Running into Rad is almost a rite of passage in Jackson. He knew everyone in town, it seemed like, and if he saw you out and about, he made absolutely sure to say hello to you and introduce himself to anyone who was with you that he didn't know.
I got to experience this quite literally in the Fall of 2021 during a biking trip to Moab. A friend and I were riding Slick Rock and on our way back to the trailhead. I had my head down pedaling up one of the punchier sections when I noticed a rider coming directly towards me. Not looking directly back at him, I instinctively veered to my right to avoid him, but he turned left as I turned right, and before I could react, his front tire collided with mine causing us both to come to an abrupt halt. He was wearing flats, but me being both very clipless and very stunned, I fell over. Very hard.
Before I had time to process what had just happened, let alone get mad, I looked up and saw the face of a mortified but still kind of laughing Radcliffe Spencer who managed to say through his goofy chuckles, "Dude, I was...I wasn't trying to knock you over. I was just messing with you! You really didn't see me?! Oh man. Uhhh...here let me help you up."
Rad and I weren't planning on linking up in Moab, but he made absolutely sure that we did. He proceeded to apologize to me for our collision for the remainder of that trip (and for the next 18 months). It was the most Rad thing ever wrapped up in about 30 seconds. He was both an utter goober and one of the kindest people that you'd ever meet (and probably did meet). I'll miss running into Rad on accident and on purpose for the rest of my life.
