Wesley Smolnikar, 72 of Bowman, ND, formerly from Bozeman,MTand Reeder, ND died on Saturday, September 1, 2012 at the Southwest Healthcare Hospitalin Bowman.

Funeral Services for Wes will be at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, September7, 2012 at the Bowman Lutheran Church. Pastor Galen Strand and Pastor Charles Swanson will officiate withburial to be at a later date. Visitation for Wes will begin on Thursday,September 6, 2012from 9-9 at the Krebsbach/Kulseth Funeral Home Chapel.



Wesley "Wes" Smolnikar was born on April 23, 1940 in Bowman,ND, the son of Frank and Lulu Carr Smolnikar. He was raised on the family farm near Ralph,SD. He attended Southwest rural schooluntil attending and graduating from Hettinger High School in 1959. After High School, Wes joined the NationalGuard where he served until 1966. In 1963, Wes was united in marriage to Carole Solseth, to this unionthree children were born; Michael, Melissa and David. In 1967 Wes and his family heeded the call of the mountains, moving to Missoula Montana. There he was employed as a logger, HVAC tech and truck driver. In 1973 he returned to the Dakota Plains to work on the family farm. He remained in North Dakota until 1997 when once again he was drawn back to the mountains of Montana. This time relocating to Bozeman where he remained until the summer of 2012 when health issues brought him back to family in Bowman.



Wes had a passion for motorcycles. He logged thousands of miles across many states becoming a regular at rally's such as Sturgis and the Laughlin River Run, taking great pride in the fact that "I rode mine". Wes was well known for beinga "Master Tinkerer". If something neededto be fixed, he could fix it. When he wasn't in the garage he could be found watching boxing, racing or rummaging through pawn shops. His greatest joy was spending time with his family and friends.