Obituaries/Tough Stuff

Bend Bulletin: Alex Reed, Who Died at Smith Rock, Remembered as Passionate Climber

Bend climbers Alex Reed and Chris Hatzai spent long hours together in the rarely used, northeast corner of Smith Rock State Park last summer. Often starting at dawn, their days could last 14 hours. The friends, suspended by ropes, created numerous routes in The Marsupials by drilling and bolting the lichen-coated, 80-foot walls made of consolidated volcanic tuff. They often hung side by side, chatting about matters large and small.

“Alex was super good at developing,” Hatzai said recently. “We’re basically doing construction on the rope. He loved every minute of it.”

Bend Bulletin: Scholarship Fund Will Honor David Kurtz

…Since Kurtz, 35, died by suicide on Dec. 31, 2017, Visnack said “numbness” best sums up what the academy staff and their young athletes have felt as they sift through losing such a passionate and generous person.

“This year has been tough in losing him,” Visnack said. “For me being new and discovering how much he touched people’s lives, it’s pretty incredible. It really is. These kids form pretty strong bonds with our coaches.”

Bend Bulletin: Dying Vet Gets One Last Ride on Harley

When Jim Moyer revved the 103 cubic-inch engine of the ink black Harley-Davidson tricycle, the syrupy purr was enough to distract him from the six-week prognosis his doctor has given him to live.

A veteran suffering from terminal cancer, Moyer, 69, recently took advantage of the numerous promotions Wildhorse Harley-Davidson extends to veterans and service people. The ailing vet wanted to ride a Harley one last time.

“I needed that rumble in my butt one more time,” Moyer said.