Pinehurst Accident and Death-PLEASE BE...

Hi Brice,

Thank you for sharing what happened and your sincere sentiments. So
sorry you were also traumatized by this terrible tragedy. I'm not on
the GPC list at this time but I'm on EBBC and the hiking society lists
so I'm also replying there, where the message was forwarded.

Of course many will (and probably already have begun asking) for more
details about fault. It may be unwise to get into these discussions
publicly while an investigation proceeds, but it is also important
that your witness information is recorded soon before you forget (you
can write this in detail, drawing diagrams if possible, then sign and
date it) and that you, if you are willing, are identified as a witness
to the scene and to the behavior of the driver, etc. If you provide
this to the police it should be included in the report so the family
will have a witness to the scene where otherwise there might be none
(besides the police and the driver whose car killed the man).

On the one hand it is beside the point; a life was lost. Clearly
something is wrong here, inherently, even if the cyclist was not
paying attention or otherwise erred. On the other hand there are many
reasons to fully understand what happened, learn from it, and protect
the family and others connected to the one who was killed.

While it may be presumptuous to try to piece together what happened,
people will want to know which side of the road the cyclist was on,
whether there were skid marks and where they started/how long they
were, etc., details about the scene and the driver's behaviour and
attitude. Of course an investigation is helped by knowing whether the
officers present were doing a good job, seemed to be impartial, etc.,
and who they were, license of the vehicle, etc., but it's the rare
person who stops to document all that. Taking photos or asking
questions may seem wrong in a moment like that but on the other hand
it may be an important act for helping create the most just outcome.

Understanding what happened is important because cyclists are often
faulted when we are not at fault. It is also important because
cyclists need to learn from these things no matter what happened, as
you plea that we do. If the cyclist was cutting across oncoming
traffic for some reason it would be good to know. Even if the cyclist
was cutting across traffic there may be a legal and valid reason; the
motorist might have been going too fast, or some other dangerous
condition might exist which can surprise an otherwise careful and
lawful cyclist. (Small note, I'm surprised if the coroner wasn't there
as I've been told they *have* to be present to remove a body.)

Those who die are unable to testify on their behalf. The motorist may
lie, particularly given the attitude you saw (many do). Statistically
the dead come out at fault much more often than the living. There's
something wrong there. The motorist, even if guilty of intentional
homicide, may walk free and encourage others to do the same (this has
happened in the past); while the cyclist's family loses not only a
husband, grandfather, etc., but may see him falsely vilified, with no
compensation for the violence of aggressive driving (if that's what
happened), and all of us see cycling portrayed as unsafe yet again
despite the fact that experienced cyclists have much better health and
lifespan expectation than non-cyclists on average.

One more note: the term "accident" suggests no fault, so it's
generally disfavored these days. It suggests we're helpless to change
this madness, the dangerous system we live in, where every doorway
steps out into deadly jeopardy. Aggressive drivers do exist and
contribute substantially to death and disability. The system as it
stands now tends to protect these violators and in many ways
encourages aggressive driving.

Again, so sorry this happened, and I certainly sympathise with how you
feel. Thank you for reaching out to communicate about it. I hope
you'll follow up by documenting what you saw as impartially and
completely as possible and following up to be a witness for the
family. (And to all who might read this, if you're ever in this
situation, please do your best for those helpless without you.)

Jason

===
Jason N. Meggs, Mcp, Mph
+1 510 725 9991

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Zach Kaplan
Date: Sat, Feb 20, 2010 at 11:40 AM
Subject: [Ebbc-Talk] Fwd: [GPC] Fwd: Pinehurst
Accident and Death-PLEASE BE...
To: ebbc-talk@lists.ebbc.org

Begin forwarded message:

> From: PBokovoy@aol.com
> Date: 20 February 2010 06:07:51 GMT-08:00
> To: gpc-talk@grizz.org
> Subject: [GPC] Fwd: Pinehurst Accident and Death-PLEASE BE...
>
> Has anyone else heard about this horrific accident yesterday?
>
>
>
> Subject:
> Pinehurst Accident and Death-PLEASE BE  CAREFUL!
> Date:
> Fri, 19 Feb 2010 10:26:17 -0800
> From:
> Brice Winkler __
> (mailto:bricewinkler@pacbell.net)
> To:
> __ (mailto:triathlon@berkeley.edu)
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Hi  Berkeley Triathlon Team,
>
>
>
> While riding my  bike today on the Redwood-Pinehurst loop, I came across a
> horrific and tragic  scene-one that will bother and haunt me for months to
> come. A cyclist was  killed near the Pinehurst Post Office. As I approached
> the  shaded area where the accident took place, the first thing I saw were
> two  ranger vehicles with there emergency flashers on. It was then that I saw
> the  blood. Two rangers were picking up the remains of a poor older cyclist
> and  were placing them in a green tarp. One ranger allowed myself and two
> other distraught cyclists to carefully and slowly pass by the accident  scene
> to be able to continue home, but after seeing the body in full  view, there
> was no way that I could continue uninhibited. I cried and  sobbed for at
> least 10 minutes. My heart felt as if it had leapt up into my  throat, and I
> felt an intense pressure throughout my entire body. I had never  met this man
> before, and I had never thought about this man once before in my  life, but
> at that moment and for the rest of the day today, all I've been able  to
> think about is this poor guy. All I've been able to think about is his
> weeping family at home who will never be able to see their father or husband
> again. I've been crying off and on ever since I've come home, and I'm
> absolutely sickened.
>
>
>
> This cyclist was  killed by a motorist. I believe it was a head on
> collision. At the  accident scene, the driver was leaning against his damaged
> vehicle-the front  bumper and hood were smashed in. As I passed by, he very smugly
> said to me  "The roads are awfully slick, aren't they?" At that moment, I
> was overcome by  an intense fury, but I did not act upon it. This driver
> illustrates just  how dangerous cycling is, and just how careful we all need to
> be. A lot of  drivers simply think that they own the road. They think that
> people who bother  to dress up in spandex to peddle around a silly bicycle
> shouldn't be  given any sort of share of the road. This reasoning is severely
> flawed, but it  is still how many drivers think, and we need to be aware of
> it. Cars are KING  when it comes to cycling. As cool as our carbon fiber
> bikes are and as fast as  they can help propel us up mountains or help us
> descend like demons, they are  no match for two tons of steel and metal driven by
> a person who is highly  influenced by human error. We owe it to ourselves
> to see everything while  we're riding our bikes. If you just bombed a
> midterm, so what. I'm serious.  You need focus on your ride and get home alive so
> you can  study for the next one. I'm not trying to be pedantic or try to act
> as if  I know everything about bicycle safety, but the more focused you are
> on your  ride while you're riding, I think the safer you'll be. Another
> thing: We all  know that we are a part of the National Championship Squad, and
> because of  this, we all feel the need to train that much harder to defend
> our title.  However, I just want to gently remind everyone that there is no
> substitute for  safety. That is, if a semi truck is coming full speed in your
> direction and  you need to get 30 more seconds in to finish an interval,
> simply ABANDON THE  INTERVAL! A friend of mine has been hit while riding up on
> Grizzly Peak  because he ran a stop because he was finishing a power
> interval.
>
>
>
> The last thing I'll  say is this: The Berkeley Triathlon Team is a very
> close-knit bunch of  athletes. We all care for each other, and we would be
> feeling  visceral pains ten times as strong as those that I'm feeling right now
> if  any one of us were to be killed. As I noted above, I don't even know the
> man  who was hit, and my entire body feels tremendously sick and uneasy.
> Imagine if one of us were killed? Even if you don't place that big of an
> emphasis on safety, picture how your buddy would feel if you were killed? This
> should be reason enough to keep your eyes and ears open an alert while
> you're out training. I hope that everyone is having a great semester and is
> getting ready to beat down on Stanford-in a safe and mild-mannered way of
> course. Good luck on your midterms and be safe out  there!
>
>
>
> Best Regards, and  if anybody would like to talk about this or anything
> else related to  schoolwork or triathlon, please feel free to write or call  me.
>
>
>
> Brice Winkler
>
>
>
>
>
>
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