A year in jail for killer Moorpark driver, cyclist hit by Maserati on Rock Store climb, and your Morning Links

Somehow, this one fell through the cracks last month.

Susan Levy, a cousin of fallen Moorpark cyclist Bernie Cooper’s widow, reported that the driver who killed him pled guilty to felony hit-and-run and two related misdemeanor counts.

Twenty-two year old Ridgecrest resident Nicholas Santiago was sentenced to one year in jail and five years probation.

Santiago hit Cooper’s bike as he was riding on Tierra Rejada Road with enough force that Cooper’s body was thrown into a nearby tree. Santiago fled the scene, but apparently had a change of heart and returned half an hour later to accept responsibility.

Thanks to Levy for keeping us in the loop. And my apologies for the delay in reporting this.

……….

Reports are a cyclist was airlifted to a hospital after being struck by a Maserati on the Rock Store Climb — aka the Snake — on Mulholland yesterday morning. No word on the condition of the rider.

Paul Herold, the famed photographer who documents the activity on that contested stretch of roadway — and offered advice here on how to stay safe there — somehow managed to capture the male victim in midair following the initial impact. Personally, I think it’s in poor taste to post a photo of someone in the process of being injured, so use your own judgment on whether to click the link.

However, it should also be noted that Herold was seen comforting the victim until help arrived.

And of course, the comments devolve into whether cyclists should be allowed on the crowded roadway, especially on weekends. A better question is why speeding motorists are allowed to test their limited skills there.

Thanks to David Huntsman for the links.

……….

Interesting idea. Denver has an Amber Alert-type system to warn the public to be on the watch for hit-and-run vehicles, called a Medina Alert. Oregon is considering a similar system, which was named after a 21-year old man killed in a hit-and-run.

Maybe we should push our City Council members and state legislators to get a similar system in place here. Especially one that notifies every body shop to be on the lookout for a car matching the description of the suspect vehicle — with serious penalties for failing to report it the police.

Of course, the problem with any citywide program is that drivers could sidestep the law by taking their vehicles across the city limit, where compliance would be voluntary rather than mandatory.

On the other hand, the city can usually move much faster than the lumbering state legislature to get something like that in place.

Thanks to our anonymous OC/South Bay source for the tip.

……….

Local

Friday’s Critical Mass will honor hit-and-run victims with a candlelight vigil.

A LAPD officer and a bike rider both suffered injuries in a South LA fight after the rider refused to accept a vehicle code citation. Or maybe they’re predicting the future, since the article — dated today — says the fight occurred, or maybe will occur, at 9:35 tonight. Though I assume they meant last night.

Outside Magazine looks at the recent uncanceled Marathon Crash ride, while the LA Weekly offers a comparison of the Ballona Creek bike path and the Elysian Valley section of the LA River bike path.

Errands by bike are easier when you add the Red Line to your route.

USC’s Neon Tommy looks at the benefits and challenges of riding in LA, and offers a vision for the future.

Cynergy Cycles offers a free seminar on making extreme cycling events easier with science on Wednesday.

If you still give a damn about the Lance Armstong saga, the Times reviews two new books on the subject.

Long Beach’s Charlie Gandy offers a detailed look at the city’s streetdecks.

 

State

More proof that bike riders aren’t always the good guys as a Riverside County cyclist stabs a driver in the neck and steals his vehicle.

A 23-year old driver turns himself in for killing a cyclist in a Half Moon Bay hit-and-run. Maybe he had enough time to sober up before coming forward.

Fruit of the poisonous tree? A Napa man is arrested for meth possession after being stopped for texting while riding his bike. Except texting on a bike isn’t illegal in California, which could call the stop and everything that followed into question if he has a good lawyer.

A Yuba City program teaches people with disabilities to ride a conventional two-wheeled bike independently; I’d love to see a program like that here. And everywhere.

A local cyclist with nearly 50-years riding experience writes the book on Northern California’s best riding routes.

 

National

A Tucson women develops an LED/reflective harness to improve bike and pedestrian safety.

Tulsa gets its first mile-long bike lanes following a road diet; do I really have to say some residents aren’t happy?

An Ohio rider is killed by a 78-year old driver while on a 200-mile group ride.

New York’s highly successful and suddenly embattled bike share program faces a possible cash shortfall, as the mayor refuses a bailout and Alta is accused of shoddy maintenance.  But if it survives, you can (illegally) add an e-motor to your rental ride for just $1,350.

CNN looks at New York’s Worksman Industrial Cycles, the oldest large-scale bike manufacturer that actually makes its bikes in the US, in operation since 1898.

 

International

Huh? A Hamilton Canada letter writer says don’t build bike lanes to make bicycling safer because it’s too dangerous for motorists when cyclists ride in the winter. Oh, and fix those damn potholes first.

Tragic news from across the Atlantic as a British father of three is killed by an 18-year old drunk driver while on a 24-hour, 248-mile solo charity ride. He’d hoped to raise £1000 for the mental health charity; after his death, over £40,000 in donations have poured in. A 19-year old man has also been arrested.

The UK’s Independent looks at the rise of the female cyclist, while two teenage girls have been arrested for attempting to decapitate one.

My favorite Scottish bike blogger writes about getting caught in a stinging rain and offers advice for surviving such. And appropriately closes with this line: “Anyone commenting to the effect that there’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing, will be hunted down and drowned.”

Copenhagenize conducts a little bike archeology, and comes up with 10 former bike features worth reviving.

A Philippines congressman calls for bike lanes on the country’s major thoroughfares.

A Bangkok airport offers bike riders a new 14-mile off-road bikeway.

 

Finally…

In a man bites dog twist, a Florida man was arrested for leaving the scene after drunkenly colliding with a SUV.  On a bike. And in a case of man bites cop, a  Sacramento rider is under arrest for biting the officer who tried to stop him for a traffic violation, and assaulting another.

Makes that South LA case look pretty tame.

7 comments

  1. Richard says:

    The only issue with the bike motor and battery is financing is not offered yet and a much much more expensive model with a built-in up to 1800 or so watt rapid charger is if financed better able to beg the question of why require so much more work from the renter then a owned or not road bike requires- so much rolling resistance in n fact that in London they would have a 3 wheel congestion profile and need to be punitively taxed as well. Frankly a backpack sized carbon fiber LOWISH PRESSURE tank/bag might from car compressor infrastructure store enough energy to help accelerate them more safely or even help in adding power braking.
    The issue is technology allows simulation of everything good about a $30k time trial model in performance with safety and comfort se one to no model. We are illiterate when it comes to footprint for example eating a steak even raw pollutes far more then some two stroke pint of oil and gas disposable bench seat scooter. Bikes even heavy powered ones in the city use hundreds of watts. Cars uses thousands or tens of thousands of watts. Even the subway ties up not just obscene capital etc but consumes and pollutes comparably. We have no vision of what a minimally rational system would look like or prudently require in power. Right now car sized contraptions are obsolete forever. They can’t put buses and trains out of business which might be necessary if we are to get the last car out of our real cities. I doubt any public participation occurred in the decision to require one hog road to use stored energy of any kind. Someday the people will take control of how we move and cast such innovators of today in. Bronze as they are our henry Ford’s not those who think faster tubes across absurd distances belong in a world where faxing isn’t just quaint.

  2. Richard says:

    I meant stored energy can reduce maintenance etc. issues for bike sharing in making there consumer appeal second to no other solution and the most green for that reason… real disruptive deep market obliteration not just penetration. the carriage by horse is gone but its owner operated mutation still threatens extinction of life as we know not just our species extinction if its not killed uber soon. Mr. Ford would be mocking us for thinking any car now is the answer as he did then for employing other beasts at gray burden to not just them. Evolution must not be so resisted. Cars are dinasoars and NEVER HAD A TIME in temperate urban zones.

  3. RyanG says:

    I like how the Florida story is under “international.” Yeah, it’s like a different world over there.

  4. David Huntsman says:

    I really resent the idea that the illegal behavior of a few motorcyclists is more or less supported by many of the motorcyclists who participate in Paul Herold’s forum as a way of suggesting that somehow, contrary to state law, cyclists don’t belong there (Mulholland Hwy west of the Rock Store). By illegal riding, I mean riding a motorcycle fast enough to be impeded by and need to take evasive action to avoid cyclists in the lane – 2 abreast or otherwise – who are bicycling completely within the law.

  5. […] Your daily dose of BikingInLA goodness. A year in jail for killer Moorpark driver, cyclist hit by Maserati on Rock Store climb, and your Mor… […]

  6. paul r says:

    i agree w david huntsman. i like paul harrod and have bought photos from him. hard to imagine me, being an avid cyclist, following much of a non-cyclists’ advice. we have every right to the road, and we (hopefully) understand the risks of riding a bike. hugging the white line while going down the snake (even if you have not gone up), is silly advice. we are entitled to the road, and when descending i take up my full lane, and am frequently slowed down by other users. relinquishing my right to the road to others when i am doing the speed limit is not sound advice. its dangerous…. really?? tell me something i do not know….

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