“A 68 year old cyclist was killed yesterday morning (Saturday) when the driver of a black Chevy pickup truck lost control on Kalaniana’ole Highway, considered one of O’ahu’s safer routes for cyclists”.
“The East Honolulu bicyclist, headed east, was hit from behind at 7:30AM. He was riding in the clearly marked bike lane on Kalaniana’ole Highway, east of Kaimoku Place. The driver, a 22 year old East Honolulu woman, and her passenger, a 2 year old boy, were not injured. They were headed east when the woman lost control of the steering wheel, said Honolulu police sergeant Alan Vagas.”
“Speed may have been a factor”, Vaga said. He said a case of negligent homicide was opened, but no arrest was made.
“The bicyclist’s name was not available, pending notification of his family, according to the Honolulu Medical Examiner’s office.”
“Organizer’s of the Hawaii Bicyling League, which has about 1,000 members, were saddened by the news. The area, with it’s wide shoulders for bicyclists and runners, is well-traveled, said John B. Kelley, a member of the league’s board of directors.”
“It’s rare for a cyclist to be injured from behind”, Kelley said. “Usually, it’s from a car that turns into a cyclist when the car and the cyclist are traveling in the same direction, like this incident. I’m very distressed about it”.
“The league plans a routine recreational ride this morning (Sunday) from Kapi’olani Park to Hawai’i Kai, Kelley said. He reminded cyclists to be careful and mindful of cars and road conditions”.
“Speeding cars are a huge problem for cyclists, pedestrians, everyone”, said John Goody, a member of the Hawai’i Bicyling League. “People have to realize they have to share the road”.
“The bicylist was the 50th traffic fatality on O’ahu this year. Last year, 61 people were killed in the same period”.
I ride this exact route everyone Saturday morning, from my home on the windward side of O’ahu. Usually, I pass that area of Kaimoku about 7:30AM, or so. It gets very hairy there, sometimes, with all the speeders whizzing past and on their way to Manoa or Kapi’olani Park, near Waikiki. Yesterday, for some reason, I decided to take my bike via car over to the Pearl Harbor/Hickham military bases and just ride for 5 hours on a 17 mile loop that I mapped out.
I hope that this gentleman wasn’t somebody that I knew, but sadly, because of the tight triathlon/cycling community, I probably did. Sigh.