Authorities in Colorado have confirmed that remains found in January belong to mountain bike Hall of Fame inductee Mike Rust.

Photo: The Rider and the Wolf screenshot

Mike Rust was one of the early pioneers of mountain biking and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1991. It is reported that he returned home on March 31, 2009 and discovered that his gun was missing and his binoculars had been stolen. He rang his girlfriend to say he was going after the intruders and has not been heard from since.

The remains were found in January along with a sprocket belt buckle that convinced Rust’s family it was him. Blood tests have now confirmed they were correct and they have finally found him after seven years of searching.

Karl Rust, Mike’s brother, told the Denver Post: “We believe the remains of our brother have been found. The belt buckle was very unique. I’ve never seen another one like it.”

The family will now hope that Rust’s killers can be brought to justice. Paul Rust, another of Mike’s brothers, is hopeful a new Sherif will help with the investigation. He said: “When we’ve talked to him he’s said this was one of the things he wanted to get finished. He didn’t want it hanging out there anymore. He wanted to get this done. We’re hopeful we’ll find who, why, how.” A film was made of Rust’s life called The Rider and the Wolf and you can watch the trailer here: