MHR224

how the hell can you not see a group ride?!?!?! Stupid people should be punished severely. I feel so bad for the significant other who survived.

https://kob.com/article/stories/S196119.shtml?cat=516

cedricbosch

Oh man... that's bad.

mista_chewey

probably on the phone....

DC_Emily

"This is a high speed roadway,” a deputy said. “People travel in excess of 50 miles an hour all the time, so any time you mix bicyclists with motor vehicles there’s defiantly a potential for some kind of hazard."

that statement makes absolutely no sense. It's basically saying that having the two together is inherently dangerous. As if, had the bicyclist not been there, the person would not have been driving in a reckless manner. He shoulda just said "If you ride here, expect to get hit."

And I'm assuming "defiantly" is supposed to be "definitely."

Unbelievable.

scotch

Wouldn't surprise me. I almost got hit walking across the street today, by some ****** in a low-rider Honda Civic, yapping on his phone.

How sad when this senseless **** happens.

aloysius

From my experience this sort of response is all-too-typical of cops at the scene of a collsion involving a bike and a car. Whether it's implicity or expicitly expressed, there's always this attitude that road cyclists deserve whatever they get. Was it legal to drive in excess of 50 MPH on that road? Did the driver veer onto the shoulder? Was he or she driving recklessly? These are the questions that this clown ought to be concerning himself with.

chrisvu05

I am sure the deputy's response has been taken out of context. I'm not familiar with Route 66 as far as traffic flow in Texas but if it is a major interstate system than it is often illegal to be riding on it in many places. Eitherway it is very sad this has happened and the driver should be penalized but I doubt it will happen.

mayukawa

If you look at the video, the shoulder is very wide (as as wide as a whole lane), so the driver must have been distracted...

bikingMILF

"Deputies say so far, no charges have been filed against the driver. "

well, why the hell not?

Trouble

If anyone killed my wife while we were riding...well, I'm afraid I can't say openly here what I would do...
At least once a month, some jackoff-almost always a guy driving a truck, has to come as close as he can to me/us.
I just don't get it, why are people this filled with anger, hate, ignorance and impatients???
These people were in a group...sheese!

For the last couple of years, my routes have included more and more roads that have lower speeds and bike lanes. I refuse to ride on rural roads or "high speed roadways".
If I have any more close calls, I'm going back to mountain biking. It ain't worth getting killed. I can accept smashing into a tree or going head first into a cactus.
Also, I'd like to see some sort of criminal penalties for smokin a cyclist. Obvious negligence.
Finally, spread this word to everyone you know...SLOW DOWN and PAY ATTENTION when approaching cyclists. It's not the time to be adjusting your radio and taking a bite from your Big Mack...aaaarrrrggghhhh

merlinextraligh

1)You have absolutely zero facts (assuming your information is coming form the posted link only) to assess who was at fault for this incident, and to whether any fault rises to the level of ciminal culpability.

From the story, how can you rule out the possibilty that the cyclist weaved from the shoulder into the car's lane just as the car was passing?

2) Just because someone dies, doesn't mean there are going to be criminal charges. Absent, aggravating circumstances, such as drugs, alcohol,grossly excessive speed, etc, simple civil negligence usually does not result in criminal charges.

3) There may well be criminal charge brought. (Note the words " so far") The police can refer the matter to the prosecutor who reviews the available evidence ( evidence being a concept alien to many on BF) and makes a decision whether criminal charges are warranted. This often takes a while, and doesn't draw the headlines.

Just because a cyclist was killed , doesn't mean the car was at fault, and doesn't mean someone committed a crime.

jkizzle

now i am confused, but i was pretty sure cyclists have every right to be in the auto's lane?

merlinextraligh

^
True, but they don't have the right to ride on the shoulder, and then dart in front of oncoming traffic in the travel lane.

My point is that the article gives zero facts as to what happened. There are multiple possibilites, from the information linked, as to how this accident occurred. SOme of which do not involve criminal misconduct on the automobile driver's part.

I'm suggesting the lynching party may be premature.

FrankBattle 

My wish is that enough cyclists lobby the appropriate politicians to [nationally] mandate a section/course/lesson on sharing the road BEFORE driver's licenses are issued. As sad as these incidents always are, we probably will do more good if we use the energy they generate to effect some change.

For example, make hitting a cyclist, jack your insurance WAY up. Kill a cyclist (assuming it's not premeditated and that the driver is not under the influence), you get manslaughter if you are at fault i.e. the cyclist does not veer into traffic and the accident is avoidable.

The sad reality is that we will read this, feel bad, but nothing will come of it. Sadly, we'll go back to weight weenie-ism, Garmin 305 thread, and oogling at ryanf.

I'm guilty too.

gabdy

But isn't there a minimum speed that has to be travelled on any road let alone a highspeed road?

gcl8a

"They are still investigating."

gcl8a

Heck, yeah. I cannot believe the good State of Kansas let me drive by myself when I was 15. What a friggin' menace (luckily, no accidents). The US is seriously messed up in this respect.

I became a much better driver once I started cycling. Sadly, many (most?) people are too scared to ride their bikes on the open road, so they don't learn about how driving behavior affects bikes, so riding remains dangerous/difficult, so fewer people ride...wash, rinse, repeat.

mcoomer

Another reason to investigate and take time to file charges is to ensure that the correct charges are filed. I'm not a lawyer and don't play one on TV but I believe that if they were to cite the driver for some minor offense that person could pay the fine (plead guilty) and be done. Double jeapordy protects you from being prosecuted twice for the same incident. So, by investigating the incident and allowing the prosecutor to look at the case they're more likely to build a good case for serious charges or determine who was at fault and decide if charges should be brought at all. I seem to recall a fatal motorcycle accident in the Seattle area where the driver was cited on the scene for reckless driving, or something similar, paid the fine and was able to avoid vehicular manslaughter charges that the prosecutors office said they would have otherswise filed. I don't recall the particulars but that's the gist of the story.

If there's a lawyer in the house feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

Mike

cyclezealot

Once a cyclist friend was hit from behind in Carlsbad . His bike went over the car and he came smack up against the car's windshield. Somehow he only suffered minor injuries. Muscle sprains. The idiot just decided to drive down a bike lane as if it were a car lane. It was at slow speed. My friend was only treated as an out patient. The drivers' insurance only paid like 10,000 dollars plus hospital costs. It was done by an older driver. My friend notices minor back pain ever since.

roadwarrior

Car's never at fault...but the textmessaging, I"m doing everything in the world other than paying attention to my driving operator, may be here.

From the damage to the vehicle, it does not appear that they slowed much.

Sad stuff...

Pay attention to the driving...it's a 3,500+ pound weapon.

roadwarrior

Old law going back to the need for kids to drive farm vehicles.

twobikes

When I lived near Chattanooga a sheriff's car had someone pulled over on a straight, open road with a 45 mph limit. A middle-aged woman drove along from behind and became mesmerized by the flashing red lights. Her car went right where she was looking and she totaled a brand new sheriff's car. The deputy was not happy. At least no one had to call the police to come to the scene.

calhoun1

Did you just get to this country? I have known all along growing up people are stupid. The reason they got hit was because (pure speculation) either: 1. Whatever the driver was doing was more important than the actual driving. 2. The cyclist was in the lane. Those are the two possibilities. While I would imagine 1 is more likely, 2 is possible. But in this country, people have their heads so far up their a§§es and think that no one is important as themselves, that they just don't care about what anyone else is doing...

michaelmc

Ding ding ding! That is correct! Show him what he's won! (hint: lifetime supply of living with inconsiderate American dumbasses)

calhoun1

I would think a Halloween costume would be appropriate: