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DEL.ICIO.USUnwritten rule sends ex-cop on search for missing biker
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
He didn’t know her.
All Richard Lauter knew was that a woman who enjoyed riding her bike on the Silver Comet Trail like he did was missing.
So on Wednesday, the Norcross cyclist woke up at 4 a.m., an hour earlier than usual. He loaded up his 18-pound bike — a $2,400 Cannondale — and drove to Mableton. The south Cobb County town is his entry point onto the popular exercise trail.
Lauter bikes it three times a week. On a good day, he rides 30 to 50 miles. On great days, it’s 60 to 80.
“I ride for health and enjoyment,” said Lauter, who with his wife, Maryann, runs Love Story Photography, a wedding photography business. “And I enjoy it immensely.”
His custom-fitted bike allows him to do it in comfort. It’s handmade. American-made, too. Lauter takes pride in that. You can’t compare his bike to the store-bought variety.
In his words, that’s like lining a tricycle up next to a Ferrari.
“There’s so much difference,” said Lauter, 59. “You get what you pay for. If your readers know bikes, they’ll know this is a good one.”
Joining last weeks’ search for Jennifer Ewing put Lauter on familiar ground. It got him to thinking like a cop, a job he once held in Miami, his native city.
He concocted a theory that carried a better ending as to what happened to the 54-year-old mother than the eventual, bitter truth. Terrain along parts of the 70-mile Comet Trail turns remote and wild. Thick tree and bush cover take over. Cliffs and ravines have drops of 50 to 100 feet.
“My theory was that she had a medical issue, became disoriented and ran off one of those cliffs,” he said. “I thought she was in a ravine somewhere, but obviously that turned out not to be the case.”
On Wednesday, hope turned to despair. Ewing’s body was found about 40 feet off the trail, near mile marker 17, between Hiram and Dallas. Investigators have charged Michael William Ledford, a convicted rapist, with murder in the death of the Sandy Springs resident.
Lauter cannot imagine the pain of the Ewing family. Fortunately for him, life is good.
In 1969, he met his future wife. They got engaged at his high school prom and married four years later. They’ve been together 37 years, have three children and two grandchildren.
“God blessed me with an angel and the wisdom to know it,” he said. “I am a happy, blessed man. I’m fortunate.”
That’s why Lauter helped look for the trail victim.
His wife doesn’t cycle. She gardens.
But if she were missing on that trail, or anywhere else, he’d want folks to search for her, to do what he did.
As a fellow cyclist, he felt a kinship to a complete stranger. He knew the Comet Trail well. He rode the same route as Ewing. They favored the same bike brand, too.
How could he sit back, not assist?
“I don’t feel like I did anything special,” he said. “Out on the Silver Comet Trail, there’s an unwritten rule: Everybody looks out for everybody else. Cyclists will stop to see if they can be of help. As a father, husband and former police officer, I can’t imagine the pain this family is feeling right now.
“It’s beyond comprehension.”
Sure is.
• Rick Badie’s column appears on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. He can be reached at 770-263-3875. Or e-mail rbadie@ajc.com.
Comments
By Paige Slocumb
July 29, 2006 07:02 PM | Link to this
Thank you so much for joining in the search to find my sister. She would have appreciated your spirit and compassion.
By Dave
July 31, 2006 05:44 PM | Link to this
Probably like most good mothers and wife, Mrs Ewing was know by her family and a number of friends.
One real sick part of all crimes, and this one is no different, is: The murderer will be known thougout the Nation, as the media will print his name in newspapers, broadcast it on the air waves, and show his horrible face on televison, giving him news coverage like he is some type of celebrity.
Where in reality, assuming his guilt, he is nothing but a filthy rapist and murderer, and his name should only be mentioned in court during his trial. Too bad we have such a non-feeling news media.
My condolences go out to the husband, children and family of Mrs. Ewing. My special thanks to all that did the hunt but made such a horrible find.