2 Cyclist Down in Boulder, CO

This one hits close to home for me, and many of the cyclists in the Front Range are sending our positive vibes to the two who have been injuried.

Officials said that two cyclists were struck by a vehicle near Nebo Road around 8:50 a.m.

Colorado State Patrol Master Trooper S.S. Schwanke said two vehicles were driving eastbound, toward Boulder, when one of the vehicles made a right turn into a private drive.

The second vehicle, identified as a Ford Escape by a state patrol spokeswoman, swerved into the left lane and hit the cyclists, who were heading west, toward Lyons.

Schwanke said one of the cyclists was airlifted to St. Anthony’s Central, while another was taken by ambulance to Boulder Community Hospital. The extent of their injuries are not known at this time.

Charges against the driver are “pending,” Schwanke siad.

Read full article as well as a video interview with one of the officers on the scene over here at The Daily Camera. Judging by the picture below of the damaged bicycles, this was a serious collision between the automobile and the cyclists.  Please be safe out there.

Picture 1

About 40 Hands

A fan of riding bikes with one gear, malt liquor, riding without knowing how many miles I’ve covered, and strip clubs that let you bring your own keg. I typically have a stupid grin on my face, it is because deep down I know that no matter what, my mom thinks I’m cool. Denver, Colorado, USA

30 Replies to “2 Cyclist Down in Boulder, CO”

  1. double yellow…I guess its just too much to ask for people to pay attention and drive with care…

  2. Damn! Someone needs to bring some hurt to that a**hole! Sending good karma vibes to both of them.
    Sad part is, driver was either drunk or pissed, and will get off with light sentence, and do it again, while these two will have to live with the pain forever!
    Justice needs to be served frontier style!

  3. What a mess, very sad. I don’t know how anyone can ride on the road anymore. I used to do a lot of the rides around the front range, including the canyons. I had a semi try to put me under his rear wheels in the Poudre, never road there again. I can’t stomach the 4 inch shoulder with 65 mph cars whizzing by on the way to the Big Thompson.

    I had a car swerve across the double yellow line at me the other day similar to this accident. Why? Some DA roady was in the 55mph traffic lane even though there was a 8 to 10 foot wide shoulder.

    Good luck all and try to stay safe.

  4. light sentence? the last fatality in that area wasn’t even charged (afaik) even though the driver had a history of road rage…most likely no punishment or very little.

  5. Oh. And did you read some of the comments on that site ?

    Dayum.

    I ain’t seen nastiness like that since my ex caught me in bed with a pound of blow and a couple of hookers.

    Now I remember why I ride trails only.

  6. I made the mistake of reading some of the ‘comments’ for the article that was linked. Don’t the usual assortment of raging hate filled stupidity. I do hope that the driver is punished severely. That is the only way to cut down on this. It’s pretty sad. Hope the ladies all survive.

  7. …any time you see bicycles that look like that, especially knowing the ‘incident’ involved a motor vehicle, you know it didn’t go well for the cyclists involved…

    …& if you wanna talk bold, stupid shit about ropes n’ hangin’ folks, go hang the lawmakers & the enforcement officers that set the stage…

    …the average doofus on the road doesn’t have “cyclists” in his/her mindset because other than us being an inconvenience to them at times, they don’t fear what happens as a result of bicycle/motor vehicle confrontations…

    …a lotta folks now know better than to drink & drive because they or their friends have been caught & they “get” that the price you pay is ultimately higher than expected, so it’s slowly sinking in but cycling ???…we’re just people out there dying but that average doofus figures “…i’m never gonna be ‘that guy’ to hit a cyclist so what’s to worry & even then, it’s not like the law is gonna lock me up, right ???”

    …go figure…

  8. Thats fucked up. Watched a buddy get taken out by a drunk driver right in front of me on a group ride a long time ago. You are right, hits close to home.

  9. It’s stunning how blind drivers are. I’ve had people nearly pull out in front of me when I’m in my car with a neon green Kona Jake the Snake on the roof rack. The bike is at eye level and they still don’t see it or the car it’s attached to. The US needs seriously beefed up driving tests which unfortunately will never happen because votes will be lost. Fuck this country.

  10. The accident remains under investigation, and Gehorsen has not been ticketed at this time, Cobler said.

    Not even a ticket at the scene??? Hey, you hit 3 cyclists because you were in a hurry. Go home and we’ll let you know if you’re in trouble…we have to investigate.

    That’s BS.

  11. Colorado drivers have a a very short tolerance for road cyclists. due to narrow shoulder on a lot of canyon roads and being stuck and pissed off. CO did just pass a law requiring a 3′ berth around cyclists no matter the with of shoulder or number of riders, so this should be interesting to watch play out. I am not defending anyone, since I was t-boned by a car running red light and got off with a mangled bike, 12 stitches, and 5 broken toes.

  12. That road is two 13ft. wide lanes with 6ft+ wide shoulders. He swerved over 30ft to avoid a turning car and he didn’t get a careless driving ticket? Had the cyclist not been there and he rolled his vehicle, surely he’d at least get a careless ticket.

    The comments on the Daily Camera website is typical Boulder hypocrisy.

  13. I’ve ridden that road more times than I can count. Always full of roadies, especially when the weather’s nice like it was today. I can confirm that a motorist would have to drive way, WAY out of his/her way to hit a bicyclist in the oncoming bike lane on 36. Wouldn’t be the first time a motorist has been recklessly inattentive out there, but I’m not buying into the culture of fear. Still going to ride that road. Hope the driver gets a good long pull in the slammer and loses his license when he gets out, but I’m sure not holding my breath. Won’t happen until we shift liability toward the operators of the two-ton machines and away from the operators of the 50-lb type. Ride safe, everyone.

  14. We’re riding in the age of the highly distracted driver. So many devices to look at so frequently. Try to spend lots of time on gravel roads (low vehicle volume) and isolated paths. Best wishes to the victims of this brutal mayhem.

  15. …it’s almost like there’s this unwritten or hidden rule that’s viewed & valued by the judiciary & enforcement officials regarding bicycle & motor vehicle confrontations, in that by virtue of the fact that whist driving a car or truck, you are “less at fault”, no matter who’s actually at fault…

    …as cyclists, it’s an insult to our intelligence because for the most part, judiciary & enforcement are saying “…you’re stupid & crazy to be out there riding amongst these large (in comparison) vehicles so therefore, you must be at fault”

    …why is that ???…

  16. “…why is that ???…”

    Maybe it’s cause they know from daily contact how fucked-in-the-head the average driver is and they are amazed we mingle with them on bikes ?

  17. “…why is that ???…”

    Unfortunately, we are the minority. When drivers hit cyclists we have to demand these ppl be prosecuted.

    I still can get over the fact that this a**hole wasn’t even ticketed on the scene. Boulder is a bike friendly community too.

  18. If there is a real life Spike Bike among us, now would be a good time for him to make himself known.

  19. “…why is that ???…”

    in part…because cars have lots of safety features, bicycles have none. Hence why should someone be subjected to more punishment due to an individuals choice to be on a roadway with zero protection.

    in part…because a lot of cyclists do things that appear wrong to drivers (and everyone is a driver, not everyone is a cyclist). I know I do things that probably look wrong to drivers, even though I do them to stay safe.

    in part…because these incidents are generally accidents. There is no benefit to society for punishing people involved in accidents.

  20. The driver was confirmed, on a local forum, as an avid road cyclist and mountain biker. Hopefully, he’ll give up his driver’s license and never operate a motor vehicle again.

    Accidents happen, but not having control of your vehicle is not an accident; it’s careless and, give some circumstances, reckless. As I said before, had this been a single vehicle accident or a collision with another motorized vehicle, he would have received a ticket on the spot. The double standard of applying traffic laws to motor vehicle/bicycles collisions is ridiculous.

    Twelve years ago I got into a minor fender-bender (<5mph) and I was cited with careless driving (for following too closely).

  21. Yes accidents do happen but let’s not confuse ‘unintentional’ with ‘accidental’. Most ‘accidents’ are avoidable if drivers pay attention, drive at a speed appropriate for the road and weather conditions and not follow too closely, etc. We need to start expecting more from motor vehicle operators.

  22. Hey,
    I really appreciate the great work DC does about car-bike accidents. I wanted to draw your attention to an article about a man named Travis Kinley, a dedicated roadie and professional firefighter in my area. He suffered not only a hit-and-run impact, but then while lying unconscious on the road, got run over by the next car to come along. He survived, and his story is pretty intense: http://www.thestate.com/2011/09/09/1963747/firefighter-bicyclist-on-comeback.html
    In the video he is incredibly candid about what happened and how he felt the whole time. I especially love how talks about how much he is looking forward to getting back on the bike. I’m not a Christian, but I can also respect how he uses his faith to understand the events he’s been through and find some meaning in them. Incredible that he’s been able to come around to forgiving the hit and run driver, who is still unidentified.
    Keep him in your thoughts!