Driving fast is another biker stereotype. According to Mike, people just don't understand that bikes accelerate to the speed limit more quickly than cars do.
"Christian and Jason knew how to lay a scooter down," he adds, "but neither of them had an escape here."
James Glader
James Glader
See ya: Mike LaFore wears a tribal band in honor of
Christian.
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Jace's ashes will be laid to rest by Christian. They will not be shot into space.
Although the life they knew is over, work goes on at LaFore's Custom Motorcycle Shop.
Harleys and custom choppers stand side by side outside the glass doors of the shop on Sheridan. Inside, bikes ranging from bare-bones stripped frames to fancy, finished machines line the back room. Parts pulled from long-retired bikes decorate the walls.
Leaning against a back wall is the yellow motorcycle frame that Christian was working on for Sturgis, the bike that would buy his future. The remnants of Jason's Triumph are in a room that's closed off. In the center of the front room, a bike stands like a shrine to the brothers: Christian's chrome engine shining in Jace's grey frame. The black tires rest on steel plates over the carpet.
In the LaFore family, people say "See ya," never "Goodbye."
"I can tell you this," Chris says. "My children never, ever left the house without both of us hugging them and saying ' love you' and them saying 'I love you' back. I think that we're very fortunate in that our children know how much they're loved. It was never a question. And truly, it was unconditional."
Both Jace and Christian were killed in Lakewood. Between 2000 and the end of 2004, twelve people were convicted of careless driving resulting in death or serious bodily injury in that city. Although the LaFores gave their reconstructionists' report to Lakewood officials, Murphy was never charged in connection with Christian's death; according to prosecutors, she didn't violate any laws. The city did charge Nestor with careless driving resulting in Jace's death, but the worst he faces is $1,000 in fines and one year in jail for careless driving -- and jail sentences are rare in such cases. "There is no good outcome," says Pam Russell, spokeswoman for the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office. "These cases are just tragic, because so many families are destroyed."
The LaFores don't want people to feel sorry for them. They just want people to pay attention when they get behind the wheel.
"We'd never wish this on anybody. No family should ever have to have this," says Mike, who still rides a bike.
"I look out there and I see my sons; they're always there with me. Our sons, they grew up to be good men. They had the love and compassion for people that we raised them with. And we couldn't ask for better."
