Tag Archive for Lake Elsinore

California phasing out gas cars, monthly Lake Elsinore community ride, and Harrison Ford rides after an all-nighter

April 15, 2022 / / One comment

The good news is, California is planning to phase out gas-powered vehicles by 2035.

The bad news is, they’re not planning to replace them with bicycles. Or even transit.

Just more cars, powered with a plug instead of dead dinosaurs.

Which means our air may get a little cleaner, but our roadways won’t be any safer or less congested.

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Mark your calendar for a Lake Elsinore community bike ride on the last Saturday of every month, to demand a safer environment for area children.

Meanwhile, Bike Walk Lake Elsinore catches you up on biking and walking projects in the Riverside County community.

Thanks to I Like Bikes for the heads-up.

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As if any experienced bike rider doesn’t know that’s the best time to ride, no matter how old you are. Or how long you’ve been up.

Thanks to Megan Lynch for forwarding the tweet.

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The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.

No bias here. A mechanic for Jaguar’s Formula E racing team was deservedly fired after an online rant saying people on bicycles “Should be ran [sic] over in the road, dragged on to the path and pissed on by everyone!” if they dare ride in the roadway.

No bias here, either. After people complained about a street being too dangerous to ride a bike on, a British member of Parliament insisted it can’t be too bad, because she survived it. Which seems to set an awfully low bar.

But sometimes, it’s the people on two wheels behaving badly.

Police in England are looking for a teenaged bike rider who reportedly smashed the wing mirror on a car, then dented the door and spit on its hood for no apparent reason. Vandalism is always wrong, tempting though it may be at times. But something tells me there’s probably another side to the story.

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Local

LAist proves it’s possible to ride a bike to Dodger Stadium, and easier than you may think.

 

State 

A Bay Area think tank concludes that exempting sustainable transportation projects from environmental review has worked as intended, as a new bill in the state legislature would make the exemption permanent.

He gets it. An op-ed by a San Diego ER nurse says the city’s streets should be safe for everyone, not just people in cars.

Residents of San Diego’s Rancho Penasquitos neighborhood make it clear they prefer a convenient place to park their cars, instead of bike lanes to help keep people safe from their big, dangerous machines.

There’s a special place in hell for whoever stole a customized adaptive therapeutic bike belonging to an 11-year old Sacramento boy with cerebral palsy.

 

National

Belgian direct-to-consumer ebike maker Cowboy is now offering on-demand home test rides in ten US cities, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle and New York.

Electrek rates the best ebikes in every price range, from under $1,000 to over five grand. I’ll take the Tern e-cargo bike, thank you.

A Washington woman reminds her small town neighbors she’s a 68-year old grandmother on an ebike, not a terrorist dressed in Lycra.

A Salt Lake City TV station describes Whittier’s fallen Bullard brothers as legends in the cycling community, nearly a week after they were killed by an alleged DUI driver outside of St. George. Meanwhile, a crowdfunding campaign to benefit their families has raised nearly $82,000.

The other Portland is looking to get more bike friendly, too. No, the one in Maine.

A Queens community group wants bikeshare, but only if they can put the docks on the sidewalk instead of the street. Because evidently, curbside parking is more important than people walking.

 

International

Road.cc recalls ten brilliant inventions that changed the bicycle forever.

Edinburgh officials says it’s too soon to criticize a new bike path while it’s still under construction — even though it’s being built in a bizarre zig-zag pattern, with power poles left standing in the middle of it.

Vice examines the bizarre case of a 14-year old Belfast boy who left home on his bike to meet some friends, lost his backpack, fell off his bike, and was seen riding naked through a housing estate before vanishing — all in the space of just 18 minutes. His body was found in a storm drain six days later.

Apparently, the French are no different from the rest of us, with over 80% of French drivers admit to using their cellphones while driving; on the other hand, 72% of bike riders use theirs while riding, too.

Tune in, turn on and go for a bike ride next Tuesday to mark the 79th anniversary of Bicycle Day, when LSD inventor Albert Hoffman dropped a few tabs and tripped all the way home on his bicycle in Basel, Switzerland.

Malaysians are in an uproar over the six-year prison sentence given to a young woman driver, even though she killed eight bike-riding teenagers ranging from 13 to 16; over one million people have signed a petition calling for her to be set free.

 

Competitive Cycling

Pro cyclists are riding the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to get ready for this weekend’s 126th edition of the Monument, give or take a few war years, with the women rolling tomorrow and the men on Sunday.

Heartbreaking news, as Dutch pro Amy Pieters remains in a drug-induced coma, with “no clear picture” of recovery, four months after she was severely injured crashing on a training ride.

Four hometown heroes who grew up watching the Redlands Classic will be competing in next week’s edition of the annual stage race.

Now you, too, can dress like your heroes from the the L39ion of LA cycling team, as long as you’re willing to fork out a couple hundred dollars for an aero jersey, and nearly three hundred for bib shorts. But at least you can get a hat or socks for twenty bucks.

 

Finally…

Apparently, cops think hi-viz repels drunk drivers. That feeling when recovering your stolen tandem turns into a hatchet job — literally.

And yes, we’re clearly the problem. Not all the people in the big, smelly machines.

https://twitter.com/HowTheWestWS/status/1514738016429899796

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Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.

Oh, and fuck Putin, too.

Category: Morning Links / Tags: , , , , , ,

Update: Bike rider killed in Lake Elsinore, no details available

September 24, 2017 / / One comment

A bike rider was killed in Lake Elsinore early Sunday morning. Unfortunately, almost no information is available.

According to the Press-Enterprise, the victim was struck by a vehicle on the 32000 block of Mission Trail in Lake Elsinore at 2:39 am, and died at the scene.

A street view shows a divided commercial roadway with two lanes in each direction, and a poorly marked painted bike lane on each side.

No information has been released about the victim or how the crash occurred.

This is the 44th bicycling fatality this year, and the fifth in Riverside County.

Update: The victim has been identified as 57-year old Edward Carrothers; no word on where he lived. The occurred on Mission Trail near Sedco Blvd, which is several blocks south of where it was placed by the original report. 

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Edward Carrothers and his loved ones.

 

Category: Bicycle Safety, Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , ,

Update: Bike rider killed by apparent drunk driver in Lake Elsinore

October 11, 2015 / / 6 comments

There’s no excuse. Period.

According to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, a bike rider has died as the result of a collision with an allegedly drunk driver in Lake Elsinore.

The victim, identified only as a 21-year old man from Murrieta, was riding on Railroad Canyon Road south of Summerhill Drive around 8:58 pm Friday, when he was hit from behind by a 75-year old driver.

Police arrested the driver at the scene after concluding that she had been drinking.

The bicyclist was taken to a nearby hospital, where he died the following day.

The press release does not say how far below Summerhill the collision occurred, or which direction they were traveling.

A satellite view shows two lanes headed south, with a right turn leading onto a freeway onramp, and an optional right turn from the center lane. Northbound, there are three lanes, with an additional two left turn lanes leading onto the freeway, and a double left at Summerhill, along with a right-turn only lane.

Nearly 30 people are killed by drunk drivers in the US every day, at a cost to society of over $59 billion dollars a year.

The cost to their loved ones is beyond measure.

There is simply no excuse for getting behind the wheel after drinking or using drugs. Ever. If you think you’re okay to drive, you’re not. And someone else is likely to pay the price.

This is the 57th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the seventh in Riverside County.

Update: The Press-Enterprise has identified the victim as Murrieta resident Mark Heigel. The story reports the 75-year old driver who killed him, Thelma Jeanette Trachy, was released from jail Saturday.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Officer Roberge at 951/776-1099 or sheriff’s dispatch at 951/776-1099.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Mark Heigel and his loved ones.

Category: Bicycle Safety, Injuries and Fatalities, Update / Tags: , , , , ,

Update: Bike rider killed in hit-from-behind collision; 5th cyclist killed in Lake Elsinore in past three years

June 30, 2013 / / 8 comments

We ended last week with a fallen cyclist.

And tragically, we start the week with another.

Just two days after James “Mitch” Waller was killed and another rider seriously injured when they were run down from behind while riding in Laguna Canyon Road near Laguna Beach, word comes of yet another Southern California bicycling fatality.

And like the others, she died after her bike was struck from behind.

According to the Press-Enterprise, 38-year old Lake Elsinore resident Lucia Ruano was riding south on Grand Avenue at Marvella Lane in Lake Elsinore when she was hit by a silver Ford F150 pickup at 8:37 am. She was pronounced dead just 35 minutes later at the Inland Valley Medical Center.

A street view indicates what looks like a rough shoulder there.

As too often happens with fatal collisions in the Inland area, there’s just too little information in the story to give a clear idea what happened. However, a comment on the Lake Elsinore – Wildomar Patch site offered a second-hand report that the truck was traveling at a high rate of speed, trapping the bike underneath.

And yes, the witness says the victim was wearing a helmet; from the sound of it, it probably didn’t matter.

Depending on exactly where the collision occurred, the driver may have drifted off the roadway, or Ruano may have entered the traffic lane to avoid an obstacle on the shoulder. Or the driver may have hit her while turning onto Marvella.

This is the 42nd bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fourth in Riverside County; that compares to 29 and five, respectively, this time last year. Remarkably, it’s also the fifth cycling fatality in tiny Lake Elsinore, population 53,000, since 2010, and the second on Grand Avenue.

And if that doesn’t indicate a serious problem, I don’t know what does.

Meanwhile, bicycling fatalities are nearly 45% ahead of last year in the seven-county SoCal area just halfway into the year. And this comes as we head into the 4th of July weekend, which is traditionally one of the most dangerous times of year for area bike riders; last year seven cyclists were killed within a week of Independence Day.

One death is one too many; 42 in just six months is an obscenity.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Lucia Ruano and her family. 

Thanks to Zak and Walter Lars for the heads-up.

Update: Call this one a homicide. 

According to the Press-Enterprise, CHP officers arrested the driver, 40-year old Lake Elsinore resident Jay Dustin Sorrell, an hour after the collision for investigation of drunken driving and gross vehicular manslaughter.

According to authorities, Sorrell allowed his truck to drift onto the right shoulder, where he hit Ruano’s bike at around 40 mph, killing her. 

Yes, he was too drunk to drive at 8:30 on a Sunday morning. 

And now an innocent woman is dead because of it.

Category: Bicycle Safety, Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , , ,

Update: Another month, another cycling fatality — bike rider killed in Lake Elsinore area

August 1, 2012 / / 3 comments

That didn’t take long.

After an exceptionally deadly month of July, in which 13 SoCal cyclists lost their lives, yet another rider was killed on the very first day of August.

According to the Southwest Riverside News Network, the victim was hit by a pickup at approximately 4:50 pm on Grand Avenue near the intersection with Blackwell Blvd in Lakeland Village.

The Lake-Elsinore-Wildomar Patch reports that witnesses saw the rider enter traffic quickly, leaving no time for the driver to respond before the collision.

A satellite view shows an uncontrolled intersection on Grand, with stops signs on Blackwell. However, there’s no indication whether either party may have entered from the side street, or who may have had the right-of-way.

A man who lived nearby heard the impact, but didn’t hear the sound of brakes prior to the collision. He ran out and called 911, then knelt down and put his hand on the victim’s chest, reportedly feeling a heartbeat but no breathing. Paramedics declared the man dead at the scene.

Patch reports the cause of the crash is under investigation; the victim has not been publicly identified.

A photo on the Patch site shows a badly mangled road bike with panniers and what appears to be a cooler on the back rack, suggesting he may have been riding home from work at the time of the collision.

This collision also occurred at the same intersection as another fatal bike collision in 2010.

This is the 43rd traffic-related bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the seventh in Riverside County.

My sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.

Update: The victim has been identified as 46-year old Harry Dettloff of Lake Elsinore. The NC Times says he was hit while crossing Grand Avenue just north of Baldwin, and puts the time of death as 5:08 pm.

Update 2: According to the Press-Enterprise, Dettloff was riding with traffic on the west shoulder of Grand Avenue when a Nissan Frontier truck driven by 60-year old Patrick Wattson of Wildomar struck him from behind at around 40 mph.

A CHP spokesman said the truck drifted off the road because Wattson was “momentarily inattentive.” The officer also notes that Dettloff wasn’t wearing a helmet, though it’s not clear how much benefit a helmet would have provided in a collision at that speed.

Now a man is dead because a driver couldn’t manage to pay attention while operating a two-ton truck.

But hey, it was just an accident, right?

Category: Bicycle Safety, Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , ,

Breaking News: Lake Elsinore cyclist killed Friday afternoon; 3rd SoCal bike death in three days

August 6, 2011 / / Comments Off on Breaking News: Lake Elsinore cyclist killed Friday afternoon; 3rd SoCal bike death in three days

According to a report from the North County Times, a 19-year old Wildomar man was struck and killed while riding his BMX bike early Friday afternoon.

The rider, who has not yet been publicly identified, was leaving his work just before 1 pm when he attempted to cross the road at 31784 Casino Drive, and reportedly rode into the path of an oncoming van. Responding officers found him lying on the side of the road with multiple injuries; he was transported to Valley Medical Center, where he was declared dead.

Police report the driver tried to avoid the collision and remained at the scene to cooperate with the investigation, and was released without charges.

This is the third fatal Southern California bike traffic collision in the last three days, and the second in Riverside County. It’s also the 46th confirmed traffic-related cycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the 9th in Riverside County.

Update: The rider has been identified as 19-year old Cody Wessel of Wildomar. Anyone with information about the crash is urged to call the Lake Elsinore Police at 951/245-3300.

Update 2: Cody Wessel is remembered as a recent grad of Elsinore High School and a member of Future Farmers of America; Wessel worked at Casino Hand Car Wash and planned to attend Mt. San Jacinto Community College. 

Category: General / Tags: , , ,

Cyclist killed in Lake Elsinore area — 2nd SoCal bike fatality this weekend, 6th in two weeks

October 3, 2010 / / 5 comments

Enough already.

For the 2nd time in two days, a cyclist was killed on the streets of Southern California. Worse yet, it was the 2nd death in the same area in just the last 10 days.

According to the Southwest Riverside News Network, Mark Westwood, a 52-year old Wildomar resident, collided with a full-size sedan on Grand Avenue 15 feet south of Blackwell Blvd in Lake Elsinore about 7:50 pm Saturday; he was pronounced dead at Inland Valley Medical Center less than five hours later.

Police suspect the driver may have been drunk at the time of the collision; no other information is available as of 9 pm Sunday.

Westwood’s death comes less than two weeks after Lake Elsinore resident Peter Anthony Zupan was killed in Wildomar, just miles from the scene of Saturday’s wreck.

It was also just 18 hours after a 17-year old bicyclist was killed while riding on Laurel Canyon Blvd in Pacoima; the victim still has not been publicly identified. Dj Wheels reports that the driver, 26-year old Shawn Fields, was released on $100,000 bail after being arrested on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter while driving under the influence of alcohol; his next court appearance is scheduled for 8:30 am on October 27 in Department S of the San Fernando Courthouse.

And it marks the 6th cycling death in Southern California in the last two weeks, including the deaths of Susan Eiko Akana in Carlsbad, Eldon Johansen in Redondo Beach and an unidentified rider in Agoura Hills.

My condolences to the family, friends and love ones of all the riders.

God I hate weeks like this.

Category: General / Tags: , , , ,
 
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