20 August
Howie Slafer died today.
He was one of those guys I'd see when I first started doing B level rides. I was intimidated by all of them. But Howie wasn't at all intimidating; it was from him and a handful of others that I learned how to be a B rider. I watched what they did and I did what they did.
Howie was one of the original Hill Slugs. Never competitive, always smiling. He smiled when he talked about his computer being zapped by lightning, when he bonked on an Event century ride, and even when he had a piece of his lung removed.
He sent a lot of email. It always read, "Check out..." and linked to one thing or another that he'd found intriguing at the moment. I rarely followed the links, but it didn't matter. It was his way of telling us he was okay.
His old bike was green, like mine was.
He wore an earring.
He carried Roger McGuinn's banjo when Roger was still Jim.
His accent said he wasn't from around here.
He had the best tan in the club.
We miss him already.
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5 comments:
I'd like to give my sentiment about Howie. I appreciate, like Laura, that Howie was always upbeat, even under hardship. He was a wonderful, constant spirit -- I rode with him many times -- I am younger but he never failed to stay abreast of any pack I was in. He was a great guy -- fun to ride with- nice to talk to.
I always looked forward to speaking with him and felt uplifted when I saw the license plate drive up that said 'simmis' -- yiddish for a sweet concoction of cooked fruit.
That was Howie.
Thanks for all the fun and smiles you gave to my early rides, Howie.
You are forever in my memory with lots of humor and great quadriceps, not to mention encouraging words and lots of welcoming comments.
May you be in a sweet and lovely place.
Phyllis
Howie was the one who tried to get people together to travel other places to ride. We went to Lancaster with Howie one hot August. We shared an Amish buffet with him. During the ride I was very grateful to Howie for hanging back with me for awhile and keeping me company. Howie had a smile for everyone, no matter how well he knew you. We will miss him.
I was shocked to learn of Howie's death. I haven't ridden from Cranbury in quite awhile but like Laurie it was guys like Howie who gave me encouragement, always positive, always funny, always talking, always with a good story. You always knew when he was on a ride when in his midwest accent he'd sing out: Car Baack. Thanks Howie!
Thank you Laura, Michael, Phyllis, Terry and Harold for sharing about Howie. I did not know him--now wish that I had.
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