Help Mizzy Heal: Cover Surgery and Care Costs

I'm raising money to help cover the cost of Mizzy's surgery and to support his family through his recovery. Mizzy is a 15-year old boy from Baltimore, Maryland. He was hit by a city bus while riding his bicycle home from the store on Thursday evening, July 25, 2024. Mizz is currently hospitalized.

When the bus hit him, he suffered injuries to his face including a broken eye socket and cuts caused by metal shards from the bus entering near his eye. Mizz had surgery on Friday, July 26 to repair his eye socket. The surgeon went in through the top of his head to fix the broken bones, so his head is shaved and he has a large incision with staples on his head. He also has a broken ankle in a cast, and fractured ribs.

Mizzy at the hospital, July 29

He has a long recovery ahead of him, and I am here to ask our community for help. Mizzy and his family need our help to pay for the mounting costs of his surgery and medical treatment, as well as lost wages since his mother is taking unpaid leave from her job to care for him.

Mizzy at a local rideout, Mizzy repairing his bike

Who is Mizzy?

Mizzy is a 15-year old from Baltimore, Maryland. His impressive bike tricks have earned him the respect and admiration of people all around the world. He is a Mafia Bikes sponsored rider and a young bike legend with a large following on Instagram. He has many nicknames: Oneway Mizzy, Mizz, Noodles, young GOAT, youngest in charge, and some I probably haven't heard yet.

Mizzy riding in Baltimore and New York City

Mizz lives in West Baltimore with his mother Nicole and his 3 sisters, Syn, Logan, and Key’nea. His family deeply appreciates the outpouring of support and all the messages and visitors they have received checking in on Mizz during this difficult time.

A short clip of Mizzy's riding skills

Mizzy performing stunts in Times Square and fixing a friend's bike in Baltimore

Who is raising the money?

My name is Amber Karnes. I am a friend of Mizz’s family and have a close friendship with this young man. I live in Baltimore and met Mizz through the bikelife scene.

In 2020, during the early pandemic, I started riding my bike around Baltimore city. Shortly after, I met Mizz and the other "wheelie boys", the youth of Baltimore bikelife. As a 42-year old white woman, I am an unusual sight at one of the youth-led rideouts that are typical of many local bikelife scenes. Let me share a little bit about this remarkable kid and the community he is part of.

Selfie with the youth at a local rideout, Mizzy at the 2022 Crashboys Games

Bikelife is a rich culture that includes dirtbikes and pedal bike rideouts in many cities around the world. The riders perform stunts like wheelies and complex tricks that involve jumping to different parts of the bike, all while traveling at a high rate of speed. Baltimore is the dirtbike capitol and our "12 o'clock boys" are world-famous for their bike stunts. We also have a diverse pedal bike scene with all types of riders, but the youth-led rideouts quickly became some of my favorite experiences.

In late 2020, I started shooting iPhone videos of the group rides I participated in. When I met these youth at one of the larger rides (shoutout to Baltimore Night Ride) my jaw literally dropped open at the stunts that these young people were able to do. I met Mizz (the "youngest in charge" as many of his peers like to say) and was immediately drawn to his talent. I started filming video clips of his stunts whenever I would see him out in the city. It wasn't long before I was showing up at the youth-led rideouts here in Baltimore.

Customizing Mizzy's bike, a Mafia Bikes "Medusa" we turned into the "Mizzdusa"

Through filming video clips of rides, I became closer with the youth. As a lifelong community-builder in other subcultures like the hardcore punk music scene and the DIY craft community, I couldn't help but lend my skills to what these kids were building. I have a background in graphic design, and in the summer of 2022, I created custom stickers for one of my bikes. One of the youth noticed and asked if I could make him some stickers. We posted the finished, customized bike on Instagram, and before I knew it, there were youth at my house almost every day making stickers, and we'd go out and ride afterward and film their tricks on their “new bike”.

I loved practicing the skill of filming video while riding, and I was getting better thanks to these kids. While we were making stickers, they'd call one another on the phone: "Where you at?" "We at Amber house."

Amber house, that's exactly how they say it. They said it enough times and the name stuck. Soon after, "Amberhouse" was born as a youth-driven sticker shop and apparel project, and since then I have made reflective stickers and customized over 100 bikes from Baltimore, DC, and beyond.

We also created merchandise together including Mizzy's In That Mode shirts and a Oneway Mizzy sticker pack. I created original shirts and posters featuring the youth of Baltimore bikelife, including custom artwork by artist Jon Mayo accompanied by HERE TO STAY, a slogan inspired by the lyrics of one of my favorite hardcore punk bands.

More about Mizzy & the youth of Baltimore bikelife

I've spent many afternoons riding in the city with the youth, and I was amazed by the athleticism, grit, and sportsmanship that these young men demonstrated. I also noticed the tension that existed in the city around these kids. Many people in Baltimore saw these youth in a negative light. Even many adults in the wider bike scene didn't seem to want them around or respect them, even though I was learning so much from them every time I'd ride with them and they were a huge part of the bike community here!

The "wheelie boys" at a ride in Baltimore

I believe to this day that the youth of bikelife (in Baltimore and beyond) are largely misunderstood. The brotherhood and belonging that these youth find in bikelife, as well as the dedication they bring to practicing and learning new tricks reminds me of the culture I have seen in other communities like skateboarding and surfing. Riding bikes is a positive and healthy activity that keeps our youth focused. I truly believe that if more adults showed support to these kids by showing up at their rides and learning their ways, it would promote more understanding in our city and beyond.

Winners of the 2023 Crashboys Games "Bikelife Olympics" // Mizzy is center stage wearing a medal. Baltimore brought home the trophy.

But let me get off my soapbox and get back to Mizz. When I met Mizzy, my riding changed forever. We have spent hundreds of hours together on and off the bikes by this point, and I probably have (no exaggeration) at least 1,000 video clips of his stunts in my phone. I became a stronger rider because of him (in order to follow him around, I had to be)!

Mizzy performing a stunt during a rideout

And I learned an immense amount from Mizz: the best shortcuts around the city, where every single hill is (so he could practice tricks on every downhill), how to ride safely in a city with very little bike infrastructure, how to fix my bike, how to get the best angles for video, how to get extremely close to a rider to best capture a trick, how to quickly edit video, and a lot more.

Most of all, Mizz has taught me how to have courage, how to be a good learner, and how to stay calm while learning something new or in a high-risk situation. Sometimes I'd get super close to him while riding and filming. We'll both be flying down a hill while he's on one wheel, hopping from the seat to the frame in a difficult combination of tricks. I'm trying to match his speed, one finger covering the brake, my iPhone in the other hand. More than a few times, I'd get nervous, grab the brake, and miss the clip. Mizz would say, "No panic, Amber. You're thinkin' too much." And he was always right. This kid is the embodiment of "no panic", a popular bikelife slogan.

Mizz keeps a tenacity about his ways, and a positive mental attitude even though he comes from “the trenches” of Baltimore, as the kids like to say. Many people don't understand what he does, and some of the comments sections on his videos seriously make my blood boil. But Mizz is a focused, determined kid, and he doesn't let people's misguided opinions deter him from being dedicated to his riding. As he would always say when we'd discuss this tension, "they worried about the wrong stuff."

Many hands make light work // every little bit helps.

Young Mizz needs our help to bounce back from his injuries and get back on the bike doing what he loves. His mother Nicole does an amazing job providing for her family, but as a single mom she sacrifices an immense amount for her children. She works hard slinging boxes for Amazon, and is currently on unpaid leave as she is taking care of Mizzy.

100% of the funds raised will go directly to the cost of his surgery and medical care and to support his mother and 3 sisters so they can take good care of him.

Even if you can only donate a few dollars, please do. This extraordinary young man and his family need our support, and every little bit helps.

If you'd like to donate cash or items to Mizz and his family, send Mizz a care package, or visit him after he comes home from the hospital, please contact me and I'll help arrange it.

Thank you for your support and your prayers! #MizzyStrong