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A tribute to Richard
and Denis Dave Norona |
Kim and I were driving home from another weekend of fun when I turned my cell
phone on to what was an overload of messages. Something was up. My good friend
Greg was the first one to leave a message of the worst news I had heard in my
entire life. Two of my friends were gone…
For my friends and I adventures are not just something we do once in a while,
they are everyday occurrences. Whether it’s running home from work or
a 15-day odyssey in Mongolia, each day of life is pushed to the limit. The type
of people that live like this are very special and Richard Juryn and Denis Fontaine
were two people that epitomized this way of life. Although Rich and Denis had
both just celebrated their 50th and 40th birthdays they lived in what I call
the secret real world with their actual ages much lower.
Richard Juryn
I met Rich some 10 years ago through my dear friend Bob Faulkner. Richard and I formed an instant friendship and his training principles from life as a ski racer and mountain biker helped me in my own career. What was even more impressive than his ripped body and stellar lung capacity was his amazing family and the way he interacted with his wife, Jill, and their amazing kids. Richard was a father but he was a kid too and he lived every day to the absolute fullest. Family trips were always of epic proportions -- kayaking with whales and month long vacations in foreign places were just some of the cool things they did all together. It was always awe inspiring to see them all together and happy.
Denis Fontaine
Denis Fontaine was quite a different character. He was the happiest, craziest,
and wildest guy I have ever known. We met in Panorama at one of the first Sea
2 Summit races. He jumping on one hotel bed and I on another nearly smashing
into one another as the crowd egged us on to go higher. From that day on we
would train, explore and party our faces off at different races throughout the
world. Denis had a zest for life no one else has. I remember when he would come
up to someone in the bar and stick his finger in their drink and say, “is
this yours or mine”? They would quickly hand over their drink after seeing
Fontaine’s finger in it. Mission accomplished. When not partying Denis
was living life with his best friend, Cheryl. The two would kayak, mountain
bike, and run throughout the North Shore everyday together just because, and
with big smiles to boot.
There is no way that I can begin to encapsulate how amazing, gifted, and awesome
these two friends were. There is nothing that I can tell you that you wouldn’t
find out in the first minute of meeting these high energy, addicted to life
individuals except that I was proud to be able to call them friends.
Boys I will miss you greatly and I promise there won’t be one damn day,
not one, when I am out there on some mountaintop or careening across the water
when I stop, sit and think about how much better my life has been by knowing
you. Thank you for letting me into your life and teaching me.
I would like to remind everyone out there to hug your family and friends every
minute of every day and be thankful for what you have. Keep living life as hard
as you can and be thankful for every moment you have. I think this quote is
very important right now
"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving
safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways,
chocolate in one hand, martini in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally
worn out and screaming ~ WOO-HOO what a ride!"
If you have any photos of Richard or Denis for the planned tribute on Oct. 25th
please email them to me at dave@davenorona.com
Guest books have been set up where you can share your thoughts and express your condolences for Richard here and for Denis here
