Remembering "the eight," 10 years later

Others removed small, flat stones from a large bowl on a picnic table. Printed on one side of the rocks was the word "remember." Inscribed on the other was an emblem of a winged foot with the number 8 on it.

Every year since 2001, runners and walkers from the community have turned out for the Always a Cowboy run/walk here.

They honor the eight members of the University of Wyoming's cross-country team who were killed by a drunken driver on Sept. 16, 2001.

This Friday marks the 10th anniversary of one of the worst vehicle crashes in state history.

Some surviving teammates carry the special rocks with them every day, Chris Jons said. He was captain of the team 10 years ago.

"Half of us have tattoos in remembrance of them. It never leaves you," he said.

Jons described the run on Saturday as bittersweet. It's good to see families and friends again.

"But you wish it was for something happier than remembering people taken away by a drunken driver."

The crash occurred at 1:30 a.m. on a lonely stretch of U.S. Highway 287 about 17 miles south of Laramie near Tie Siding.

UW student Clint Haskins was southbound and driving drunk when he crossed the highway's centerline. His pickup hit the runners' Jeep Wagoneer as they were returning to Laramie.

Haskins pleaded guilty to eight counts of aggravated vehicular homicide. A judge sentenced him to 14-20 years in prison on each count, to be served at the same time.

He currently is housed at a community correction facility in Gillette, with his release planned for March, the state Department of Corrections reports.

Haskins declined a request for an interview.

The eight members of the UW men's cross-country team who died were:

- Cody Brown, 21, of Hudson, Colo.

- Kyle Johnson, 20, of Riverton.

- Joshua Jones, 22, of Salem, Ore.

- Justin Lambert-Belanger, 20, of Timmins, Ontario, Canada.

- Morgan McLeland, 21, of Gillette.

- Kevin Salverson, 19, of Cheyenne.

- Nick Schabron, 20, of Laramie.

- Shane Shatto, 19, of Douglas.

Their deaths shocked the UW community and the rest of the state, especially since the crash happened just five days after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Their memory and legacy remains part of UW's psyche. The state's only university built a memorial on campus and established a cross-country and track team scholarship with donations and state money.

Earlier this summer, the Wyoming Sports Hall of Fame inducted the eight runners, the rest of the 2001 track and cross-country teams, and Jim Sanchez, former track coach.

The tragedy helped the push to strengthen Wyoming's drunken-driving laws and called attention to one of the state's deadliest highways.

For the moment

David Salverson of Cheyenne and his wife, Brenda, came to Saturday's run.

Salverson said his son would be stunned by how many people attend the annual event.

The Capital City also has events to honor Kevin.

Cheyenne's Central High sponsors the Kevin Salverson Indoor Track Meet. Kevin holds the record in the 800-meter indoor run there. He broke a 20-year record.

The high school also provides a Kevin Salverson Award to a deserving senior boy and girl. The Cheyenne Board of Realtors provides a $1,000 scholarship in honor of Salverson to a senior boy who displays good sportsmanship.

The young Salverson liked to run at an early age, said his mother, Loni Johnson. "I wrote in his baby book when he was 2 years old that he loves to run and he loves to run fast," she said.

"His life was all around running and school," she said. "He loved both very much."

The runners left personal legacies that friends and family continue as well.

Jons and former teammate Nick Smith said they try to live as their friends would have.

An optometrist in Buffalo, Jons said he thinks about the runners every day:

"You try not to dwell on it, but it's right there before you fall asleep, the last thought. It's not always sad, but you strive to do something tomorrow that is going to be respectful.

"You try to make sure you're living life every day to the moment. You plan for the future but live for the moment."

Smith is an engineer who works in the oil fields in Pennsylvania. He said he does not want another tragedy to happen and would do all he could to prevent it.

The crash raised attention about U.S. Highway 287, one of the 10 most dangerous highways in Wyoming. But lack of progress to widen the highway to the Colorado line frustrates John Schabron, whose son Nick died in the crash.

The state planned to widen the road, but only has finished a small section, he said. Officials say there isn't enough money despite a large budget surplus, he added.

"There's no political will," he said. "I am angry. I feel helpless."

Schabron learned of the crash around 6:30 that morning. He was in Canada on business and drove to Laramie because the 9/11 attacks shut down air service.

"Don't ever call this an accident," he said. "It could have been prevented."

Tougher DUI laws

Kerry Shatto of Douglas has a dream.

He wants car manufacturers to equip all vehicles with ignition interlock devices. They would be standard features, like seat belts and air bags.

The devices prevent people who drink too much from driving, he said.

Shatto's son, Shane, died in the crash. Kerry Shatto has worked since to curb drinking and driving, serving on the Governor's Council for Impaired Driving.

"We've gotten some good laws written," he said. He and his family attended the run.

The state reduced the legal limit for driving under the influence from 0.10 percent blood-alcohol level to 0.08, for example.

And police now can get a search warrant to force a blood draw for someone suspected of driving under the influence.

"Wyoming has come a long way, but we're still not there," he said.

Judges are not on board with tougher laws, at least not in Douglas, Kerry Shatto said.

"We can pass all the laws we want," he said. "It isn't going to matter if the judges don't do it and the Legislature doesn't help with it."

The Legislature should stop removing teeth from proposed bills, he added.

Kerry Shatto tells his story at alcohol victim panels in Wyoming, speaking to those cited for DUI. He also talked to summer driver's education classes in Cheyenne.

The 10th anniversary of the runners' deaths brings more attention to the crash.

"But it's always there for us. For us, it is an everyday event," said Shane's mother, Margo.

Added Kerry, "The grief from it is still always there in the back of your head."

Sometimes they think of the life their son could have had.

"That's the hard part: What would he be doing now?" Kerry Shatto said. "That drives me nuts sometimes. You have to pull yourself away from that.

"I want people to remember these boys as somebody who would have done great things."

Shane planned to go to the U.S. Naval Academy. He had wanted to be a pilot since the fifth grade. But not long before he was to go, he found out that wasn't possible because he was color blind.

He switched to UW and won a presidential scholarship. The university awarded an honorary degree posthumously.

Kerry Shatto said he's angry that Haskins will be released in a few months.

"He got 10 years for eight lives. Those eight boys were worth more than that."

Going on for Cody

Kevin Schei and Cody Brown roomed together in Laramie. They were best friends.

"It really was like having a brother," Schei said at the 8K event.

UW runner Justin Lambert-Belanger joined them as a roommate just a couple of weeks before school began.

The two runners invited Schei to go with them to Fort Collins, Colo., that day, but he had another obligation.

Schei attends Laramie County Community College now and plans to be become a registered nurse. He and his wife had a baby two weeks ago.

His friend Cody helps him every day.

"Some part of him will always keep me going. He makes me a better person," he said.

The cross-country team went for a 12-mile run in the Snowy Range the day before the crash.

"It was a good day," former coach Jim Sanchez said. "They had become a team. They had become one."

The impact of the eight is reflected in the team members they left behind, he said.

The survivors are adults with professional jobs. One is an optometrist, others are engineers, another is a pilot.

"(The survivors) are the reflections of them," Sanchez said.