Kruse dies in bike accident
Mammoth resident was 59.
Mammoth resident Kurt Kruse died in a dirt bike accident on Fridaty, October 16. He was 59.
Kruse was riding dirt bikes with his son Shannon, 28, and two of their friends when he rounded a corner and crashed into a fallen tree, according to the Mono County Sheriff’s Office. Local motor sports enthusiast Mike Colbert, who runs Mammoth Motocross, said that he believed the accident occurred on Forest Service road 3S22, otherwise known as Dry Creek Road, across from Chair 2 at Mammoth Mountain Ski Area.
Sheriff’s Officers, paramedics and the Mammoth Lakes Police Department were all dispatched to the location after receiving a 911 call at about 3 p.m. The report states that CPR was administered at the scene and that paramedics transported Kruse to Mammoth Hospital where he was pronounced deceased.
Kurt Kruse with grandson Kelly Duff earlier this year. Photo courtesy: Sheet staff.
Kruse’s son, Shannon, was “right there with him” when he died, said Grant Duff, Kruse’s son-in-law.
Duff spoke to The Sheet on behalf of Kruse’s children—his wife, Alicia Duff, and Shannon, who both live in Mammoth. “It’s pretty unexpected and terrible,” he said. Duff told The Sheet that Kruse was very strong in his faith, which his family shares. “He said, ‘I’m ready to be with the Lord at any time, whenever he wants me, I’m there.’”
Duff said that his young sons, Kelly and Kasen, were one of the great joys of Kruse’s life and that three-year-old Kelly idolized his grandfather, whom he called “PaPa,” and who taught him how to ride a two-wheeler bike.
Kurt Kruse moved to Mammoth permanently this past January.
Before the move, he visited regularly to vacation and to participate in Motocross events. “He was getting ready to retire and he said ‘This is where I’m meant to be.’ You know, on dirt bikes and on mountain bikes and on road bikes. He always wanted to be hiking, he loved the outdoors,” said Duff.
Kruse made his living as a truck driver for the United Parcel Service in Tulare, CA. He had worked for UPS for the last three decades while raising his children in the Central Valley.
When he retired, he decided to join his family in Mammoth where his daughter, Alicia, had moved when she married her husband Grant.
“He moved to Mammoth because it’s Mammoth,” Duff said. “I think he really just fell in love with the area. ‘Why would you want to live somewhere else?’ is what he used to say.” Duff said that Kruse considered himself a local right away, which his son-in-law, who grew up in Mammoth Lakes, would tease him about. “Even if you didn’t want to be his friend, he made you his friend,” he said, “he’s the kind of guy that would smile at everybody.”
Mammoth Motocross’ Mike Colbert said that Kruse “had many friends connected to the Moto racing community and was very active in the sport…he will be missed by the Mammoth Motocross community for sure.”
Duff said that when Kruse’s son, Shannon, moved up to Mammoth Lakes from the Central Valley this September, Kruse felt that everything had fallen into place and was delighted that so many members of his family were together. Shannon, like his father, had a love for all things with wheels, and had begun building a life of his own in Mammoth. The father and son team had been enjoying fall in the Eastern Sierra on their bikes—they were out for another adventure on the day Kruse died.
“Kurt was a young soul so he always went around with the young guns, he was active and hung out with the boys. He [and Shannon] and two of my friends…all went for a ride that day,” said Duff.
“A couple of minutes before the accident his dad stopped [Shannon] and told him how awesome this day had been and how happy he was with his life.”
“That was the last thing he basically said to Shannon.”
Duff said that the family’s love of God is helping them through this time, and that Kruse’s faith was a huge part of his life. “That’s why he lived his life to the fullest and lived every day like it was his last, because he knew where he was going to be next is even better than now.”
Kurt Kruse is survived by his older brother, Kent Kruse, his three children—Alicia Duff, Shannon Kruse and Jeslin Kruse—as well as his son-in-law, Grant Duff.
He was also the proud grandfather of Kelly Duff, Kasen Duff, and his son Shannon’s daughter, Faith Kruse.
The family plans to hold a memorial service in Mammoth Lakes, as well as one in Tulare, but have not yet decided on a date.
Grant Duff said that their family is heartbroken, but find solace knowing that Kruse spent his last day with his son beside him, sharing the joy of being outdoors in Mammoth. “He’s pretty fortunate that he was doing that. It could be such a different story but we know that he was doing what he loved.”
