Highway rock sculptor won't let vandals deter him

Don Cox was on his way to his morning workout last week when a life lesson got in the way.Cox, 45, is no ordinary man and his version of working out is nothing short of extraordinary: lifting, heaving and rearranging large rocks into the shape of words and symbols on a levee alongside the Yolo Causeway between Davis and Sacramento, Calif.With thousands of cars passing nearby during the Interstate 80 morning commute, Cox rounded the bend on a frontage road Friday and couldn't believe what he was seeing. Someone, apparently behind the wheel of a large four-wheel drive vehicle, had vandalized the levee hillside where Cox and many others create their designs. Dozens of the large rocks were buried in thick mud. Deep tire tracks scarred the soggy ground and made even walking difficult."I was stunned. I was in shock. I'll be honest with you - for a second, I didn't know what to do," he said.A powerfully built fitness devotee, Cox has been doing the caveman-style workouts for four months after growing tired of traditional bodybuilding routines.Though his rock messages vary, many reflect his faith in God, which he credits for guiding him through desperate times as a young man. Cox, who lives in Davis, now is married and the father of two.After Cox was featured on two local TV newscasts, onlookers began stopping at the causeway site and photographing Cox while he worked."It's been extremely overwhelming. It's been very positive," he said.Then came the discovery Friday, only hours after an extended downpour turned everything into a heavy muck. Cox believes the vandal or vandals tore up the hillside Thursday after dark. Though the area has been popular with fraternities and sororities that also fashion rock messages, Cox believes the vandals were targeting his Christian beliefs because someone left behind pornographic magazines.When Cox took stock of the damage, he was so dismayed he considered turning around and heading home - but only for a moment."I made a decision right then and there that nothing was going to stop me from making the sign I had planned. I was there three hours digging the rocks out of the mud," he said.His normal workout takes about an hour.Officials with the Yolo County Sheriff's Department and Davis Police Department said they have received no calls about the vandalism.Cox said the mud was up to his elbows as he tried to extricate hundreds of the rocks, many weighing close to 50 pounds."I was pretty upset. I wasn't a happy camper. But when I was halfway through, I was actually thanking the people who did this because they made my workout even more challenging," Cox said.He made a large cross that morning with the rocks, then rode home. His hands were cut and battered.Though he is physically imposing - his head is shaved, he has muscles on top of muscles - Cox has a soft side.He says he doesn't want revenge. He simply wants the old hillside back. He wants to exercise and send out positive messages. He wants to hear people honk their horns in appreciation as they speed by on I-80."I'm a pretty forgiving person. I've got a short memory when it comes to people doing wrong to me. You have to turn it into a positive. I tackled this. I conquered it," he said.And the life lesson? Sure, it's only tossing rocks, but it's also a metaphor for how Cox lives his life."Never give up," he said. "Don't let other people's negativity or wrongdoing control or change you. After this happened, I was determined. It was a challenge to me to dig up those rocks and make my sign."(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)