‘You matter’: BMX pros spread anti-bullying message to Las Vegas high schools

A quartet of professional BMX riders brought high‑flying stunts and an anti‑bullying message to Veterans Tribute Career and Technical Academy on Wednesday, telling the student audience, “You matter, and radical attraction astir you.” “A few words can make a specific connection with somebody,” said Zack Yankush, a BMX rider who served as the assembly’s emcee. “Bullies make fun of you for things you’re into. We were made fun of for BMX our whole life. Who’s laughing now?” Dane Beardsley, the tour manager and a BMX athlete, explained that the group is taking its anti‑bullying message nationwide this fall to more than 100 schools through the No Hate Tour. He noted that the Clark County School District recorded 8,110 bullying incidents during the 2024‑25 school year, including 874 cases of cyberbullying. Veterans Tribute was the tour’s first stop this season, Beardsley said. Shows are scheduled later this week at Canyon Springs and Sunrise Mountain high schools before the team heads east to Denver, Kansas City, Texas and the Midwest. The No Hate Tour is offered free to schools through a partnership with the U.S. Marine Corps, he added. The assembly featured a short anti‑bullying talk by Yankush sandwiched between aerial tricks. BMX athletes Wesley Hark, Matt Mecher and Oscar Marquez soared across the gym, spinning handlebars and even backflipping over a teacher. Beardsley, a former teacher, said he has seen firsthand how student achievement and positive peer experiences are linked. He hoped the 45‑minute program would bring joy and remind students to treat others kindly. “If a student is having a truly rough time because something’s going on at home, and they bring that to school and get made fun of on top of that, that’s only going to push them further down into that dark place,” Beardsley said. “It’s simply important to be kind to people, because you never know what they’re going through.” Yankush shared how his life was turned upside down during the COVID‑19 pandemic and how his friends and his bike saved him. He urged students to surround themselves with people who have their backs. “I’ve lost too many friends to suicide,” Yankush told students. “If you see someone being bullied and don’t directly get involved, tell one of your family members. It puts you in a position to make your classmate’s day a lot better, or you might be saving someone’s life.”