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Bike to Work Friday 03/06/09

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David Meek

Posted: Thu Mar 05, 2009 8:34 am

CBC Member Joined: 24 Sep 2006 Posts: 330 Location: Privateer Bicycles, Chattanooga, TN

No this is not an official Bike2Work event where we are inticed to ride to work by fine food and prizes. This is just ride your bike to work for fun and adventure. Tomorrow promises to be a beautiful day. Its the next day of the rest of your life.
See you on the road.

Tony Thompson

Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 3:36 pm

Joined: 23 Dec 2006 Posts: 3

Troy Ivey

Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 3:45 pm

Joined: 19 Dec 2006 Posts: 62

My favorite memory of David came on a Tuesday night ride a couple of years ago. It was starting to get dark, and I was still a few miles away from the Bi Lo. I didn't expect to be out that long, and I didn't have any lights with me.

David and a small group passed me. That was pretty much normal. But on this day, I noticed they were slowing down as they passed, and David said, "Hop on." He had the group slow down a little so I could join with them and get home safely, with him and his lights behind me all the way.

That was just a small act of kindness; one of the many David did on a regular basis. I'll never forget it.

Rest in peace, David. We'll miss you.

Steve McCloud

Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 6:15 pm

Joined: 03 Mar 2009 Posts: 31 Location: Tyner Station

Thanks Troy.

Cy Fuller

Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 9:59 pm

Joined: 25 Sep 2008 Posts: 2 Location: Red Bank/Downtown

I've been hesitant to post since I've heard of this tragedy this morning due to the fact I've somehow hoped this wasn't true.

The tragic nature of David's last post has haunted, yet inspired in the same sentence, me all day.

It was a beautiful day. Was, sadly, is that keyword that leads me to say I'm so very sorry.

David, I'm sorry I had never really said thanks for the morning while I was biking towards the Cherokee tunnel and you started to overtake me. I was struggling uphill approaching the tunnel, being a rider who was trying to get back into shape, and you slowed down and talked, introduced me to the community and asked if I was partaking of the bike2work Friday. I hadn't heard of it before but you invited me anyway. You could have easily outpaced me but instead kept a gentle lead, commenting favorable things about my clearly outdated bike and helping me along. You clearly loved the art of cycling and reached out a helping hand. I will never forget that.

Jim Johnson

Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 11:02 pm

Joined: 31 Oct 2006 Posts: 218

Thank you for sharing that story, Cy. I think we'll be hearing many similar stories in the coming days. David touched us all in the same way.

And you're right, his words on Thursday were both haunting and inspiring. And so like David to say.

Winston

Posted: Mon Mar 09, 2009 2:43 pm

Joined: 09 Mar 2009 Posts: 1

One day last year I was on the end of an 85 miler. I was getting back from Dunlap, and I was climbing the back side of Suck Creek Mtn. I was by myself, tired, struggling a bit, and looking forward to the car. Just then a rider from out of nowhere pulled up beside me; said hello; slowed down and told me that I was doing great. We rode on up the mountain, and he stayed with me. We just talked about stuff. I believe this was about 1 week after the 3 State, and this guy told me that he was riding this monster ride where he and some others were climbing all of the mountains in this area - all in one day. I couldn't believe it...This guy had already climbed about 7 mountains, and he could have left me in the dust at will. When we got to the top of Suck Creek, we stopped and ate. He told me more about this insaine ride - about the CBC - and more about cycling around this area. I am a little over weight, and he told me how to deal with that too. I ate a power bar, and he ate what I think was a peanut butter/ jelly sandwich. After we ate and talked for awhile, we prepared for the descent. As this guy was leaving, I asked for his name. He said, "David Meek". Instantly David became my local cycling hero. He told me that he was in his 50s, and that was even better, because I was 60. I then started to see his name on the CBC site. I even saw him riding a few times. I then realized that I had had a remarkable encounter with a remarkable individual who encouraged everyone. I will miss David Meek.

Rommel Ordonez

Posted: Tue Mar 10, 2009 10:14 am

Joined: 29 Apr 2008 Posts: 1 Location: Harrison/Ooltewah

Shortly after moving her from California back in '03, I looked up bike routes online and stumbled across this website. I decided to do the Red Bank route. After finding the Bi-Lo, David pulled up to me and ask if I would like to join him for a ride. I gladly accepted, though I had no idea he was going to take me up Signal Mountain via Roberts Mill (brutal), over the brow, and down the W road. That was my inauguration ride for the South.
David was always friendly, and had a very gracious spirit. I always enjoyed riding with him. His passion for cycling was contagious and he will surely be missed.

David Meek

Posted: Tue Mar 10, 2009 2:08 pm

CBC Member Joined: 24 Sep 2006 Posts: 330 Location: Privateer Bicycles, Chattanooga, TN

This is David's daughter, Holley, and I wanted to thank everyone for everything you all have done for my family these past few days. Seeing all the cyclists in front of my house Saturday morning was beautiful and it touched our hearts in many ways. Having the cyclists lead the funeral procession was amazing and it meant so much to my mom, brother, and me. It is so nice to see that my dad meant so much to every single one of you all and he is going to be greatly missed by so many. Thank you for everything.

Jim Johnson

Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 8:38 am

Joined: 31 Oct 2006 Posts: 218

Holley, thanks for "sharing" your dad with us all these years. He did indeed mean so much to all of us and did so much for us--by his actions and his example.

Jim Farmer

Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 9:43 am

Joined: 13 Nov 2006 Posts: 76

I have many stories of things I've shared with David over the years, all of which have made me sad given the fact that there will be no more of them. But I came to a little bit of closure yesterday and I thought I'd share it with you. It's sort of selfish in nature but grieving and closure is selfish by definition. We can't bring back the dead (sorry Lazarus) so it's simply a process of getting the living through the loss.

I considered David a kindred spirit. We shared so many qualities and definitely shared an outlook on life. We both craved competition, but it was for the sake of competition and not for the need to "beat" the other guy. Although we both worked hard at what we did, we always had a smile on our face while doing it. We both took pride in doing things the right way and following the rules, both specified and implied. Most importantly, we both got great satisfaction out of helping and encouraging others to do the things that we loved to do. We loved the concept of "team". And our "team" was everybody that wanted to join our merry band. David and I both started doing the things we did later in life. We both started from scratch and knew that others could do the same with a little helping hand and a kick in the butt when necessary.

David and I competed both with and against each other over the years, always with a mutual respect and admiration. Neither of us were blessed with superior DNA, so we had to work at everything we did and we both appreciated that in each other. Although I was always a little bit faster on foot, David was a little stronger on the bike, especially when it came to the mountains. He took great pride in his "mountain goat" reputation and I knew that he could bury me when he wanted to. Given our similar abilities, we very often ended up together, both pushing each other to new heights. He made me a better athlete and I'd like to think that I did the same for him.

A friendly rivalry was the obvious extension of our similar abilities, especially when it came to the epic endurance events we both enjoyed. The loser of said event wouldn't have to wait long after crossing the finish line to hear the inevitable, "Who's your daddy?" line. Although all in good fun, neither of us enjoyed being the other one's biatch for the weeks or months until the next Big Daddy, Frosty Challenge, King of the Mountains, Stump Jump, ORAMM or whatever other epic, silly, rogue insanity that we participated in or simply made up ourselves. It seemed like we would constantly be changing positions as the other's biatch from event to event, probably due to the motivation from the previous loss.

I concentrated on road bike racing last year, so I wasn't running much. When John Currier came into town it was time for the annual Big Daddy, the granddaddy of all rogue events in the area. David had won it the year before and wanted the title again. As we rocketed off of Lookout Mountain and into downtown, David and I were out front. I told him that I'd try to launch him to another victory, since I was just doing the ride portion of the race. I gritted my teeth and pulled him to the base of the Roberts Mill climb, giving him a good gap on the chase group. He flew up that brutal climb as I put my chin on my handlebar and crawled up it. Carol, the SPAM wench for the event, served him his requisite slab of potted meat at the top as he rolled on through on his way to another victory.

Most of my other memories bring me to tears, but this one left me with a smile on my face. Sharing that victory with him was important to me, but I guess I get some solace in knowing that we were even. He didn't have to go to his grave being my biatch and I don't have to go to mine being his. Maybe that's a selfish thought, but it is what it is. Most importantly, being able to laugh about it means that I'm finally getting some closure. And that's a good thing.

Steve McCloud

Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 9:46 am

Joined: 03 Mar 2009 Posts: 31 Location: Tyner Station

These are wonderful testaments to David's selfless nature. Do keep these stories coming. Know that there are many of us reading them quietly while trying to stay out of the way.

stephenschumacher

Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 11:08 am

Joined: 11 Mar 2009 Posts: 2

My name is Stephen Schumacher. I am a cyclist in Nashville (formerly of Knoxville) who spent most of last year commuting to work on my bike; 3500 miles from April to November from my neighborhood in East Nashville, through downtown to my job in Brentwood. Everyday was nearly the same path yet always with a new challenge. Most of those challenges were motorized vehicles “sharing” the roads with me. Nearly every day brought at least one ignorant person too close to me and my two wheeled non-motorized vehicle. I believe it’s a small fraction of those people who do this out of hate or disdain for my presence on the road, most are simply unaware.

I don’t often contemplate the situations of the day and how my commute felt that day, week, month or even year…it’s just something I did. For the most unfortunate of reasons I have been forced to think harder about these circumstances. David Meek’s tragic passing has been this for many of us. He is a pillar of the community and a perfect example of what a cyclist (and human being) should be. To me he has been these things. Beyond this he is also my cousin and my friend. We shared a bond that was not expressed everyday but in those precious times when we would get to ride together and eat a Thanksgiving dinner at our Aunts house in Loudon, TN.

Sometimes you don’t realize what a great thing you’ve got until it’s gone. I knew David was a special person in my life but I didn’t realize exactly how special until this past Friday. I will never forget the feeling my heart felt as my mother told me this horrible news. The way in which it happened keeps replaying in my mind. As a fellow cyclist and cycling commuter I cannot get the situation out of my mind. All of us who “share” the roads know that feeling, when something out of your control starts to go wrong. Fortunate for the rest of us we have lived to tell the story.

David’s death needs not to be the end of his message. I have already seen an amazing effort by the Chattanooga cycling community to keep the roads filled with cyclists; cyclists being safe and enjoying what they do. I beg you to keep riding and to all go one step further by implementing at least one more piece of safety. I ride with 2 rear flashers (1 being the brightest on the market) and 2 front lights, along with bright clothing. What I do goes beyond the legal mandate but that may not be enough. I will be purchasing another light for the rear and intend to set aside all darker jerseys, reserving those for off-road trail riding only. This is not a mind blowing movement, it’s simple and easy to do and I hope it’s helpful.

I know my family is incredibly thankful for all this community has done in memory of David. Beyond me, my father (Lou Schumacher), brother-in-law (Mitch McKee), David’s own son (Mitchell Meek) and brother-in-law (Tom Taylor) are also cyclists. I believe we all intend to stay cyclist, forever thoughtful of David.

-Stephen Schumacher

John Meek

Posted: Thu Mar 12, 2009 10:13 pm

Joined: 11 Mar 2009 Posts: 7 Location: Chattanooga

David Meek was my brother. Having him die suddenly in a cycling accident has been a shock to his family, and his many friends. My name is John Meek, and David was five years older than me. He was also the person in this world that I wanted to be like, for most of my forty-six years. Sometimes I would admit to myself that David was an inspiration, and other times I wouldn't. While David was an amazingly accomplished cyclist and runner, he had only really been serious about that for about seven years. Before that time, and during that time, he was many other things to many other people.

Cycling had become very important to David, but I will remember him most for how he had influenced me throughout his very interesting life, which I had thought was only half over. He was the most important inspiration to me while I was growing up, and as I progressed into adulthood. He was not a parent to me, but he was an inspiration to me, as my brother. If you don't mind taking the time to read this, I don't mind taking the time to write about the other aspects of David's life, that you may not have known.

David was encouraging to me when I was a kid. He never seemed judgmental to me, and he rarely showed anger. When I was about four, I remember David helping me learn to ride a small bicycle in our basement garage, while a few of his friends were hanging out playing with slot cars on the track in the basement. He later handed down a bicycle to me when I was about age six. I was very proud and happy that he had done that. He was close to twice my age at the time, and it seemed so cool to me to have David's bicycle. It was a stripped down 24" single speed standard bike, which was similar to an old-school cruiser bike, and originally had sheet metal fenders and body work on the upper frame tube. I rode it for several years, and eventually increased the tire size with what was the closest to knobby tires that I could find at the Otasco store, because I wanted it to be like a dirt bike. The coaster brake eventually broke, to where the pedals continued to turn when putting back pressure on the pedals for braking, and I learned to ride the bike that way, because of it being a challenge to me. I could have tried to find a wheel to fix it, but that would not be as fun as skidding to a stop most of the time. Later, at the age of twelve, I wrecked my K-Mart "10-Speed", with a head-on crash over the top of a moving mid-seventies Cutlass Supreme, while racing a friend through some of the best roads in our hilly neighborhood. Any time that I had problems when I was young, of any kind, it seemed to me that David understood. I might have been embarrassed to tell him about stupid things, but he was not mean when he found out about things. He was upset with me after I broke my leg when I hit the car, and that time he bullied me into getting rid of my "dirt bicycle" that he had given me, calling it a piece of junk. I was irritated with him at the time, and did not understand his intentions until I was older. To me, I did not understand, because it seemed like he would have wanted me to get rid of the 10-Speed. Later in life, I came to believe he knew he could not tell me to quit riding bicycles, because I would not listen to that, and he was trying to tell me to quit being stupid, by telling me to get rid of the stupid bike with the dangerous brake. By that time, shortly before I broke my leg, I had been getting wilder than usual with the old bike, jumping, and riding down steep banks, etc., and David knew that, because he had done that too.

We grew up in a neighborhood called Stuart Heights, which is a suburb in northern Chattanooga, Tennessee. It was really a pretty sheltered and privileged mid-middle class life, which I came to understand later when I attended junior high and high school with a variety of people from other areas, and other backgrounds. During the sixties and seventies, almost all of the kids around our house, especially the boys, spent a lot of time on their bicycles, or motorcycles. We did play in other ways, but it was common for some of us to ride our bikes until dark, when our parents would call us in from the street. We made an oval track out of the flat piece of road in front of our houses, and the kids in the houses nearest to us would ride around and around, getting out of the way when cars drove by. We would ride all over, miles away from our houses, unsupervised, and without worry of us getting kidnapped. Our parents were not any more or less responsible acting than normal, at that time and place, as a lot of the kids at the time lived similar lives. When I was young, David was enough older than me that we did not really share the same friends, other than the neighbors that lived close to us. However, David would occasionally spend some time with me, usually with some two wheeled activity, or by letting me hang out once in a while with him and his friends. As David and I grew older, we sometimes joked with each other about how times had changed, and how upset we would probably be now, if we had groups of neighborhood kids roaming on bicycles, with their dogs ranging behind, or sometimes walking around in groups with BB guns, and thinking that was normal.

David had always owned bicycles, but up until several years ago, he had never really participated much in any group cycling events, other than a few Bike-A-Thon's. I remember us sitting on the side of a trail at the Telico ORV park in North Carolina, taking a break while riding our dirt bikes (motorcycles), and David saying to me "I've been thinking about getting more into mountain bikes". I said something about how that would be neat. He then said "You should think about it too, because we should both be able to do pretty well on the downhill tough stuff, because of motorcycles". I remember saying something about it being the uphill's that would be the hard part. He went on to do exactly what he intended, and more, while I got wrapped up in my everyday life, and was continually distracted by other things. We had ridden together on and off for years, as different phases of our careers sometimes seemed to be more important to both of us. We always rode as fast as we could consistently ride. David was an excellent off road motorcycle rider, and was very consistent as well as competitive. When we rode together, he would typically win against me more often that I would against him, usually due to being in better condition, so when I did win I was always happy.

He became involved in a local four wheel drive club, after he started his own machine shop, and that was interesting to him because he loved to develop mechanical projects. He gradually built his Suzuki Samurai into a very impressive hill climber, and actually won his class in a mud-bog competition, but he eventually moved away from that, and back to two wheels, becoming more involved in the cycling community.

After being involved in cycling for a few years, David decided he wanted to try to run. He had run some before, but not in a serious manner. Our sister, Margaret, had been running for many years, and David had some friends that were runners. He had rapidly built up with some runs, and then tried the fourteen mile long mountain climb road race in Helen Georgia. While there, Margaret and some friends were discussing a marathon coming up soon, and David mentioned that he always wanted to run a marathon. He had never run further than fourteen miles, which is what he had just run. He tried anyway, and did it. After that, he became involved in a variety of running and adventure events. Margaret has recounted the story some lately about when David went to Boston to run in the Boston Marathon. Instead of flying up and staying in a hotel with the others, he told her he had been planning this adventure, and he was going to drive his Subaru up and camp somewhere before he got to Boston. She said when she called him the day before the race, to see where he camped at, he asked her what time it was, and said that he had slept in the Subaru, in a Walmart parking lot, close to the starting area. She said that he acted excited the whole time he was there, and bought a lot of the event duds. She says she will always remember him having the time of his life, and just having a big adventure.

When I would see David, which usually was only every one to three months during our busy times, David would tell me about some of his accomplishments, and manage to do so without sounding superior, or being judgmental towards me for my being overweight, and I always appreciated that. He had opinions about how people should do more, and try harder, but he typically only discussed those opinions with people that would accept them, or had a sense of humor, and we did joke about it a little. When I think of David's sense of humor, I always see him in my mind laughing, and slapping his knee at his own one-liner jokes.

Like David, I got into bicycles as a kid, almost as if the bike grew out of the lower half of my body. I was on it a lot. Like David, I also got into dirt bikes (motorcycles). I had watched David at motorcycle races in the area during the seventies, when our dad would pack us into the '67 Chevy, and drive David to the races. We still did that after David had his driver's license, because my father was worried about him, and also because it was a good outing for us. After watching David, I had decided that was what I wanted to do as well, and so when I was old enough, I got involved in the same activity.

When David was riding motorcycles more than bicycles, and I was young and riding my bicycle every day, some of us were hanging out on the street in front of our house and someone suggested a bicycle race. David ended up using my other brother's (Jim) bike, to race me. I was only about twelve, and David was on Jimmy's hundred-pound Huffy 10-speed, and I was on my K-Mart 10-speed. I road hours a day and was confident and scared at the same time. We raced around the block, which had a couple of hills, including one right at the end coming back to where we were. David played the role of big brother, and intimidated me, and just told me not to pass him down a long straight road, and I remember being intimidated and staying behind. On the last hill, at the intersection next to our house, he was over confident, and I slingshot passed him on the inside, and passed him right in front of our next door neighbors. He was embarrassed, but cool with it, and it was a moment that I will always remember.

As a young man, I worked in the machine shop and tool & die business, just as David had done, with my first industrial job in the same tool & die shop David had started at. Then I worked in tooling and machinery design, similar to what David had done, as he had by that time gone back to school, and had worked his way into an engineering position. David was someone for me to look up to, giving me confidence to try.

When David started his business (Tennessee Tool & Machine Works, Co.), he continued to work as a plant engineer for an appliance parts manufacturing company for a couple of years, and gradually brought his new company to the point that he felt comfortable to resign from his job, and become a full time small business owner. Early during that period, when he was still only working at his new company in the evenings, he had an accident with a stamping press, and lost two of his fingers on his right hand. He had designed a special hubcap for carts that a textile company uses to move spools of yarn, to help keep yarn from getting wrapped up in the wheels. He had built a die to cut and form the parts in an old stamping press that he had purchased cheaply. The electrical control system for the press malfunctioned while he was working by himself. He called the ambulance and waited for it alone. He decided to continue on with his plans and ambitions.

David began his business in a small, inexpensive, rented building, with poor facilities and working conditions. At that time, he was capable of working in a nice office for someone else as a designer or engineer. He had incredible patience, and over the course of about a decade grew the company gradually, without debt, until expanding into a different building. As he became more involved in cycling, he decided to build his own bicycles, because he already had the basic skills and equipment, and because it would be an interesting challenge. His first frame was for a fully suspended mountain bike. Later versions included aluminum road bike frames, and then titanium road bike frames. When he decided he needed a name for his new business, he chose "Privateer", because he always empathized when he was young with "privateer" dirt bike motorcycle racers, that had to compete against professional racers on hand made GP "works" bikes with billet magnesium alloy and titanium parts and fasteners.

David was a devoted family man to his wife (Suzanne), and was extremely proud of his children, who are now a fine young woman (Holley), and young man (Mitchell).

In more recent times, David was an inspiration to me in different and broader ways than he was earlier in my life. He never knew this, because I never told him. David was able to have a business life that was extremely important to him, while still devoting large amounts of time to his extra athletic and recreational activities, as well as to his family. Doing so made him a stronger person. I have struggled with being able to do that for years, always trying to accept full responsibility for my projects at work, no matter what, sometimes without allowing enough time for some other aspects of my life, such as my condition and health. Of the things outside of my work, my family came first, and everything non-family, and non-work, came second. I tried to not let my myself down, by putting all of my energy into those aspects of my life that I felt improved the security in our lives. I have had some physical issues, and I have gained weight in the years since the physical issues started, partly due to mentally compensating, and my priorities have played a small part in that. I have not been able to compartmentalize my professional life, the way David seemed to be able to do, or devote enough energy to the other parts of my life, the way David did. David put a lot of energy into everything he got involved in. Only in the last couple of years have I come to admire David specifically for that reason, in addition to the other reasons that I had already admired him for. He had bad days, but in general he really enjoyed himself. He devoted himself to everything he did, and not just one or two aspects of his life. His strength in that regard was special.

I will miss David, and it makes me, and all of the family, feel better to know that so many others recognized his qualities. To me, I will think of this as the will of our Lord. I don't need to understand that entirely, to appreciate that every day is something to be thankful for. While I knew that before, I know that better today.

_________________
John Meek

Carol Farmer

Posted: Fri Mar 13, 2009 11:53 am

Joined: 07 Oct 2006 Posts: 73 Location: Hixson, TN

Thank you John for posting that. It was a privilege to know David and I think he touched everyone he encountered in a positive way. It has been a struggle for me to deal with this the past week and I cannot even imagine the pain that his family has gone through. I can only hope that positive changes will be made in light of his death.

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