.....On our last run, Ben politely asked if he could join us down Gore's infamous double-black diamond, The Rumor.
Hesitantly, we agreed, though I'm quite sure all of us were concerned about Ben making it down in one piece.
When we exited the lift and made our way over to the top of the trail, most of us were strongly trying to convince Ben that we should just take a cruiser down for the last run. " It'll be great," I said. "Just a nice relaxing run to end the day."
Ben confidently told us he could handle it and we believed him. Along with being the funniest member of our group, he was also the most convincing, and not in a sleazy car salesman way. More in an inspirational way that would get us off our asses and do something.
And so we skied to the top of The Rumor with Ben, who was ready to drop into one of New York's steepest trails on his first day of skiiing.
Standing at the top, I remember thinking, " Hey, if he wants to do it, let him " which was quickly followed by a secondary thought of " This isn't a good idea."
Regardless, we dropped in, skiing the steep, tracked-out 6 inches as fast as we could, because when you're a dumb kid and calling last run, that's what you do.
I was second to the bottom. My friend and I quickly glanced uphill to catch the rest of our crew finish off the goods and hoping we wouldn't find Ben lodged in a tree.
Instead, there was Ben, sliding headfirst and smoothly on his back, skis and arms high in the air.
His arms and legs flailed like one of those inflatable-armed tube men they put outside of car dealerships. He let out the loudest, " Aaaaaaaaghhhh! and I can still hear it vividly eight years later.
When he reached the bottom, unscathed yet covered in snow and still on his back, he looked up at our faces of complete disbelief and smiled.
"That was fun." he said genuinely. And it always was when he was around.
This story is dedicated to the memory of Benjamin D. Osborn, a great comedian. brave soldier, and tremendous friend killed in combat in Afghanistan on June 15, 2010. Rest easy my friend. You'll be missed. "