Bill was one of those very rare individuals about whom you never heard a negative word. He was a gentleman and a sportsman, and, he was a lot of fun to be around.
I had been talking with Bill on the phone for the past couple of weeks, and even though he was presenting an outwardly confident and hopeful face, I just knew that this day was coming soon.
My favorite Bill Rich story dates back a few years to a very windy top 20 day at a Nats (2012 as I remember...). Bill had flown what he thought was a very bad second round flight and was putting his plane away in his car. He was sure he hadn't qualified for the Top-5. Well, the flight turned out to be not so bad after all. I had seen his score and walked over to him to congratulate him on making it to the final day of competition. He wasn't amused; he thought I was just busting his chops. "That's not funny, Bobby," he said. I assured him that it wasn't a joke and he went to the pavilion to check the scoreboard. When he saw that I wasn't kidding him he came right over to me, gave me a huge hug and apologized for snapping at me. I fully understood his initial reaction, but we had a great laugh over the whole thing. What's sad for me is that the next day was the last day I got to compete against Bill.
Rest in God's Good Peace Mr. Rich; you made all our lives richer just for knowing you.
Bob Hunt