Remembering "K-Huck"
If one had a passion for sport bikes, one did not have to find Keith Huckabey, he would find you! Upon meeting Keith for the first time, you could feel his deep, limitless yearning for adventure aboard sport touring motorcycles. There was something in his eyes and in that great smile of his that told you, you had met your wing-man for adventure.
It was not long after I had gotten bitten by the "sport bike bug" myself, that Keith and I met for the first time. Our meeting could be described as the tale of the two drunken guys being escorted back to their hotel rooms by their friends down the sidewalks of New Orleans. When we each saw each other, we tore away from our guardians and ran to each other like two, long, lost buddies!
As was written on the windshield of many of his high powered motorcycles, "Piloted by K-Huc", Keith had always had the lust for fast cars, boats, and bikes ever since he was a young boy. Born in 1953 in Fort Chaffee, AR and raised by his father, Pleas Kuckabey, his mother, Glenda Huckabey, and his sisters Jan and Lori, Keith eventually moved to Memphis for girl, school, and job opportunities. Successful in all three, he married his beautiful wife Kay, and raised two wonderful young men, Kyle and Logan. With his unmatchable communication skills he became Memphis’s top commercial furniture salesmen and placed in charge of the Fed-Ex account. Mission accomplished, it was now time to pursue his long, burning lust for speed.
Keith lived in the hay day of development of the modern motorcycle. He, like most of us of this era, watched motorcycles evolve from, average powered, heavy motorcycles that you had to nurse through the turns, into super powered, lightweight rockets that stick to the road like glue. It's been said the motorcycles that you can walk in and buy at the motorcycle showroom floors today, could win world super-bike races just a few years ago. Taking advantage of this wonderful time in technical development, Keith took full advantage of it by owning the best of the best whenever possible.
Keith was not just a buyer of fast motorcycles, Keith was a rider of fast motorcycles! His finely tuned racing skills through the years allowed him to pursue the limits of motorcycles. Keith was one of the smoothest riders that I have ever seen on a motorcycle. Many of us had so much faith in his smooth riding style that we would regularly ride within inches of him. In fact, new riders would regularly comment that we looked like we were tied together going through the curves.
Keith's love for people and his communication skills got him elected president of the Mid South Sport Riders for four terms. We watched the club grow from under 50 members to well over 100 during his leadership. It was not uncommon for him to sign up a new member every time we rode somewhere. He later became a Motorcycle Safety Foundation instructor and the West TN Director for the Honda Sport Touring Association.
K-Huc and I logged over 100,000 miles of smiles in our twelve-year friendship between 1990 and 2002. If fact, we had ridden just about every place in this good old USA, as long as it had curvy roads and awesome scenery. We were one month away from taking a trip to Europe to ride motorcycles in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy when I got the dreaded call from Todd Huber, "Have you heard the news about Keith?"
Normally I would have been there with him on this ride, but for some reason I did not go on the ride in the Smoky Mountains that took Keith's life that awful day. To this day, we have counted over twelve things that converged in that 10 MPH corner where Keith lost the front end and went under an oncoming car that day. When twelve things work against you in one corner, it does not matter how good of a rider you are.
A couple of years ago I had a dream about Keith. I was in a lobby of a restaurant waiting for my table. All of a sudden Keith walks in. No, it wasn't someone who looked like Keith, as I have seen many times since his death, it “was” Keith. Naturally I go up to him and asked him if it is really him. He said, “Yes, it's me”. I said, “Where have you been for so long?” He said, “I've been watching and listening everyone from a distance, kind of like e-mail.”
We talked for quite a while, then hugged and held each other. As dreams usually go, unfortunately, I can't remember all that was said. It doesn't matter though. What I will always remember is the contact by him and the reinforcement that I am sure, now more than ever, that I will see him again some day.
Keith and I discussed many times about the dangers of riding motorcycles at the level that we rode them. But, we both agreed, after experiencing everything we had over the last awesome decade, should either one of us be forced to make the ultimate sacrifice one day, we would not regret it. I'm sure that sounds strange to the non, motorcycle public, but unless one has been lucky enough to become a motorcyclist, one may never understand.
This July 20th marks the 15th anniversary of our beloved friend’s death. There is not a year that goes by that Keith’s name is not mentioned fondly by his many friends of the motorcycle community, even by some people only meeting him once. His countless MSSR, MMC, and MSTA friends also continue to keep his memory alive. His contributions to everyone he came in contact with made this world a better place.
God speed, Keith Huckabey! Ride Um High old buddy!
