said into a walkie talkie. "Great! Henry I have to say we're all really looking forward to this. I want to wish you the best of luck and stay safe!" I said, "I will do the best I can because it hurts me a hell of a lot more than it'll hurt you." Mike smiled and remarked how calm I looked. He then got a call on his cell phone and had to tend to something else.

12:30 PM

As I was pulling on my black and red Thor jersey Mike came back and asked someone working a camera if the assistant director was here. They wanted to look at the outfit to see if that was what he wanted. "Do you have anything lighter?" he asked . "Yep I sure do how about white and blue?"

While I was waiting I asked Russ if he could get us permission to go to Broadway with the quad
and take some pictures. I heard a voice on Russ's radio, "Go ahead. If anyone says anything you tell them I said you could." I asked Russ who just gave us permission. He stood there smiling and said, "That was just the police chief of New York City!"

We both smiled and pushed Bubba (that's what I call my favorite quad) up the street and had Tommy snap pictures along the way. Those New Yorkers looked at us like we were aliens taking pictures in full armor sitting on the quad. It was very cool.

I went back to the trailer and changed into the white outfit then walked out to hear a noticeable murmur going on and I asked my dad what the hell is going on. I guess they just noticed Evel Knievel was closer than they thought. It was true. When I was in the black outfit no one noticed, but once in the white gear a crowd started to gather. "Henry we are ready when you are. Good luck kid!" said the Assistant Director of the show.

Bubba glared at me like a bull waiting on the next cowboy. As I walked closer to my trusty 450R, I was thinking about what my dad said about Evel Knievel being in the house he really was and it wasn't me. The aura of Evel still lingers and I've seen it before but not like this. I think it was the white and blue outfit and the threat of looming danger. I swung a leg over Bubba. Bubba is the first quad I bought since my comeback and it is the only one I've jumped and done tricks with. It is set up perfect. The power comes on hard but very smooth and with no surprises. I have only wrecked Bubba once and it was just a minor thing. I remember talking to Bubba, "same deal as always dude. I don't hurt you -- you don't hurt me."

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