There isn't just one story that can be told about Beth Kobeszka; there are hundreds.

There was the dancing: "Seeing her break dance was always hilarious, always fun," said Jane Soung, a friend and teammate. "She would do the worm ... she had no problem breaking it down, keeping it light- hearted."

There was the ambition: "At training camp, even when she wasn't feeling good, she still stayed with the group," said Beth Christiansen, also a teammate and friend. "There was very little she could eat, so she ate spinach. That was her pre-race food."

There was her sense of humor: "She was a character," Jane said. "That's what I'll miss the most. She was always making people laugh. She had a crazy diet, but she would make fun of herself for that kind of stuff."

And there was her racing: "The moment that I remember most about BK is that I actually looked at her, right before the crash," Beth C. said. "She was right beside me, with this big, happy, 'I'm going to kick somebody's ass' look on her face. She loved what she did."

Beth Kobeszka died on June 30 as the result of a crash in the State Championship road race at the Proctor Cycling Classic in Peoria. With just three miles left to race, she was accidentally forced over the centerline of the road on the open course, into the path of an oncoming truck.

A member of the XXX Racing-AthletiCo Women's Development program, Beth was racing in her last race as an entry-level Category 4 rider. Only 24 years old and in her first year of bicycle racing, she proved talented enough to translate her running and triathlon background full- time to the bike, taking a win at the Cobb Park Criterium the week before and earning enough points to move up to Category 3.

"She never wanted to give up," Jane said. "We were taking a circus arts class together: we were beginners, and some people would give up on the skills. Not Beth, she would do it over and over, determined to get it. She was very competitive, a go-getter, but at the same time really fun."

That translated well to the bike. "She really invested in getting better and being a part of the team," Beth C. said. "As she began to get more seasoned, she learned the tactics involved in racing. At Cobb Park, she won in the rain-things like that didn't deter her. At the same time, we have so many action pictures of her because we could never get her off the front of the race!"

Jane encouraged Beth to join the team this year, and said Beth was very close to her family and friends. She had two sisters with whom she spoke "all the time," Jane said, "and they were very supportive of her racing. Her sister Katie was there at Cobb Park.

"Beth was really intelligent, and she and I had many discussions about where life would take her," Jane continued. "She wanted to make more of an impact, to help people. She was very thoughtful in that sense."

After graduating valedictorian of her high school class, Beth graduated with honors from Northwestern University. In college she attended Catholic Church; the priest from that church gave the homily at Beth's funeral.

"He knew her really well," Jane said. "It was really meaningful: Beth is, was life. She lived her life to the fullest. That really hit home for me. There was never a doubt that was how she lived her life. She lived a full life-she didn't hold anything back."

Beth's family has created a scholarship in her memory. To honor Beth, checks can be sent to the Elizabeth Mae Kobeszka Memorial Scholarship Fund, c/o The Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation, 101 West Sandusky Street, Suite 207, Findlay, OH 45840, or online at www.community-foundation.com.