Michael Steven Rabe

It is with a heavy heart that we announce that our beloved Mike Rabe (Madd Dogg) has passed away after a struggle with Covid. Mike lived an exciting and fulfilling life filled with monumental accomplishments and the respect and admiration of those whose life he touched. Mike is survived by his loyal and loving wife, Heidi and his youngest son Maxwell. Mike sadly outlived his first-born son, Robert and was devastated by the tragic loss of his son back in August of 2014.

Mike was born in Vancouver Washington on January 22, 1951 to Maynard and Jackie Rabe. He was the eldest of 3 boys. Mitchell and Mark were his younger siblings and the 3 were raised in Gresham, Oregon.

Mike had an adventurous spirit from a young age and took to Pole Vaulting in high school. Mike always fantasized about flying and wanted to soar like a bird. He got into Hang Gliding at the age of 28 and took to it naturally. He flew for years and became a Pioneer in the sport. He set state distance records several times, breaking his previous records. Some of these records were held for many years and his name resonates in the Hang Gliding community to this day, even though he hadn’t touched a Hang Glider in decades.

His last recorded breaking flight and personal best was on July 22,1990. He flew 153 miles, from the west face of Pine Mountain in Central Oregon and landing 6 hours and 50 minutes later 10 miles east of a Junturo in a hamlet called Jonesboro. He stated that it was his longest flight and duration ever, which he hadn’t had since 1984. He flew through 4 counties and one time zone, Pacific to Mountain. His wife, Heidi was a big supporter of this lifestyle and often served as his “ground crew” chasing him on the ground ready to pick him up whenever he landed.

Mike and Heidi were married on April 25, 1987 and had a long and loving marriage. Soon after their marriage, they had their sons, Robert in 1988 and Maxwell in 1990. They lived in SW Portland and their boys grew up in the Beaverton School District.

Mike owned his own Carpet Installation business and did well enough to support his family and his hobby. He loved being self-employed so that he could take days off whenever the weather was favorable for a long distance flight.

Mike loved listening to his heavy metal music and would blast the music while working on a new build or sitting on top of launch. His favorite artist being Jimi Hendrix, Machine Gun. He also enjoyed listen to other classic rock too and Frank Sinatra. Music was the thing that he and his sons loved together.

In 2003 Mike started to notice some health issues he was having and ended up that winter having a sextuple bypass surgery, which he recovered from and went back to work. In August 11, 2010 Mike suffered a massive stroke, which left him disabled for the rest of his life. Mike was such a proud person that he did not want people to see him in his post stroke state and began to be reclusive. His wife, Heidi and his son, Max were there for him every day for the rest of his life and cared for him with such loving and selfless devotion that is rarely if ever seen in this world.

Mike did not want to have a funeral service, so to honor his wishes, there will be a Celebration of Life gathering on November 11th, from 1:00 to 4:00pm at 23885 NE Home Acres Rd., Newberg, OR 97132. Please feel free to stop by and pay your respects to his family and share some memories you have of Mike. Snacks and refreshments will be provided.