It looks like I have jury duty on Tuesday, so my apologies for the lack of an update today. Hopefully, things will be back to normal in a day or two.
Update: Bad news on a beautiful day; cyclist killed in Pomona shooting, another rider seriously injured in Tarzana
Just a quick note to take the shine off this beautiful Sunday.
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A bike rider was shot and killed in Pomona last night.
According to the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, 45-year old Pomona resident Jose Cerda was riding on Lexington Avenue just west of Garey Ave around 9:30 pm when a vehicle pulled up next to him and one of the occupants opened fire, shooting him several times.
Cerda was pronounced dead at the scene.
He was just the first of three people killed by gunfire in the city overnight, in what would appear to by a series of drive-by shootings.
Anyone with information is urged to contact the Pomona Police Department Detective Bureau at 909-620-2085.
Update: According to the LA Times, no one has been arrested yet in any of the shootings; no word on whether police have any suspects or if the shootings are related.
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I’ve also gotten word of a serious collision involving a bike rider in Tarzana last night.
An email from reliable source says he was driving with his family along Reseda Blvd near the 101 Freeway overpass around 5:50 last night when he came upon the immediate aftermath of collision involving a bike and a car.
He arrived before the paramedics, and said the victim, who was not wearing a helmet, appeared to have been gravely wounded with a serious head injury.
Thankfully, the driver had remained at the scene; the window on the small car was completely smashed. Judging from the damage and position of the car, he said it did not appear to be a hit-from-behind collision, but couldn’t tell from what he saw how it might have happened.
As a frequent rider in the area, he reports the area is very congested with heavy vehicle traffic due to the freeway offramp, and that riding there can be challenging. despite the presence of a bike lane.
I haven’t been able to find any confirmation of the collision yet; however, knowing the source, I have no reason to question what he saw. Not surprisingly, he says he and his entire family were traumatized by what they witnessed.
Once again, it sounds like prayers or best wishes are in order, whatever you’re most comfortable with.
Thanks to Bro Dave for the heads-up.
Update: Sgt. Stephen Egan, the bike liaison for the LAPD’s Valley Traffic Division, reports that the collision occurred at 5:50 pm Saturday at the intersection Reseda and Collins. The driver was making a turn when he hit the rider; which way he was turning or what street he was turning onto is not clear at this time.
The victim was transported to a local hospital with severe head trauma.
MB reports in the comments that the victim was wearing a helmet, but it was evidently knocked off by the force of the impact.
Update 2: Bad news. I’ve just gotten word that the victim died of his injuries last week. I’m trying to get more information.
More bad news from Gardena, as a bike rider dies nearly a week after a late July collision
Lately, Gardena seems like a very risky place to ride a bike.
Just days after a group of cyclists had their tickets for obstructing traffic after installing a ghost bike dismissed, a young bike rider has died five days after he was hit by a car.
According to the Daily Breeze, 19-year old Gardena resident Julian Ramos was taken off life support last Sunday, after suffering major head trauma in a collision on Tuesday, July 30th. Ramos was just one block from home when he was hit by a vehicle while riding on Western Avenue at 144th Street around 9:35 pm.
The crash is still under investigation.
The paper reports Ramos had recently reconnected with his mother after growing up in foster care, and was working at the Carl’s Jr at Crenshaw and Redondo Beach to help support her and two of his siblings.
A fund has been established to help pay for his funeral expenses.
Ramos is the third bike rider to be killed in the city in the past 10 months, following the hit-and-run deaths of postal worker Jesse Dotson in July, and Benjamin Torres last October. All three were commuting to or from work.
That’s an exceptionally high death count for a city of less than 60,000 people.
And a fourth man was killed when Gardena police shot an unarmed Ricardo Diaz-Zeferino who was trying to help his brother find his stolen bike this past June.
This is the 59th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and 26th in Los Angeles County, which has already exceeded the county-wide total for each of the last two years.
My deepest sympathy and prayers for Julian Ramos and all his family and loved ones.
Category: Bicycle Safety, Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: bicycling fatality, Gardena, Julian Ramos, Los Angeles County
Gardena BWB tickets dropped, bike rider shooting caught on video, York road diet improves safety
Good news from Gardena for a change.
Streetsblog reports that the LACBC, along with a number of outraged letter writers, have been instrumental in getting the Gardena police to drop the tickets issued to a group of riders stopped for apparently riding while brown.
The riders, mostly members of the East Side Riders and Los Ryderz, had just replaced a ghost bike for fallen hit-and-run victim Benjamin Torres, which had been removed by the city. And which was removed a second time just hours later.
They were on their way meet with city officials when they were stopped, frisked, and — after much delay and debate among the many officers present — ticket for obstructing traffic, in violation of state law.
I doubt that members of La Grange, or any other spandex-clad Westside riding group, would have been stopped under the same circumstance. Let alone frisked.
Then again, it’s not like you can hide much in Spandex. Or anything, for that matter.
Fortunately, justice and rationality has finally reigned in Gardena.
Now if they can just keep their cops from killing crime victims.
The story notes that another memorial ride will be held this weekend. And this time, Gardena police have been invited to take part.
Now, the United Riders of South L.A. are asking for you to show your support for them, for victims of hit-and-runs, and for cycling in Gardena in general by joining them on this weekend’s memorial ride.
The group will meet this Saturday, August 10, at Rowley Park (13220 Van Ness Ave) at 3:30 p.m. to do a loop through Gardena and stop to pay their respects at the site where Torres was killed. If you have any questions, please see here or contact the East Side Riders or Los Ryderz.
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The LAPD offers security video showing two gunmen targeting a bike rider in what would have been a drive-by, except the shooters got out of their SUV to fire their guns repeatedly.
Not surprisingly, police think the shooting, which occurred in El Sereno late last month, was gang related. The victim was treated and released for non-life-threatening injuries.
And just to clarify, gang-related does not necessarily mean the person getting shot at is a gang member; just that the people shooting at him may have been, or thought he was.
Anyone with information about this crime is asked to contact Hollenbeck Detective Donna Cornejo at 323-224-0104.
However, someone should tell the LAPD that bike riders, even ones getting shot at, are not pedestrians.
Mistaking the two could explain a lot when it comes to why some cops seem confused about the rights of riders.
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Analysis of the 2006 York Blvd road diet shows it cut collisions by 23%, and injuries by 27%. And reduced felony hit-and-runs by a whopping 47%. However, collisions involving bicyclists continue to rise, perhaps due to increased ridership.
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LA’s proposed street repair bond is revived by the city council; with reports due back to the council on the feasibility of including fixing sidewalks and complete streets serving all road users — including bicyclists — in the bond issue.
Of course, there’s a difference between mandating a complete streets approach and requesting a feasibility study. So we’ll want to keep an eye on this one.
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Free three-hour bicycling skills courses will be offered by Metro and the LACBC over the next two months. The Culver City Bicycle Coalition hosts a family ride this Friday. The next Wolfpack Hustle midnight drag race gears up on September 7th; registration opens August 10th. Santa Monica’s new Streetsblog edition is coming next month. Formerly bike-unfriendly Malibu will show just how much they’ve changed with two PCH Safety Study Meetings later this month, on the 20th and 22nd. Oh the horror of it all, as Glendale streets are losing lanes and gaining signs to accommodate non-motorized road users. Long Beach looks into funding for their own ciclovia.
The Huntington Beach bike shop looted in the recent surf riot now offers T-shirts proclaiming it Riot Proof, as locals pitch in to pay for the damage. San Diego’s Qualcomm is working on a portable system to help drivers avoid bikes and pedestrians; thank goodness, because eyes and ears don’t seem to do the job. The fourth annual Ventura Share the Road Ride is scheduled for October 5th. Cyclelicious looks at the bike section of the updated 2013 California Drivers Handbook; not perfect, but it’s getting better, even if it does still say you can park in a bike lane. This is the guy behind many of the recent innovations in bike design. A San Francisco bike rider is killed in a Calistoga SWSS — Single Witness Suicide Swerve. A Red Bluff man says bicyclists don’t belong on local highways unless they pay to put bike lanes on them, neglecting to consider who pays for the traffic lanes he drives in — or that most cars come equipped with brakes to help them avoid slower traffic. Downtown Chico sports new green bike lanes, thus ruining their chance to pass for LA’s Spring Street in any Hollywood production.
The Federal Highway Administration moves to back separated cycle tracks. AAA’s own stats say high speeds kill, yet the Auto Club consistently opposes attempts to lower them. Not surprisingly, bike riders gravitate towards protected bikeways. The Bike League offers an in-depth report on women’s bicycling, and how to get more women on bikes. New flash cards help assess concussion in cycling falls; every racing team and riding club should have a set. No one really knows why your bike doesn’t just fall over; then again, maybe they do. Now that’s sad, as a barking dog leads strangers to the body of his master, who was killed in a fall from his bike. Seattle newspaper calls for more and better bicycling infrastructure. A Las Vegas bike rider is slashed by a double meat cleaver wielding Juggalo; my worst nightmare — homicidal, probably insane and horrific taste in music. The Denver public library goes mobile with a WiFi equipped book bike. Bike share generates more foot traffic than car parking in Chicago. How to not bike like a dickweed. New York mayoral candidate calls for a Vision Zero plan — aka no traffic deaths — for the city; long past time for one of our own here in the City of Angeles. Beyoncé bikes across the Brooklyn Bridge to perform at the Barclays Center; no one recognized her, proving that bikes really do make you invisible. Boston guards bikes in a subway station with a cardboard cutout of a cop — and it works; thanks to D.D. Syrdal for the link. In a heartbreaking case, the family of a cyclist riding near his home witnesses the hit-and-run that killed him. Mass insanity strikes Cobb County GA as they reject a grant because it reeks of a UN Agenda 21 plot to take away their cars. Louisiana bike rider tries to outrun a patrol car after stealing soda and beer.
Toronto cops are ordered to track doorings, while a local writer says let the city’s bike share system die a slow and painful death. In a hard-hitting piece, a Brit blogger says it’s really not funny when someone claims they were only joking about killing a cyclist or raping a woman, and the two have more in common than you might think. Britain’s Liberal Democrats call for proportionate liability to hold the larger vehicle responsible in a collision; something I’ve long called for (#10) here. Bike riders don’t deserve the abuse they receive on Twitter. Eight in ten British cyclists fear for their safety on the country’s roads; evidently, the rest don’t read online comments. Or maybe it’s because the courts send 95-year old drivers who kill cyclists after fainting back out to do it again. Advice on how to stay safe on your bike, and what to do if that advice doesn’t work. Aussie shock jocks are blamed for a bike lane backlash. Australian police crack down on rogue cyclists. A search for the best biking city Down Under. A Yokohama bike lane is a real obstacle course. A Japanese construction crane operator is arrested for hit-and-run in the death of an 11-year old bike rider; yes, a construction crane.
Finally, you can now protect yourself from the sun while you turn your helmet into a giant sombrero, but would it block the view from your built-in cam? Here’s the perfect bluegrass-flavored soundtrack for your next ride.
And if you haven’t seen it yet, just try to keep your jaw from hitting the floor when a mountain bike racer goes horizontal off a billboard to take the win.
Update: LA’s bloody hit-and-run epidemic goes on, as bike rider killed in Northridge Monday night
It’s happened again.
According to KNBC-4, a bike rider has died after being hit by a car in the San Fernando Valley last night.
The victim, publicly identified only as a man in his 20s or 30s, was riding near the intersection of Plummer Street and Winnetka Ave in Northridge when he was struck by a silver Mustang convertible around 9 pm. No word on which street he was on or what direction he or the car that hit him was going.
The site a typical Valley intersection, offering the sort of wide, multi-lane streets that encourage speeding and aggressive driving.
The driver fled the scene, abandoning the car on the 10100 block of Oso Ave. Don’t be surprised if the car ends up being reported stolen; even with the vehicle in hand, the police must place the driver behind the wheel before they can make an arrest.
This is the 58th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 25th in Los Angeles County, exceeding the county’s total for each of the last two years. It’s also the 10th bicycling fatality in Los Angeles this year, doubling the total of five in both 2011 and 2012.
And it’s the 14th fatal hit-and-run involving a bike rider in Southern California since the first of the year, and the ninth in LA County — eight of which have occurred in the City of Los Angeles.
Update: I’m told this intersection is actually in Chatsworth, rather than Northridge.
Update 2: Northridge-Chatsworth Patch identifies the victim as 39-year old Victor Awad of Canoga Park. Awad west riding west on Plummer when he was hit by the Mustang headed north on Winnetka. He was taken to Northridge Hospital, where he died early this morning.
Anyone with information is urged to call LAPD Detective Laurino at 818/644-8115.
Thanks to Jeshizaemon and LAPD Sgt. Stephen Egan for the heads-up.
Update 3: The LAPD has announced the arrest of 51-year old John Bracamonte for the hit-and-run death of Victor Awad. Hopefully, more details soon.
My sympathy and prayers for Victor Awad and his family.
Category: Bicycle Safety, Bikes & the Law, Hit-and-Run, Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: bicycling, bicycling fatality, fatal hit-and-run, Los Angeles, Northridge
Catching up on all the latest links, Tuesday edition
It’s time to catch up on all the latest news.
So grab a cup and put your feet up. Then slip out the back when no one’s looking and go for a ride, already.
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KCET explains why LA has clashing street grids. The Santa Monica Museum of Art’s 5th Annual Tour de Arts rolls on Sunday, August 18. SoCal Cycling has results and photos from Sunday’s Brentwood Gran Prix, along with video of the women’s sprint from the Cat 1 – 3 race. Ten things you probably don’t know about bicycling at UCLA; okay, I knew about seven of ’em. You could become part of the mayor’s Crisis Response Team. The Dailey News, et al, continues their Summer of Cycling with a commute from South Pasadena to DTLA; I’ll believe they’re serious when they talk to any of the many established bike advocates in LA. Registered Dietitian Matt Ruscigno offers advice on nutrition for athletes. Boy on a Bike experiments with an e-bike; or his wife does, anyway. More new sharrows sprout up in Long Beach. Cycling in the South Bay, soon to be available almost wherever e-books are sold.
A Newport Beach woman suffers a head injury when she falls from her bike on PCH. A memorial will be held Friday for Duane Roth, the fallen bike rider and non-profit CEO who died on Saturday after nearly two weeks in a coma. San Diego will host their first ciclovia — or CicloSDias — on Sunday. A letter-writing bike rider says La Jolla isn’t safe for bike share. A new video explains the updated Moreno Valley bike master plan.
USDOT says transportation can play a role in promoting active transportation; but you knew that, right? The rise of the protected North American bike lane. A newly arrived — and apparently angry — Salem OR letter writer says ticket cyclists who don’t use the bike lane. A little more empathy from drivers could save a life. Springfield Cyclist rides through my old Colorado stomping grounds; jealous, I am. Laramie WY works to become more bike-friendly; last time I rode through Laramie I swore it would be that last time I rode through Laramie. After a Wisconsin driver walks with a measly 90 day sentence for killing a bike rider while drunk, a legislator calls for a minimum 10-year for fatal drunk driving cases; thanks to Michael Byerts for the heads-up. The city famous for it’s Brickyard turns to bicycling. A Fort Worth civil rights group is angry that the truck driver who killed a 14-year old bike rider won’t face charges. Unlicensed New Jersey driver leaps from his car just before it hits two boys riding with their mother on a bike path; nice, dude. Anthony Weiner goes from threatening to rip out New York’s bike lanes to calling for expanding bike share throughout the city; too bad he can’t keep his shortcomings off the internet. Tony winning Pippin star bikes 60 blocks to the theater for most shows. Confessions of a new womens’-centric bike shop owner. A Louisiana bike rider barely survives a brush with an 18-wheeler.
Vancouver traffic goes down even as the population goes up. A cross-country cyclist riding through British Columbia with an oxygen tank meets another rider with 540,000 miles on the figurative odometer. An indignorant BC letter writer complains about paying for unused bike lanes, apparently not realizing the public subsidizes the lanes he drives in. Another UK rocket scientist tweets about driving off after hitting a cyclist while drunk, then complains that bike riders are abusing her in response; gee, could it have been something she said? Women’s racing finally gets parity with the men, at least in the Tour of Britain. An estimated 16,000 Brit cyclists ride 100 miles along last year’s Olympic routes, with another 50,000 on Saturday. One-quarter of Scot bike riders have run into road rage. A New Zealand pedestrian comes out of a coma over a week after she was hit by a cyclist. A Kiwi researcher concludes helmet cams only antagonize drivers by catching them driving dangerously; here’s a solution — don’t drive like an idiot when the red light is on.
Finally, no wonder A-Rod got banned for doping — evidently, he’s a cyclist. If you want to understand what motorists really mean, you’ll need this dead-on drivers dictionary.
And yes, for anyone wondering, they stop bikes when the presidential motorcade rolls through, too; I got stuck at a Santa Monica intersection for over half an hour the last time Obama came to town, even though it should have been clear I wasn’t hiding anything in my spandex.
So Valleyites, plan your route accordingly.