Nice n Easy Rider Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Folks, I have some very bad, sad news. Quinn's (Bob Celko's) wife called me a little while ago to tell me he was killed this morning while out for a ride on his new Triumph Trophy. He was on the same 150 mile or so ride that we have been doing about twice a month on Sundays for several years now. His wife Janet said a truck didn't see him and hit him. She didn't have many other details. He was airlifted to UNC-CH hospitals and underwent surgery but apparently didn't make it. I've known Bob for about 5 years now since I started riding again. Those of you who know him know what a friendly guy he was and was a great, wry sense of humor he had. Our rides on Sundays were as much for the good conversation over lunch as the ride itself. He will be greatly missed. Link to comment
philbytx Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Oh My ! What a tragedy...our thoughts and prayers go out to Bob's family. Link to comment
EffBee Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Please accept the great sorrow of the entire BMWST.com family and extend to his wife our most sincere and deepest condolences. Quinn was a valued member of this community and we all enjoyed his participation, his help and his wit immensely. Godspeed. Link to comment
Lineareagle Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Never something you want to hear. Condolences. Link to comment
Endobob Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 This is indeed sad! Never road with Bob but had many nice conversations with him at BMWST gatherings - he will be missed. Link to comment
Les is more Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Heart breaking. My very deepest condolences to family and friends. Link to comment
RonStewart Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I only knew Quinn by his silly ball avatar on this forum. Whenever I saw it, I knew there was a good chance that I would soon be laughing. His last post was very funny. For those that missed it, this link takes you to the day he bought the Triumph. Thank you, George, for letting us know. This is sad, sad news. Link to comment
Huzband Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Very sad indeed. My prayers & condolences to his family & friends. And that includes you, George. Link to comment
Matts_12GS Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Dammit! That's terrible news, I loved the chances to talk to Bob on the porch at the Maggie Valley Inn as he say with a paperback book nearby. Link to comment
Jake Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Thanks for posting this George - such a heartbreaking loss for his family, for us, for all who knew him. I kick myself at times like this. I didn't know Quinn personally, lost my chance. I believe he was at the RCR IV a year ago which I also attended. I recall greeting George with nothing much more than a head-nod hello in the hallway in the hotel as the riders were arriving. I'm sure Quinn was also nearby. In the frenzy of getting caught up with old friends, we sometimes lose the opportunity to make new ones. Particularly so, if we don't make too many of these events. I missed seeing Paul by a day at this same event too. So fleeting, these moments. Glass raised, love sent, Godspeed Quinn. Link to comment
Roadwolf Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Sorry to hear about this... please extend my condolences to his wife and family. So tragic. Also, please let us know how the police handle this accident... grrrrr! Link to comment
TEWKS Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Wow, another kick in the gut. I met Bob at the last two gatherings I attended, loved his sense of humor. So sorry to hear. Pat Link to comment
Ron_B Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Damn, just damn. I aways enjoyed seeing and talking to Bob. Last fall, I arrived in Maggie Valley a bit early and stopped at Salty Dog for lunch. No sooner did I order when he walked in. He saw my bike outside and decided to stop for lunch too. The last time I talked to him. My condolences to his Wife & family. Damn. Link to comment
Huzband Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Try to laugh through the tears. The guy at the pro shop told me to get some golf tees. He said that if you put your balls on them, you can drive farther. Link to comment
rogera Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Bob was usually the first person I saw at events on this side of the big muddy. Talking to him was one of the reasons I came. He will be sorely missed. Link to comment
moshe_levy Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Terrible. Never met him, but loved his posts. -MKL Link to comment
Chris K Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 This is sad news indeed. Please pass on our condolences to his wife and family. Link to comment
upflying Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Like losing a good friend, so sorry to hear this. Link to comment
taylor1 Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Very Very Sad Words are hard to come by. Link to comment
ltljohn Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I rode a couple of times with Bob in Maggie Valley, always a good conversation at lunch and around the patio. I will miss his sense of humor. Rest in peace friend. Link to comment
TyTass Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 George, I can't even begin ... we will all miss Quinn (Bob), but I know you guys were close and I am saddened to tears. Condolences, my friend. Link to comment
Big_Gray Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Sad news indeed. Although I never met Bob, I read the new posts on this forum every day and so many people that I have never met just feel like friends. I feel like I have lost another friend. My thoughts are with Bob's family. Link to comment
Firefight911 Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Very sorry to hear of this. Mine and my family's condolences to his family. Link to comment
enfoman Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Very Sad News. He will be missed. Things like this are hard to accept and even harder to to move on from. It seems as if this is a hard year for personal losses of fellow riders. So sad to hear. Link to comment
bmrbuddy Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Horrible news! I've enjoyed talking with him, he was always so pleasant. My condolences to his family. He will be missed. Link to comment
RT Russ Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 always hurts to hear of a rider down, even if we've never met...... Link to comment
SteveHebert Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Another senseless death. My condolences to his famiy and friends. All, please be careful out there. Link to comment
BMW_Ken Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 This is just awful. I roomed with Bob at one of the Rubber Chicken events. Enjoyed his conversation and was looking forward to seeing his new bike at the UN. Very sad. Link to comment
ESokoloff Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 I only knew Quinn by his silly ball avatar on this forum. Whenever I saw it, I knew there was a good chance that I would soon be laughing. ..... Thank you, George, for letting us know. This is sad, sad news. Sums it up for me. The only positive that I can think of is that Paul now has a (another) ridding buddy Link to comment
roadscholar Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Man, so sorry to hear George, he seemed like a very good friend. I'm roughly in Jake's camp, I think we exchanged pleasantries at a BRR once but I never had (or took) the time to sit down for a chat, and am saddened by it. Condolences to you and his family. Link to comment
OoPEZoO Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Damn. I don't know what to say.. I got to know Bob pretty well over the years. We rode together a handful of times, but mostly we just found each other relaxing somewhere at the hotels and chatted about life. I always looked forward to his quirky one liners. Danielle just referred to him as "The funny sarcastic guy who always carried a book". This is crushing news and he will be sorely missed God speed Bob Link to comment
R & R Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Quinn Quips... I'll surely miss them. Something we did on our Vulcan group was put our passenger pegs down when someone passed. So pegs down for Bob. God Speed. Link to comment
Shaman97 Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Very sad news. Always sad when you hear of a fellow rider; especially sad when you 'know' him/her through a DB such as ours. Nothing rises to express the sadness this community feels as the result of the loss of one of our own. God Bless his kin and those that loved and will miss him. Link to comment
beemerman2k Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Oh man, I am so very sorry. Link to comment
gottago Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 So very sorry to hear this. Our condolances to the family. In our thoughts and prayers. Link to comment
TN_R_Girl Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 So sorry to hear of the loss. Condolences to all and to you George on the loss of your friend. :-( Link to comment
Glenn Reed Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 I have met Bob a few times at bmwst events, and was lucky enough to have dinner with him at Helen recently. His sense of humor and mine were very much in synch, so I very much enjoyed reading his posts (hearing them in his voice after meeting him) but I did learn to set down my drink, and make sure I had swallowed beforehand, so as to avoid buying a new keyboard. Just as a reminder, here is one that really got me going. At RCR 2011, my second bmwst event, I got to the hotel on Friday afternoon, and it started to rain, so the usual suspects came inside to swap lies. I wandered into the group, and met Bob, participating in the conversation. Some of us were doing introductions, and when he heard where I was from, he asked if a particular junior high school was there, Dumbarton. I said yes, but it is now renamed a middle school, and he related that it was still a junior high school when he attended for a year when his father's military assignment brought him to the area. Small world, our two sons attended the same school and had gone on to high school. We had a few other conversations, and I will always remember that even though he was quick with a one liner, he was always thinking as well. Some of his replies on the board were very straightforward and thoughtful, while others had me laughing out loud. In person, just the same. My world is a better place for having known him and spent time with him. It is also diminished by his passing. George, thank you for letting us know, and please keep us updated on services. Glenn Link to comment
Danny caddyshack Noonan Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Sad. Be safe out there. Link to comment
TomK Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Tragic. My condolences to the family. Bob had a funny story for everything and an unlimited supply of dog-eared paperbacks. I will miss him. Tom Link to comment
1st Shirt Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 So sorry to hear this. Prayers to his family. Link to comment
Kitsap Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 A sad day, prayers to his family. Link to comment
SageRider Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 D@mn... So sad..... My condolences Link to comment
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