Family remembers Utah teen killed in dirt bike accident

SANPETE COUNTY, Utah – Brinley Bailey proudly rode her turquoise snowmobile with fierceness in her eyes and a smile on her face. It’s one of the many things her loved ones will miss most about her.

“She was the light of our lives,” said Keith Bailey, her father.

Around 1 p.m. Saturday, the 16-year-old was riding her dirt bike before falling down a steep embankment in the White Hills area near Gunnison and dying from the fall, according to the Sanpete County Sheriff’s Office.

A junior at North Sanpete High School, Brinley had a profound impact on everyone around her. On Monday, her teachers, friends and family wore blue – her favorite color.

At her family’s home, a collection of signs reading “We love you Brinley” hung on the front door.

Laine Cook, her yearbook teacher, said she was a special person.

“Her personality was very different from all the other students I taught, just because she was always super nice,” Cook said. “She always had a smile on her face.”

The eldest of four daughters, Brinley was a loving big sister. Her parents, Keith and Jennifer Bailey, said she had an unforgettable spirit.

“She was a great big sister and a great daughter – she taught us a lot,” her father said. “She was always happy and had an infectious smile and a light that radiated from her.”

Brinley loved her family, God and snowmobile racing. She and her family traveled around the country and raced together, her father said.

Brinley was usually quiet, but that quickly changed when someone started talking about snowmobiles.

“All you had to do was ask her about it and she just kept going,” her father said, laughing.

When she set her mind to something, she went after it.

“She was a list maker,” her mother Jennifer Bailey said with a smile. “She would follow that list and check everything off.”

Brinley and her younger sister Breanne were inseparable. Breanne said she doesn’t know what to do without her big sister.

“She touched so many people,” Breanne said. “I know why this is happening. She deserves to go to heaven more than anyone.”

The Bailey family said they are getting through this difficult time thanks to the faith and support of family and friends.

“Our faith in Jesus Christ and the power of prayers from people in our community, our family and friends,” he said. “That’s what gets us through.”