Sad news from San Juan Capistrano, where a woman in her 30s was killed when she crashed her ebike Saturday night.
Her two young children, who were also on her bike, were seriously injured.
The woman was riding with her husband on the San Juan Creek Trail north of Creekside Park around 8:30 pm, when she somehow lost control of her bike, and tumbled onto the rocks.
Patch identified the victim as 36-year-old San Juan Capistrano resident Jennifer Lee Macy.
Her children, who had been riding in front and rear bike seats, were also thrown onto the rocks. However, they are expected to fully recover.
An Orange County Sheriff’s sergeant indicated that, unlike her children, Macy was not wearing a helmet, though there’s no indication at this time that she suffered a head injury.
Tragically, Macy’s husband was riding behind on his own ebike, and reportedly watched the crash that took his wife’s life, and nearly his entire family.
This is at least the 50th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 6th that I’m aware of in Orange County.
Update: Bike guide writer Richard Fox has this to add about the crash.
The news likes to blame e-bikes for everything, but in this case it’s not wearing a helmet that probably killed the woman, while helmets saved her two kids. They were returning from the Ohana Music Festival (Pearl Jam, Beck, etc) at the beach, and it was dark. San Juan Creek Trail there is wide and flat but is bounded by boulders lining the channelized creek below, and it seems she fell over and hit her head on them. Ironically they had passed the most dangerous part of the path, where it dips steeply under Stonehill Dr and speeds accelerate down the hill. I am a frequent user of that important trail, it’s a bicycle highway to Doheny State Beach for thousands of Orange County residents. I agree there is a problem with speeding e-bikers on this trail, especially kids on their Class III speeders, but there’s also plenty of non e-bikers in their kits racing through there. There are a few posted 10 mph signs that no one pays attention to. It seems too slow for a trail like this, 15 mph would be more reasonable, including where the woman fell over.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Jennifer Lee Macy and all her family and loved ones.
Thanks to William Sellin for the heads-up.
It’s not only a bike trail. Walkers and runners are on it too and bikers need to learn to share the trail. I’ve almost been clipped by bicyclists who seem to think that the San Juan Trail is exclusively for bikers. Well, it’s not. 10 MPH is just fine. Some of the bikers are just downright dangerous. If you want to go faster than 10MPH, take Del Obispo down to Doheny.
So sad. These motorized bikes are inherently unsafe. In California riding a motorcycle requires a special safety class and drivers license. I hope the family sues the manufacturer and dealer for selling a fatally unsafe product without proper training.