Scott Kornfield - I Miss You, Dude - 03/11/07

Scott Kornfield

I thought about Scott during my ride yesterday. Five hours will give you a lot of time to think about a lot of things. As I wound my way up Flagstaff Mountain, then further south for three long passes up NCAR before meeting the team for some pacelining fun out toward Carter Lake, I thought about Scott while on the terrain and among the settings we most love - the mountains.

Scott and I were happiest when the road pitched up. The more challenging and grueling, the better. Thinking about Scott yesterday was bittersweet. A smile creased my face as I thought about our challenging rides together in the mountains. But then the events of the day he died crashed through the fun memories like a battering ram through a castle gate. Snapshots of him getting hit, the look on his face, the sound of the impact and the traumatic fallout of events as I turned around, threw my bike down and ran back to his broken body flipped through my mind, unwelcome, like a slide show.

I found myself gripping my handlebars more tightly and clenching my jaw. A pit opened in my stomach. Here it is almost two years after his death and, at times, it still haunts me. Yesterday, I hit a ripple.

And that's OK. Hitting the ripples is expected. It's not fun, but it's a fact of coping with tragedy. Scott is sorely missed by many people. It should never get old thinking this, saying this, or sharing this with both those who knew him and didn't know him. He was and remains a special person.

Scott, we're going to create some Sonic Booms for you this year.

See ya,
Nate