Loss of a Friend

[Ronz]

I was not sure where to post this, so I put it here. warlock LMW has been a member here for quite a while. I do not think he posted here very much at all. Though he did read a lot here. He got into the Sartin Methodology back in real early 1990's. He kept on after me untill I got hooked on it myself. He loved the Sartin Methodology as he read and re-read the books time after time again. The a few years later he found this forum and joined it as I myself joined also through Larry. Then he got into RDSS and yes, he got me into it also. Larry was a truck driver for about 27 years. He finally got out of driving and started helping me in carpenter work. He moved into my spare bedroom 16 years ago and we have been room mates ever since. We have been to race tracks all over the country together. He has been just like a brother to me. And I thought of him as a brother. Back in the last of March he had a bad heart attack. They put a stint in an artery going to his heart. He stayed in the hospital for 5 days. He came home on Monday and was doing great. But on Friday, April 2nd, he got a blood clot that went to his lungs. They care flighted him to a hospital in Shreveport, Louisiana. It took me 45 minutes to drive there. He died before I got to the hospital. I would have posted this sooner, but it was just to hard to do.

He loved racing. He loved the horses. And he loved the Sartin Methodology. He went to a couple of conventions and met Doc Sartin, The Hat and others. I will carry on his dream of winning at the races. I will try to start posting here more. He had lots of respect for the people here that carried in the Sartin Methodology tradition. I know he thought very highly of Ted Craven for his hard work on RDSS. Sorry I had to be the bearer of bad news here.

Ron

[RichieP]

I am so sorry for your loss and Larry's passing. A couple of years back I spoke with Larry on the phone about Hat and matching stuff and he was such a nice man. I mentioned his name to Jim and he definitely knew who he was and spoke very kindly of him.

You are a good friend and my deepest sympathies go to you and his family and friends.

From Hat's culture a "mourning song" for Larry:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VqoxOcEqpk

[Ted Craven]

Ron,

It's sad you news you bear indeed about Larry, for your first post here, though you've been with us longer than most. I am very sad to hear about his passing and on behalf of us all I express deepest condolences to you and to his family.

Larry and I corresponded a few times, most recently in mid-March this year. We fixed a few computer problems and mused about a 'mobile users group' given he had been a trucker and there are several other truckers here.

He seems to have had a big effect on your life, sharing his enthusiasm for horse racing and the Methodology with you. Such friends are golden - I wish I'd known him better.

Fare well, Larry ('warlock').



Ted

[Bill V.]

I am sorry to hear of your loss
god bless

[barb craven]

I'm so sorry for your loss of a good friend Ron.
Barb

[Rverge]

i'm so sorry for your loss, Ron

[Ronz]

First, Thank you all for your replies. It means a lot. Larry and I met back in 1989. Through an ex-girl friend of mine. We broke up and remained good friends. She introduced to me to Larry. He moved in with her and lived with her for 2 years. In about 1990 he approached me about getting into horse races with him. I had been going to the tracks by myself. Larry and I started searching for ways to win at the races. We tried every method we could find. Some would work great for 2 to 4 weeks then quit working. We built our own methods. We both agreed that there had to be a better way than what we were doing. There had to be a way to win consistently at the tracks.

He met me at the coffee shop and said he bought a new book. He said he was going to read it and if it seemed good that he wanted me to get one. I said sure. The book was "Modern Pace Handicapping" by Tom Brohammer. Needless to say, it was a darn good book. Through that he got into the Sartin Methodology. Larry and I studied this for a long time and found out it worked.

He lived with his girlfriend for about 18 months and moved out into a flea bag motel. He lived there 18 months when I finally convinced him to move into my spare bedroom in August of 1994. And we kind of been room mates until he died. He had a heart attack in 2003. He was taken to a hospital that did not have a heart unit. He was there 4 days. When he got out he quit smoking, (a habit he had for about 35 years). They urged him to go to a hospital that had a good heart unit. But he would not. In fact untill he had his heart attack in March of this year, he denied having a heart attack in 2003. He had not drove a truck since 2003. I was worried that since he would not go and have his heart checked that he could have a heart attack while driving a truck. So I talked him into helping me do carpenter work. And when he talked about driving trucks again, I discouraged him. Larry was great at managing money. He did not have a back account. So in 2005 I put him on my bank account as a full owner. I had learned to trust Larry more than I did my own real brother. He could spend a dime and come back with 9 cents in change. So I let him take over paying the bills. I never looked at the bank account. I did not worry about it. Because, as I said, I trusted him fully.

I know he had family. Though Larry never talked about them. They did him dirty in 1982 and he never talked to them again. He looked at me as his only family he had. In the hospital they asked him who could make a decision if he got worse and needed another operation. He looked at them and told them that I was the only one allowed to make any decision on his life. Every one we met thought we were brothers, even though we told them that we were good friends. Larry was born in November of 1951 and I was born in September of 1951. A better friend, i'll never find.

[Jonathan Steele]

Sorry for your loss...I know how it feels.

Hang in there.

Jon

[barb craven]

Thank you for sharing your life with Larry with us Ron. It is a deep loss, and will leave a great hole in your life. Larry will live on for you in all your memories. The pain will always be there, but will lessen with time and he will remain with you through all your memories.
Barb

[tom]

My condolences, Ronz.