James David "Jimmy" Herzog

1956 - 2019

Jimmy Herzog, age 63 of Pocatello, ID passed away on Saturday May 25. He was about to begin the "Trans AM Bike Race", an epic 4,200-mile, solo, unsupported, coast to coast ride starting in early June. Jimmy was in the final days of training when he suffered a fatal heart attack while on one of his favorite rides, winding his way along Marsh Creek, south of McCammon, ID.

Jimmy was born on January 14th, 1956 in Tucson, AZ, son of Marilyn Marie Calhoun, and U.S. Navy Lt. Commander Harold Herzog. He was preceded in death by both parents, and his stepfather, Norris Ganson. He is survived by his wife Latecia whom he married on December 28, 2003, sister Susan Herzog, his brother Steve (Allyne) Herzog and dogs Cushla MaCree and Madigan Magee. He previously had been married to Brenda (Crowder) Von Prisk and Christy Bowcutt. His sister recounted that when Jimmy was a baby, his mother would often play Beethoven's Symphony #5 and he would fall fast asleep. Jimmy was this Symphony personified: soulful, radiant and jubilant.

Jimmy was a high school wrestler for a couple of years, but as his high school sweetheart and first wife Brenda remarked, "he got tired of chewing gum and spitting" to keep his weight down and quit the sport as a junior. He and Brenda had a great fondness for music early on, attending many local concerts and saw Tucson native Linda Ronstadt, just as her career was taking off.

Jimmy got a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Arizona and worked in the mid-west for Proctor and Gamble, but he yearned to be near the mountains and in 1984 Jimmy and Brenda moved to Pocatello, ID to work for what was then called the INEEL (later changed to INL) as a chemical engineer.

Jimmy soon discovered that southeast Idaho was a great place to be based out of for outdoor recreation and to acquire new friends. During the late '80's Jimmy became interested in biking, backpacking, skiing and climbing. Together with his good friend Chuck DeNure he climbed the Moonlight Buttress in Zion N.P., the northwest couloir of the Middle Teton and capped off his alpine climbing career in 1992 by summitting Denali, the tallest mountain in North America.

By the late 1990's and into the 2000's Jimmy's attention had turned to river running. He rafted the Middle Fork of the Salmon, Bruneau and Colorado but his particular favorite was the remote and pristine Firth River above the arctic circle in the Yukon. He made the 3,000 mile drive to Inuvik NWT twice with his local buddies (once with his brother Steve), and especially loved throwing down a pint while camping along the 460 miles of gravel that comprise the Dempster highway. He was able to see grizzly bears, yellow-billed loons, musk ox, hundreds of caribou and a wolf on these trips that ended with a flight out on a Twin Otter from a spit next to the diminishing pack ice on the Beaufort Sea.

Jimmy earnestly looked forward to Idaho winters, and was an avid skier. He frequented the local resorts with Latecia and the dogs, but Pebble Creek (ie the "Rock") was hallowed ground for him. Especially after his retirement in late 2015, he was able to work himself into incredible shape backcountry skiing there. His buddies were jealous of Jimmy, being that he was small and compact, and stemming from both his telemark background and low stance he consistently could get "face shots" with as little as 4" of powder.

What Jimmy will always be remembered for was his empathy towards other people. It didn't matter what your station in life was, Jimmy was there for you and had a unique gift of patience, tolerance and compassion for everyone. His daily schedule often meant calling or stopping in on sick or injured friends. For example, it was nothing for him to drop everything he was doing and take bacon wrapped scallops over to a hurting friend. His phone calls, hugs, unending attention and friendship gave solace to his army of "girl friends", especially when they were grieving or experiencing difficult times. The feeling Jimmy gave you was the same feeling one would get when coming indoors on a cold winter night and sitting next to a wood stove; he had an uncanny ability to make people warm, cheerful and calm, and for this he will always be held close to the hearts of all those who loved him.

A Celebration of Life will be held starting at 3:00 pm at the Mink Cr. Group Use area on Sunday, August 11, 2019. Instead of flowers, donations to Huntsman Cancer Center would be great, or maybe just give somebody a hug - yea, that's what Jimmy would do!