Here's a sad trace of Texas. This is a memorial left to a man named Rene Joseph Ulmschneider on the highway between Marathon and Alpine. I took this on a quiet, brilliant, sun-spraddled morning in October, 2018. As I stood there I thought of the thousands of miles I've ridden on my own bicycles, the numerous close calls, the wrecks, and felt such sadness for Rene and his family. Who was he? Here's his obituary:
"Devoted husband and father, Rene Joseph Ulmschneider, 60, of Midland, died on Friday, July 20, 2012. His life was cut short when he was killed by a drunk driver while cycling from Alpine to Marathon.
Rene loved West Texas. He moved to Midland in 1978 and never left.
Rene was born in Cincinnati, OH on April 29th, 1952, to parents Rene and Rita Ulmschneider. He was the third eldest of nine children, attended Elder High School in Cincinnati, and went on to receive both his B.S. and M.S. in Geology from the University of Cincinnati. Rene came to Midland in 1978 to work for City Services, where he met his wife of 28 years, Emily Hoffman Ulmschneider. Rene devoted his career, a span of over thirty years, to work in the oil industry as a geologist in both Texas and Russia. Most recently, Rene was one of the initial employees of a 2004 startup company that became SandRidge Tertiary. As Senior Geologist, Rene was instrumental in developing residual oil production using CO2. Rene and Emily have two daughters, Kiri, born in 1985, and Bryne, born in 1987. He provided the family a foundation on which to pursue numerous community and volunteer activities. He loved spending time swimming, hiking, camping, and traveling with his family. Another one of his passions was cycling the open roads through West Texas with the Permian Basin Bicycling Association.
He is survived by his loving wife and beloved daughters; his mother, Rita; and his siblings, Ann, Loretta, Tom, Mary, Clare, and Jude; along with a host of nieces and nephews, all who will miss him terribly and never forget his gentle smile. A memorial service will be announced at a later date."
As you can see, he was a good man who was much loved.
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