Sad death at Deep Creek

[NAILER341]

This is sad indeed. Unimaginable that the adults we're not still diving when help arrived. It is hard to phathom not diving until every last breath and every ounce of energy had been expended. A real shame-

[ocTJ]

I know a lot of people get riled up when I don't even have a beer when I am in the driver seat of any vehicle, dirt bike driving off road.. Anytime something like this happens 3 things suffer. A child that died needlessly and the remaining family that must suffer with the loss for the remainder of their life (I include the father he will suffer) and everyone that enjoys the sport.

Conservationsts see a beer can on a trail they know it was tossed out of a vehicle not off a mountain bike or from a hiker. Then we all look like beer swilling trash running around in air polluting oil spilling tin can's of death. I feel for that man, he can never fix that mistake and he will spend the rest of his life trying too forget it.

[6spdYJ]

It wasn't a mistake. It was a decision. A mistake is putting your shoes on the wrong feet in the dark. There is no way he accidently spilled beer or whatever else down his throat.

[inVERt'D]

I agree with your definition of mistake. Thing is, we have all done dumb things and made bad decisions. Probably a lot of those things were done behind the wheel of vehicle. Some of us have "gotten away" with those things, and some haven't. This guy didn't.

Let's step back a little bit before we rush to judgment.

He took his little boy wheeling. For all we know, the little guy was his pride and joy. Probably could have left him at home with his wife, but instead he chose to bring him along, deal with the diapers, and all that stuff.

He shouldn't have been drinking. He shouldn't have tried to cross without knowing how deep it was. The CHP in one article said he was going about 5 mph. Probably he was thinking he'd try crossing slowly and back out if it got too deep.

Admittedly, the fact that he never recovered his son from the vehicle looks pretty bad. I know I'd much rather die trying to save my sons than to live with the failure, and I'm sure that's how most fathers feel. We don't know what he did or didn't try, why he failed. Very likely after realizing his son had probably already drowned, the father broke down psychologically. Kinda like what can happen to people when they get lost in the wilderness. They say most "die from shame."

Maybe this guy is a POS, or maybe he's just a dumb young guy whose youthful stupidity cost him dearly. I can't imagine having to live in that guy's skin.

I think the best thing we can do with this is learn from it, be humbled by it, and thank God our bad decisions haven't bit us this hard.

[6spdYJ]

Well put.

[spearheadbill]

Wow .. thanx for that inverted... i wasn't sure you had it in ya! but there you go! a little compassion and open mindedness never hurt anybody. truth is that none of us really know what happened out there yet so it's premature to judge. whatever did unfold was a tragedy that is certain.

[Roger]

Okay David, I'm guilty of hanging him without a trial. Thanks for the post. A little reality check now and again never hurts. God knows I've done some pretty stupid things in my mis-spent youth..

[6spdYJ]

It sure is tempting to do the ready, FIRE, aim here. Thanks to all for bringing the realization that we all must condemn the action rather than the individual. If any of these comments get the next guy about to do something similar, to stop think and think long enough to change the course of his actions, we have done our job. God be with all involved.

[Mitch]

Well aside from the fact that the father is an idiot and was from the stories was intoxicated, the whole area is signed No Tresspassing, Government Property. So hopefully the authorities will tack on a few extras to keep him in jail for a long. How sad that this happened.

[ocTJ]

yeah, like I mentioned his punishment won't end when the fee's do. My father lost a son before me at 6 months of age. Some 45 years later he still cries over it. My oldest brother was lost as well and the same thing. There are certain pains that don't end. Remember this the next time a buddy is running around sipping on a beer and your thinking ehh he's good he's only had ...

My opinion, this would have happened were he drinking or not. The beer just makes him look like a real class act. Front end drops in and the current and gravity does the rest. Maybe 5 seconds to think about what is happening and 2 of those are spent in shock.

They studied ship wrecks over the past century or so and found that ships that sank extremely quickly men were the highest survivors. Because when instinct kicks in we choose survival first. However the slower wrecks the men die at a significantly higher rate. When there is time to make a choice we will put others (women and children) first. I'll see if I can find the article.