Seven years ago today, a motorcyclist gave his life. I didn’t know him, didn’t know anything about him until someone on a motorcycle discussion site posted a link to an article about him. He was a perfectly ordinary guy. He worked security in the Mont Blanc tunnel that connects France and Italy. He patrolled the tunnel on a BMW K75. And on March 24, 1999 he rode his motorcycle into a raging inferno inside the tunnel to rescue other motorists trapped inside. He went in and out four times bringing victims out each time, and on the fifth attempt he lost his life.

So today, I choose to thank Lucio “Spadino” Tinazzi for reminding me once again that perfectly ordinary people are capable of doing the extraordinary.