@ TW Rising American Cycling Star Killed By Driver

[Vespasia]

17-year old Magnus White was struck and killed yesterday by a driver in his hometown of Boulder, CO. It was his final training ride before departing for the World Championships that will be held outside Glasgow next week.

This is obviously a huge loss for his family but it really is for the cycling community as well. MH and I are huge cyclocross fans and were talking about how much potential he had after Worlds this winter. We were really looking forward to watching his career develop. 


www.npr.org/2023/07/31/1191096086/cyclist-magnus-white-17-dies-accident-car-boulder-colorado

[Susie]

I don't understand how the driver walked away from a fatal accident where she hit a cyclist from behind, without any charges (from what I've seen in the WaPo article).

Are they waiting for a warrant to review her phone to see if she was texting or something?  Sadly distracted driving is the cause of a majority of the bike/car accidents I hear about so it's where my mind goes if there's no indication that alcohol, drugs, or excessive speed was involved.

[pixy0stix]

This has been in the news since it happened. This is one area I feel helpless about because people just don't fucking care enough to watch for bikes on the road. Or they have active rage against them, which is fucking stupid.

Ghost bikes were installed on several intersections in town at the places where bicyclists died in the last few years, and it's sobering.

Look twice, save a life. Give bikes 3 feet (or more). Bikes have a place on the road just as much as you (general) in the car do.

[Vespasia]

Aug 1, 2023 15:06:56 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

This is one area I feel helpless about because people just don't fucking care enough to watch for bikes on the road.

This is one of the main reasons I posted this. It's so disheartening that it keeps happening and seems to have so few repercussions.

[minzy]

This is terrible. I have a distant relative very involved in that world who knew him well and they are struggling with this news. ☹️

[Saudade]

The husband of a poster from the Old Place was seriously injured in a bike accident a couple years ago and it's amazing he didn't die.

I've had too many patients with severe or fatal injuries as bikers.

I bike a lot and refuse to bike on the road because people aren't careful and just don't care.

[wawa]

this is the general area where this happened apparently.
www.google.com/maps/@40.0755139,-105.2064363,3a,49.1y,230.4h,88.14t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sO78u_JAEOILWymN3ZNSd0g!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu

I'm really curious what people's immediate thoughts are on seeing this roadway and what's here. I do this stuff for a living, but I'm curious if the same stuff looks assbackwards to others.

[pixy0stix]

Aug 1, 2023 15:47:07 GMT -5 wawa said:

this is the general area where this happened apparently.
www.google.com/maps/@40.0755139,-105.2064363,3a,49.1y,230.4h,88.14t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sO78u_JAEOILWymN3ZNSd0g!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu

I'm really curious what people's immediate thoughts are on seeing this roadway and what's here. I do this stuff for a living, but I'm curious if the same stuff looks assbackwards to others.

I hate driving in Boulder, they have a lot of weird convergence intersections like this.

[Susie]

wawa, so 119 looks like a pretty standard divided highway with a 55mph speed limit to me... intersected by 63rd St. which seems to have a 45mph speed limit and divided only through the intersection. It seems a little unusual to me to have separate lights controlling the NB and SB directions of 119 but other than that it doesn't seem so odd to me?

[Poppy]

I commuted that road daily for years, do you have any specific questions, wawa? I don't claim any expertise on road design but my initial thought was surprise because that road is so roomy. As a driver, this stretch was by far the least stressful part of my commute. To contrast, I had several near misses with bikers driving through Boulder itself where there were so many busy intersections. I haven't heard any specifics on the crash, though.

I also refuse to road bike because it is so dangerous. I have a good friend who was killed while cycling - he actually lived pretty close to this incident for years and biked a LOT but then he moved to the east coast and that's where he had his fatal collision. It all makes me so sad.

[deadwing]

Aug 1, 2023 15:47:07 GMT -5 wawa said:

this is the general area where this happened apparently.
www.google.com/maps/@40.0755139,-105.2064363,3a,49.1y,230.4h,88.14t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sO78u_JAEOILWymN3ZNSd0g!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu

I'm really curious what people's immediate thoughts are on seeing this roadway and what's here. I do this stuff for a living, but I'm curious if the same stuff looks assbackwards to others.

The thing that looks dangerous to me is how the right turn lane cuts through the bike lane. I drive an intersection like this on occasion and it makes me super uncomfortable.

[sillygoosegirl]

That is so sad. Cars are so dangerous.

[macmars45]

That's so sad.

A year ago a woman bicyclist was hit and killed not far from my neighborhood. It was a hit & run. They have yet to find the driver of the car.

[mrspez07]

Another relatively well known cyclist died last year on the road in Lakewood CO. The guy who hit her was intoxicated and sentenced.
coloradosun.com/2021/05/17/gwen-inglis-lakewood-cycling/

And they recently removed her ghost bike, which is disappointing, as it is much more impactful than a sign:
www.cbsnews.com/amp/colorado/news/gwen-michael-inglis-ryan-montoya-lakewood-ghost-bike-cyclist/

My brother, who has been a pretty avid rider, including big rides of 100 miles + in a day has really cut back, in part because of some close calls on the roads. I haven’t riden much in the last few years but am less likely with the uptick of hits.
Despite having lots of bikers, CO feels less safe than it did 5-10 years ago. If the professionals/expert riders aren’t safe, it’s hard to justify the ride as a casual rider.

[aurora]

Aug 1, 2023 17:40:24 GMT -5 deadwing said:

Aug 1, 2023 15:47:07 GMT -5 wawa said:

this is the general area where this happened apparently.
www.google.com/maps/@40.0755139,-105.2064363,3a,49.1y,230.4h,88.14t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sO78u_JAEOILWymN3ZNSd0g!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu

I'm really curious what people's immediate thoughts are on seeing this roadway and what's here. I do this stuff for a living, but I'm curious if the same stuff looks assbackwards to others.

The thing that looks dangerous to me is how the right turn lane cuts through the bike lane. I drive an intersection like this on occasion and it makes me super uncomfortable.

These intersections with the bike lane and right turn lane crossing also stress me out, but it's not uncommon in the area.

To wawa's question, the main road (119) in this area is popular with cyclists since the shoulders are very wide and sight lines are long. The awful part of cycling on any road with cars is that all it takes is one driver distracted for one second. I don't generally ride my bike on roads but if I had to ride a short stretch of this one for some reason it wouldn't alarm me as much as others.

My heart goes out to his loved ones. Such a tragedy.

[aurora]

Aug 1, 2023 15:06:02 GMT -5 Susie said:

I don't understand how the driver walked away from a fatal accident where she hit a cyclist from behind, without any charges (from what I've seen in the WaPo article).

Are they waiting for a warrant to review her phone to see if she was texting or something?  Sadly distracted driving is the cause of a majority of the bike/car accidents I hear about so it's where my mind goes if there's no indication that alcohol, drugs, or excessive speed was involved.

I didn't read the WaPo article but local news made it sound like the investigation was ongoing.

[neverfstop]

How awful. American drivers are the worst.
Roadway looks fairly typical to me & I work with roadways...

Is this intersection where it actually happened? The article mentions a fence & I don't see one in this area. The single photo of the memorial I found online doesn't look like the intersection was the issue.


White was riding on the shoulder of Highway 119, known as the Diagonal, in Boulder on Saturday afternoon when he was hit by a 23-year-old woman driving a Toyota Matrix. The driver crossed from the right-hand lane onto the shoulder, striking White from behind before she crashed into a fence, according to an incident report from the Colorado State Patrol. White was transported to the hospital and pronounced dead. The car's driver was uninjured.

[scm1011]

Aug 1, 2023 15:06:56 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

This has been in the news since it happened. This is one area I feel helpless about because people just don't fucking care enough to watch for bikes on the road. Or they have active rage against them, which is fucking stupid.

Ghost bikes were installed on several intersections in town at the places where bicyclists died in the last few years, and it's sobering.

Look twice, save a life. Give bikes 3 feet (or more). Bikes have a place on the road just as much as you (general) in the car do.

My primary mode of transportation with my kids (other than walking) is by cargo bike. My city has installed a pretty great network of bike lanes in recent years and the absolute vitriol from some members of the community about it is astounding. I have definitely had people yell at my from their cars about how I’m going to kill my kids while driving within inches of me. It does make me second guess my choice sometimes, which is a shame because it’s such an easy, fun, and environmentally friendly way to get around.

[basilosaurus]

I'm Denver, my roommate's boyfriend was hit by a car, shattering both legs and requiring massive reconstruction and rehab. Hell never be the same (he was a tri athlete).

The judge eventually ruled he was partially responsible for being in the road instead of the sidewalk. Wtaf.

For such an outdoorsy claim to be healthy state, that attitude persists like it did with my boomer dad in s fl shocked me.

How tragic.

I briefly tried to commute a short distance by bike, but the bike lanes were usually where snow plows deposited their detritus. It just wasn't safe

[mrsukyankee]

Aug 2, 2023 7:40:44 GMT -5 basilosaurus said:

The judge eventually ruled he was partially responsible for being in the road instead of the sidewalk. Wtaf.

Yeah, no. 

Legally, you can't ride on the sidewalk after the age of 12 in England, so nope. 

This is sad and feeds into my fears for my H. He got hit by a bus yesterday but luckily only got a scrape on his arm. Bus was stationary, couldn't actually go anywhere due to a red light and cars in front, so my H drove around it - and the bus driver pulled out enough to hit him as he rode by (H couldn't go anywhere due to cars being on the other side). H was giving the bus driver some serious lip and the driver, luckily, apologised as he recognised he should have seen H (aka looked before he began to inch out). 

[wawa]

re: location - one of the news stories mentioned that it was near the intersection with 63rd. No idea if this is actually where it was. The exact location along the road isn't super relevant to what I was asking.

I was just curious if this road looks like "yep, that's a normal road" to everybody because I've spent way too much time lately looking at things just like this and picking them apart. To be clear, it is a normal road. But it's also a pretty solid example of everything that's wrong with how we operate our roadway systems. That it's perfectly normal to have multiple lanes of 55 mph traffic with high speed turns mixing with an unprotected bike lane and people trying to walk to bus stops is a significant part of why our traffic fatality numbers look insane next to other countries with similar economic situations. (not the only part...but a part)

[Velar Fricative]

This is such a tragedy.

It's also disturbing how, on social media, if a driver kills a pedestrian, there is an appropriate level of vitriol for the driver and sympathy for the pedestrian. Same if a driver kills passengers in their car or passengers in other cars - vitriol for the driver, sympathy for the passengers. But when a driver kills a cyclist? There's always mostly "It was a horrible accident, they can be so hard to see!!!" or "Bikes shouldn't be on the road!!!". Ridiculous, and so tragic that this keeps happening everywhere.

Also, as a tangential discussion - EVs are obviously the way to go environmentally but man, they are soooooo heavy. I'm really worried about what this means for cyclists (and pedestrians). Because clearly people don't want to make way for bicycles even when it seems like conditions are ripe for growth in bicycling (i.e. cars are too damn expensive and there's not enough supply).

[sugarbear1]

Aug 2, 2023 6:51:32 GMT -5 scm1011 said:

Aug 1, 2023 15:06:56 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

This has been in the news since it happened. This is one area I feel helpless about because people just don't fucking care enough to watch for bikes on the road. Or they have active rage against them, which is fucking stupid.

Ghost bikes were installed on several intersections in town at the places where bicyclists died in the last few years, and it's sobering.

Look twice, save a life. Give bikes 3 feet (or more). Bikes have a place on the road just as much as you (general) in the car do.

My primary mode of transportation with my kids (other than walking) is by cargo bike. My city has installed a pretty great network of bike lanes in recent years and the absolute vitriol from some members of the community about it is astounding. I have definitely had people yell at my from their cars about how I’m going to kill my kids while driving within inches of me. It does make me second guess my choice sometimes, which is a shame because it’s such an easy, fun, and environmentally friendly way to get around.

I'm in Seattle, where cargo bikes and community vitriol go hand in hand. I quit riding with my kids because people truly dgaf and I was terrified.

[aurora]

Resurrecting this old thread with an update that was linked to a mountain bike newsletter (I'm not familiar with Boulder Beat News):

boulderbeat.news/2023/08/26/magnus-white-crash/

In short, the driver is claiming vehicle malfunction and there are no other obvious causes announced so far. There is a map that may help answer some of the questions in this thread.

Still heartbreaking for his loved ones regardless.

[Vespasia]

Sweet, the victim blaming has begun. God forbid we mourn the loss of a talented kid without someone coming in and complaining about cyclists.

EDIT: This is in response to nonsense that was deleting but Pixy quoted below.

[pixy0stix]

Sept 1, 2023 9:40:48 GMT -5 sonrisa said:

How tragic.

The cyclists around think they are invincible and untouchable. They regularly launch directly into traffic (against the rules of the road), run lights and stop signs without looking. It used to mostly be entitled wealthy middle aged white men but has gotten worse with tweens and teens on e-bikes. They treat them like motorcycles for speed but don't seem to know or follow *any* rules of the road nor safety on multiuse paths. Cars haven't killed anyone locally in years. So far it's been cyclists hitting and killing pedestrians but it feels like only a matter of time before a cyclist also dies. 

All this needs is how cyclists don't pay road taxes and we have the general rant against cyclists that the no-necks around here spout.

[sonrisa]

Sept 1, 2023 9:56:06 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Sept 1, 2023 9:40:48 GMT -5 sonrisa said:

How tragic.

The cyclists around think they are invincible and untouchable. They regularly launch directly into traffic (against the rules of the road), run lights and stop signs without looking. It used to mostly be entitled wealthy middle aged white men but has gotten worse with tweens and teens on e-bikes. They treat them like motorcycles for speed but don't seem to know or follow *any* rules of the road nor safety on multiuse paths. Cars haven't killed anyone locally in years. So far it's been cyclists hitting and killing pedestrians but it feels like only a matter of time before a cyclist also dies. n

All this needs is how cyclists don't pay road taxes and we have the general rant against cyclists that the no-necks around here spout.

I deleted because it isn't relevant to the thread or this kid.

There are good and bad drivers and good and bad cyclists. But shitty drivers get tickets, lose their license or have other consequences. As they should. But e-bikes have really led to safety problems. They move at motorcycle speeds without the licensing or regulation and are allowed in all the spaces bikes are. Irresponsible cyclists have killed multiple people within the last year around here and are never held accountable.

[msmerymac]

Sept 1, 2023 10:05:52 GMT -5 sonrisa said:

Sept 1, 2023 9:56:06 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

All this needs is how cyclists don't pay road taxes and we have the general rant against cyclists that the no-necks around here spout.

I deleted because it isn't relevant to the thread or this kid.

There are good and bad drivers and good and bad cyclists. But shitty drivers get tickets, lose their license or have other consequences. As they should. But e-bikes have really led to safety problems. They move at motorcycle speeds without the licensing or regulation and are allowed in all the spaces bikes are. Irresponsible cyclists have killed multiple people within the last year around here and are never held accountable.

Do they have consequences though? Because if they hit and kill a pedestrian or cyclist, THEY are always physically fine, and they're also rarely prosecuted. But the person with no protection is usually far from fine. 

As of today, Paris has banned e-scooter rentals (think Lime and Bird) because they killed literally three people. In 2020, 6,516 pedestrians died in traffic crashes, and 938 cyclists died in the US. Police reports most often cite a failure to obey traffic laws as causes for fatal pedestrian or cyclist deaths. 

Hell (can't remember if I mentioned this above) my city won't even enforce the state law of giving 4 feet of clearance to cyclists because "the streets are too narrow" instead of, you know, insisting that drivers just NOT try to squeeze past a cyclist on a one lane street.

[pixy0stix]

Sept 1, 2023 11:17:21 GMT -5 msmerymac said:

Sept 1, 2023 10:05:52 GMT -5 sonrisa said:

I deleted because it isn't relevant to the thread or this kid.

There are good and bad drivers and good and bad cyclists. But shitty drivers get tickets, lose their license or have other consequences. As they should. But e-bikes have really led to safety problems. They move at motorcycle speeds without the licensing or regulation and are allowed in all the spaces bikes are. Irresponsible cyclists have killed multiple people within the last year around here and are never held accountable.

Do they have consequences though? Because if they hit and kill a pedestrian or cyclist, THEY are always physically fine, and they're also rarely prosecuted. But the person with no protection is usually far from fine. 

As of today, Paris has banned e-scooter rentals (think Lime and Bird) because they killed literally three people. In 2020, 6,516 pedestrians died in traffic crashes, and 938 cyclists died in the US. Police reports most often cite a failure to obey traffic laws as causes for fatal pedestrian or cyclist deaths. 

Hell (can't remember if I mentioned this above) my city won't even enforce the state law of giving 4 feet of clearance to cyclists because "the streets are too narrow" instead of, you know, insisting that drivers just NOT try to squeeze past a cyclist on a one lane street.

On top of this, vehicle/ped and/or bike crashes are rarely reported in the news because they're not novel/sensational. So while sonrisa may not have heard of any crashes, digging around would certainly pull them up.

[devonpow]

Shitty drivers don’t always lose their license. My BIL was killed by a semi truck illegally passing him on a country highway. My BIL was an extremely safe and conscientious cyclist. The driver who killed my BIL was fined $500 for illegal passing. That’s it. He still has his license.