April 2008 Issue - Cycling Utah

APRIL 2008 cyclingutah.com 15CommunityRemembering Richard Barnum-Reece,Publisher of Utah RunnerTriathleteRichard Barnum-Reece,1945-2008.By Scott KellyOn the morning of July 22,2006 I was standing on the floatingdock just below the Mountain Viewcampground on Scofield Reservoirwatching participants warm-up forthe swim leg of the newly revampedScofield Triathlon. As I gazed atthe water I noticed a familiar figurefeebly doing the sidestroke belowme. It was Richard Barnum-Reece.I was about to shout out to him thathe should come see me for someswim lessons but, for some reason,I held my tongue and said nothing.Little did I know what was in storefor Richard just a few short minuteslater after the start of the swim legof the race. He never made it backto the dock on his own. Richard wasfished out the water, not far fromthe end of the dock where he hadbeen found floating, face down andunconscious.Richard lay on the end of thedock where emergency personneladministered CPR in hopes toresuscitate him. He was rushedto the nearest hospital in Priceand later air lifted to Utah ValleyRegional Medical Center in Provo.Attempts to revive him were successful,however, lack of oxygenhad caused extensive brain damageaffecting both his cognitive abilitiesand short-term memory. Richardwould never again be able to functionon his own. He spent the next18 months in a nursing home andpassed away on January 29, 2008 asa result of complications from theheart attack he suffered on that fatefulday. Richard was 62 years old.To say Richard lead an interestinglife would truly be an understatement.He was a self-mademan who “marched to the beat of adifferent drummer” and liked to dothings his way. His gruff personalityoften put people off, however, oncethey got to know him it was easy todiscover that he had a huge heart.He wrote his own obituary, fromwhich I’ve culled a few facts abouthis life for this article.Richard was a 1964 graduateof Hillcrest High School where hewas an all region football player.He fostered his love of the writtenword as the sports editor for his highschool newspaper, the Hillcrest HighSentry. Richard’s prowess on thehigh school gridiron earned him anathletic scholarship to the Universityof Utah where, as a freshman, hewas on the U of U football teamthat won the 1964 Liberty Bowl, 32to 6 versus West Virginia. He waslater sidelined with a knee injurythat would plague him for the restof his athletic career. While in college,Richard continued to develophis penchant for writing, eventuallyworking his way up to being sportseditor of the Daily Utah Chronicleand editor of the UniversityMagazine. He graduated from theUniversity of Utah in 1974 with aBachelor's in political science andcontinued on to earn an Master's injournalism in 1975.After working and travelingfor a few years, Richard attendedlaw school at Hamline Universityin St. Paul, Minnesota. He wasforced to drop out after experiencingheart trouble and was treated atthe Mayo Clinic. According to hisbrother, Brent Barnum, he was thendiagnosed with an enlarged heart.Richard had known about his hearttroubles way back in his teenageyears. He would subsequently havefour other heart attacks (or ministrokes) in addition to the one thatultimately incapacitated him.Due to the unusual nature ofhis heart ailment, the Mayo Clinicwanted him to be part of a heartstudy they were conducting. Richardpolitely declined. He didn’t like hospitalsor doctors!Richard was also an avid skier.He was a ski patrolman at Stowe,Sun Valley and later became a skiinstructor at Park City MountainResort. He combined his love of skiingwith a journalism career, workingfor the Wood River Journal inHailey, Idaho, the Ogden StandardExaminer and the Deseret News. Heeven had a short stint as an on-airreporter for KUTV. His work waspublished in the Baltimore EveningSun, Minneapolis Tribune, LasVegas Sun, Skiing Magazine, SkiRacing Magazine, Utah HolidayMagazine and numerous other publications.He published three books:"Poetry for Mysha and the WindyDay", "Once Before I Die" and "TheGonzo File" along with a host ofarticles and ruminations all of whichhad to do with his life and impendingdeath.Next to writing, Richard’sother passion was ultra distancetrail running. He completed 29marathons and seven 50 milesraces over the course of his enduranceathletic career. Richard laterbecame interested in race directingstarting the, now famous, Wasatch100 Endurance Run. He was alsothe originator of Crazy Bob’sBair Gutsman and the WasatchSteeplechase, both popular events onthe local trail running scene.“Richard came to believe thatwriters were like slaves workingthe cotton fields and that he'd ratherown the plantation if he was goingto have to work on it. He created theUtah Runner & Cyclist Magazineto find a place to write and get paiddecently”.Much of the editorial content ofUtah Runner & Cyclist was filledwith stories about the various triathlons,duathlons and running racesthat Richard directed. Many localarea athletes got their start in thesport of triathlon through the manypool swim triathlons that Richardorganized. His “no frill” eventsdidn’t attract many people, but thosewho attended always had a goodtime and they could count on seeingtheir names and exploits publishedin Richard’s newspaper shortly aftertheir respective triumphs. In lateryears he changed the name of thepublication to Utah RunnerTriathleteto more aptly reflect the subject matterwithin the publication that he soenjoyed.Ironically, when he turned 60,Richard had planned to scale backhis race directing commitments,allowing more free time for traveland fun. He had given up alcohol forover 20 years and carefully watchedhis diet ultimately become vegetarian.Participating in the ScofieldTriathlon was a treat for man whonormally would be found behindthe bullhorn directing both volunteersand participants as they toedthe line for the start of one of hisevents. Earlier in the year, Richardhad handed the reins of the ScofieldTriathlon to Burke Priest and JustinJones, younger men with big plansto improve the event. This enabledRichard to participate in the racehe had nurtured from its infancy.Unfortunately, it was to be his lastgreat race!Richard’s life and work wasContinued on page 23GET THE EDGE... 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