The accident remains under investigation, and Gehorsen has not been ticketed, Cobler said.
Based on the pictures, it looks like that stretch of road is a solid double yellow. Shouldn’t the driver have been cited for crossing over a double yellow?
Good on ya for actually getting involved. We had a cycling death here that hit way too close to home for me on many levels 2 weeks ago and it finally caused me to change my cycling habits. I stay indoors for anything less than 1.5 hrs if I can manage and if I do go out, I try to go with at least one other person - which I realize doesn’t help that much, especially given the situation that generated this actual post - but it’s an attempt. And finally, I have changed all of my longer routes to exclude almost entirely riding on any road where the speed limit exceeds 35-45mph. I am realizing that anyone driving a car going 55mph is zipping along in a different mentality than someone carefully watching that they don’t exceed a 35mph speed limit - myself included. Plus the response time for both driver and cyclist at speeds in the 55mph+ range is virtually non-existent. You have motivated me to try to get involved locally myself. Sending thoughts for recovery. Stay safe everyone.
It’s an age old dispute that I don’t see ever changing. Inevitably motorists will point to the fact there are cyclists out there who don’t follow the rules. They seem to feel the penalty for such cyclists should be summary execution. No trial. The first motorist to come upon such a cyclist is free to carry out the execution personally.
I agree there are cyclists out there who are reckless. I don’t agree they deserve the death penalty for their infractions.
As I see it…at worst, a cyclist in an inconveniece to a motorist. On narrow roads the motorists may have to slow down until such time as the oncoming lane is clear so they can pass. It involves first pressing on the brake pedal to reduce speed to that of the cyclist then subsequently pressing on the accelerator once the way is clear. I appreciate if you’re late for something important it may seem agonizingly frustrating. The reality is the time lost is likely less than 30 seconds. Often times not even that, as once past the cyclists they’re only going to come up behind another motorist down the road which they would have run up behind anyhow.
On the other hand, the motorist represents a potential death threat to a cyclist.
Sounds familiar - here in San Diego same thing happened about 10 years ago but it was a much more narrower road… crazy!! Need to bump up the Murder 2 prosecution - may wake people up but probably not…
Amy Howard was involved in this accident and is in serious condition. Amy’s injuries were extensive and critical. If you look at the picture online you will see the fireman carrying the Serotta she was riding and you can understand why they were significant. Based on the information that I have and that reported Amy and her friends were absolutely riding safely. To me, this is one of those accidents that was completely preventable as it was driver error and misjudgement, and the cyclists were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Amy just recently joined my group Pedaling for Parkinson’s in our ride across Iowa (RAGBRAI) and she recently stepped down as Executive Director for the Davis Phinney Foundation for Parkinson’s research. She stepped down after giving tirelessly to the DPF so she could spend more time with her family. Amy is an absolute class act and my thoughts and prayers go out to her and her family during this very difficult time.
Jay