December 20, 1972 – August 23, 2023
You’ve heard the saying, “he died doing what he loved.” This statement makes it easier for the living to deal with the death of a friend. It’s still hard for me to process the loss of a friend like Creighton King. Creighton and I had known each other for years; a friendship started when he was working for Maxxis Tires as a representative for the company. In 2005, Creighton came out to a WEROCK event with his Maxxis set-up, and a working relationship began; soon after, it became a friendship. Creighton was that kind of guy, easy to get along with, friendly, talkative, and genuine.
Creighton loved his family, church, country, friends, and flying; his business and wheeling fit in there somewhere, too. After graduating from high school in 1991, Creighton served a two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Seeing his future wife for the first time in a photo that his mission companion had, Creighton was smitten and asked to write to her. Not one to let an opportunity pass him by, Creighton invited Tonya to the airport for his arrival back home. Tonya was there that day in March of 1995. Tonya and Creighton married in September of 1995 and together built a life and family that included two daughters.
Having started to fly with his dad as a youngster, Creighton always loved flying, building airplanes, working on them, and traveling to Oshkosh each year with family and friends. In 2013, Creighton left Maxxis to become a businessman and entrepreneur; he designed, patented, and started producing a rubber-lined zip tie known as GripLock Ties.
Creighton passed away this August while testing his plane, the Last Lap Player; the aircraft was being readied for the Reno Air Races. Creighton was a good, solid man, a friend to those he met, even just in passing. Creighton will be missed by all those who knew him.
Blue skies and tailwinds, my friend….
