Tag Archive for Riverside County

33-year old man riding bicycle killed by Riverside sheriff’s deputy in Palm Desert; 6th SoCal bike rider killed in past week

October 10, 2023 / / One comment

It just keeps coming.

For the sixth time in just seven days, someone has been killed riding a bicycle on the mean streets of Southern California.

And this time, the killer was an on-duty Riverside County Sheriff’s deputy in a marked patrol car.

Multiple sources are reporting that the victim, identified as 33-year old Palm Desert resident Christopher Thomas, was struck by the deputy around 3:40 am near the intersection of Country Club and Eldorado drives in Palm Desert.

Thomas died at the scene just seven minutes later, despite the efforts of deputies to revive him.

The deputy was not responding to a call, or using red lights and siren. The investigation has been taking over by the CHP.

Unfortunately, that’s all we know at this time.

Let’s just hope it’s not another case of a deputy distracted by his onboard computer.

This is at least the 41st bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the eighth that I’m aware of in Riverside County.

It’s also the second person killed riding a bike in the county in the past week.

My deepest prayers and sympathy for Christopher Thomas and his loved ones.

Thanks to Jeffrey Rusk for the heads-up.

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

58-year old man killed in early morning Mecca hit-and-run; at least 14th bike rider killed in SoCal hit-and-run this year

October 7, 2023 / / 2 comments

Another day, another person riding a bicycle killed in a SoCal hit-and-run.

According to Palm Springs’ KESQ-3, a man was found lying in the street after being struck by a driver while riding on 66th Ave, just east of SR-86 in Mecca, sometime around 1:30 am Saturday.

The victim, described only as a 58-year old homeless man, died at the scene.

There’s no description of the driver or suspect vehicle at this time.

This is at least the 37th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the seventh that I’m aware of in Riverside County.

Gurrola was also at least the 14th person killed in a hit-and-run while riding a bicycle in Southern California since the first of the year.

My deepest prayers and sympathy for Jacinto Ayala Gurrola and his loved ones. 

 

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

Three-year old Odalys Navarro killed by hit-and-run dirt bike rider in Mead Valley; 17 year old boy arrested

September 9, 2023 / / One comment

Some things are just too sad to process.

Like the needless death of a toddler as she rides a bike next to her mother.

And the arrest of a teenaged boy for the hit-and-run that took her life.

The Los Angeles Times reports that three-year old Odalys Navarro died Monday, four days after she was run down from behind by someone on a dirt bike as she rode her bicycle in the rural Riverside County community of Mead Valley.

Her mother, who is five months pregnant, was also seriously injured in the August 31st crash.

The CHP places that crash near the intersection of Steele Peak Drive and Palm Street shortly after 7:30 pm, as they were coming home from the park on the dirt sidewalk.

The motorcycle rider fled the scene.

This is how Rubi Navarro, the victim’s mother, described the crash on a crowdfunding page.

It was a Thursday afternoon 8/31 that was supposed to be filled with joy and laughter, tragedy struck. A hit-and-run incident involving a motorcycle left my child and myself lying on the ground, fighting for our lives. It is difficult to put into words the pain and anguish my family has endured since that fateful day.

My little girl, who was only 3 years old going on to 4 in about a month and I were walking home from the park when the motorcycle came out of nowhere. The impact was severe, leaving both of us with life-threatening injuries. The reckless driver, without a shred of humanity, callously fled the scene, leaving my family shattered and broken.

CHP investigators later found the suspect and his dirt bike, and booked the 17-year old boy on charges of vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run causing fatal injuries.

His name was withheld because he’s a juvenile. Which means that, unless he’s charged as an adult, he can only be held until he turns 21, even if he’s convicted.

The crowdfunding campaign to pay Odalys Navarro’s funeral costs, and her and her mother’s medical expenses, has raised a little more than $5,000 of the $25,000 goal.

Anyone with information is urged to contact the CHP’s Riverside investigators at 951/637-8000.

This is at least the 34th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and sixth that I’m aware of in Riverside County.

There’s nothing sadder than a ghost bike for a child.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Odalys Navarro and all her family.

Thanks to Megan Lynch for the heads-up. 

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

Bicyclist killed in early morning Moreno Valley crash; few details available

August 8, 2023 / / Comments Off on Bicyclist killed in early morning Moreno Valley crash; few details available

Once again, a bike rider has been killed in Riverside County.

And once again, we know next to nothing.

According to My News LA, someone riding a bicycle was struck by a driver on eastbound Alessandro Boulevard at Graham Street in Moreno Valley around 5:20 am Tuesday.

The victim, who has not been publicly identified, was taken to nearby Riverside University Medical Center suffering from severe injuries, and died shortly later.

The driver of a Kia Optima remained at the scene and cooperated with investigators.

Unfortunately, that’s all we know at this time.

A street view shows a painted bike lane on Alessandro, running between the two through lanes and a right turn bay. However, we have no way of knowing at this time if that may have contributed to the crash in any way.

Anyone with information is urged to call the Riverside County Sheriff’s Moreno Valley station at 951/486-6700.

This is at least the 31st bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fifth that I’m aware of in Riverside County.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and their loved ones.

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , ,

42-year old Lake Elsinore man killed while riding bike in Canyon Lake collision Saturday night

June 12, 2023 / / Comments Off on 42-year old Lake Elsinore man killed while riding bike in Canyon Lake collision Saturday night

Evidently, this past weekend wasn’t as safe as it seemed.

News broke earlier Monday that a man was killed riding a bike in Riverside County’s Canyon Lake Saturday night.

According to NBC Palm Springs, the victim was riding at Railroad Canyon Road and Canyon Lake Drive when he was struck by a motorist around 9:50 pm.

The victim was later identified as 42-year old Lake Elsinore resident Kennan Ruiz.

A street view shows a painted bike lane in both directions on Railroad Canyon, but nothing on Canyon Lake Drive.

Unfortunately, that’s all we know at this time. There’s no word on how or why the crash happened, or whether the driver was held accountable in any way.

Anyone with information is urged to call Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputy Petersen at 951/245-3000.

This follows news that a Reseda father is on life support after he was struck by a driver while riding his bike to work Thursday morning.

This is at least the 18th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fourth that I’m aware of in Riverside County.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Kennan Ruiz and all his loved ones. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , ,

53-year old San Diego father Paul Fox died from heatstroke suffered while mountain biking south of Palm Springs

May 16, 2023 / / 2 comments

Sad news from Palm Springs, where a San Diego father died from heatstroke earlier this month after mountain biking outside the city.

According to San Diego’s 10 News, Paul Fox, a 53-year old father of three from the city’s Del Cero neighborhood, met a friend at the Palm Canyon Epic Trail south of Palm Springs in late April for what was planned as a three-hour ride.

However, despite GPS, they took a wrong turn somewhere along the trail, and ran out of water as three hours turned into six in temperatures up to 105°F.

Fox reportedly stopped suddenly and stepped off his bike acting dazed and confused, before collapsing and rolling down a hill.

He died in the hospital May 9th from complications due to heatstroke.

Fox, who a friend described as kind, funny and brilliant, worked as a computer network security specialist, including a four-year stint at the White House in the mid-2000s.

He was a lifelong mountain biker.

A crowdfunding campaign to benefit his family has raised a little more than $9,300 of the whopping $1 million goal.

This is at least the 17th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the fourth that I’m aware of in Riverside County.

And a reminder to always carry more water than you think you’ll need.

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

73-year old Murrieta man killed when he crashed his bike into stopped SUV

April 26, 2023 / / Comments Off on 73-year old Murrieta man killed when he crashed his bike into stopped SUV

An elderly Murrieta man is dead, apparently because a driver may have neglected to put her flashers on.

NBC Palm Springs reports the victim was riding his bike north on Whitewood Road, just north of Poinsettia Street, around 7:50 pm Sunday evening when a woman driving an SUV pulled over to the side of the road to check on her child in the backseat.

The man, identified as 73-year old Marietta resident Josef Pinter, slammed into the back of the stopped SUV. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to the local police, it wasn’t clear if the driver’s brake lights were on or if she had turned on her flashers, and Pinter may not have seen her stopped in front of him.

There’s also no word on whether she even had her lights on in the growing evening darkness, or if Pinter had a light on his bike that could have illuminated the vehicle.

Anyone with information is urged to call Murrieta Police Investigator Kurt Stickelman at 951/461-6306, or email kstickelman@murrietaca.gov, or contact Sgt. Steve Whiddon at 951/461-6323, swhiddon@murrietaca.gov.

This is at least the 14th bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the third that I’m aware of in Riverside County.

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , ,

Update: Man killed riding bike Monday in early morning Palm Springs collision

March 14, 2023 / / 5 comments

A man was killed riding his bike in Palm Springs early Monday morning.

And nearly 20 hours later, we still don’t know any more than we did before.

According to multiple reports, the victim was struck by a motorist around 4:45 am at Ramon Road and Compadre Road. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died.

There’s no information at this time about the victim, or how the crash occurred. Police are still unsure if either the driver or victim were under the influence.

Video from the scene shows heavy damage to the center of the hood and windshield, suggesting the victim was struck directly with some force.

The driver was arrested on unrelated charges. He was not publicly identified.

The Palm Springs Post reports the victim was the fifth person killed riding a bike in the city in five years.

Anyone with information is urged to call the Traffic Division of the Palm Springs Police Department at 760/323-8125.

This is at least the tenth bicycling fatality in Southern California this year, and the second that I’m aware of in Riverside County.

Update: The victim has been identified as 58-year old Palm Springs resident Nelson Esteban. 

Still no word on how the crash occurred, or why the driver was arrested. 

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Nelson Esteban and his loved ones.

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , ,

38-year Maria Estrada killed riding a bike in unincorporated Nuevo Thursday night, first SoCal bike death this year

January 13, 2023 / / Comments Off on 38-year Maria Estrada killed riding a bike in unincorporated Nuevo Thursday night, first SoCal bike death this year

It took less than two weeks for the year’s first person to lose their life riding a bicycle on the mean streets of Southern California.

My News LA is reporting that a woman riding a bike was killed in unincorporated Nuevo Thursday night.

Although how or why seems to be unclear at this time.

Thirty-eight-year old Perris resident Maria Estrada was riding with another person when she was apparently run down by a motorist around 7 pm last night.

The crash occurred on the 30700 block of Montgomery Avenue, just north of Nuevo Road. A street view shows a two lane rural roadway forking off from Nuevo Road, with a narrow paved shoulder on either side.

Unfortunately, that’s all we know at this time.

There’s no word on the driver, or barely even a mention that the vehicle that hit her had one. There’s also no word on the other bike rider.

Anyone with information is urged to call the CHP’s Riverside office at 951/637-8000.

This is the first bicycling fatality I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the first in Riverside County.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Maria Estrada and all her loved ones. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , ,

Bad year for SoCal bike deaths, urban roads get deadlier, and Transportation Comm’s new vice chair is one of us

January 5, 2023 / / 2 comments

Last year was another terrible, horrible, no good, very bad year for SoCal bike riders.

But at least it was better than the year before.

Maybe.

According to our latest count, at least 82* people lost their lives while riding a bicycle in the seven county Southern California region last year, just two less than the previous year.

Although that figure is likely an undercount; I’ve heard of a half dozen or more deaths this year that I wasn’t able to officially confirm, but which undoubtedly happened.

It’s also the same number of SoCal bicycling deaths reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for 2019, the last year before the pandemic, when 81 SoCal riders also lost their lives.

The total for last year reflects the 26 bike riders I counted killed in Los Angeles County last year, which again is likely a dramatic undercount.

A total of 35 bike riders lost their lives in LA County in 2021, which was over twice the total of 17 that I had counted; I also counted 15 in 2020, compared to 27 reported by the NHTSA.

Which suggests that the local media is failing to report a number of bicycling deaths in the Los Angeles area, for whatever reason.

I also counted 14 bicycling deaths in the City of Los Angeles last year, which is in line with verified totals of 18 and 15 in 2021 and 2020.

Further afield, San Diego County suffered 12 deaths last year, which was a significant improvement over 17 in the previous year, though much higher than the 7 and 8 people killed riding bikes in the county in 2020 and 2019, respectively.

Meanwhile, Orange County appeared to have their worst year in recent memory, with 17 people killed* riding bikes last year, compared to just 7 in 2021, 15 in 2020, and 13 in 2019.

Although it is important to note that only the totals for 2020 and 2019 have been verified by the NHTSA; 2021 data isn’t currently available through their website.

Riverside and San Bernardino Counties also showed increases last year, with 11 bicycling deaths in Riverside County, and 10 in San Bernardino County. Ventura County suffered 4 deaths — half the previous year’s total — while Imperial County recorded none for the third year in a row.

Here’s a quick recap of bicycling deaths for each of the seven counties.

Los Angeles County

  • 2022 – 26
  • 2021 – 35
  • 2020 – 27
  • 2019 – 38

Orange County

  • 2022 – 17
  • 2021 – 7
  • 2020 – 14
  • 2019 – 13

San Diego County

  • 2022 – 12
  • 2021 – 17
  • 2020 – 7
  • 2019 – 8

Riverside County

  • 2022 – 11
  • 2021 – 9
  • 2020 – 8
  • 2019 – 5

San Bernardino County

  • 2022 – 10
  • 2021 – 7
  • 2020 – 6
  • 2019 – 7

Imperial County

  • 2022 – 0
  • 2021 – 0
  • 2020 – 0
  • 2019 – 6

Ventura County

  • 2022 – 4
  • 2021 – 8
  • 2020 – 4
  • 2019 – 4

Source: 2021-2022 BikinginLA, except 2021 LA County data from Los Angeles Times; 2019-2020 NHTSA FARS data

While compiling records of this sort is necessary to bring about desperately needed changes to our streets, it also reduces human tragedy and loss to a statistic.

So if you want to see the people behind these numbers who we’ve so needlessly lost, start here and just keep scrolling.

Photo by Ted McDonald from Pixabay.

Correction: A comment from Dawn made it clear that I had miscategorized a story about her father’s August death in Irvine. 

*After correcting the error and adding it back into the totals for OC, that made 17 people killed riding their bikes in the county last year, and 82 in Southern California, instead of 16 and 81, respectively, as I had originally written.

My apologies for the mistake. 

………

On a related subject, rural areas are becoming safer, while urban environments are growing ever deadlier.

And the photo at the bottom of this thread goes a long way towards explaining why.

https://twitter.com/WarrenJWells/status/1610779366476353538

https://twitter.com/WarrenJWells/status/1610843949924777984

………

Promising news about the new LA City Council Transportation Committee members we mentioned yesterday, at least two of whom have taken bike tours with the new BikeLA (formerly the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition, or LACBC).

Meanwhile, new CD11 Councilmember and Committee Vice Chair Traci Park is one of us, as well.

Now if she just votes that way, we should be in good shape.

………

Transportation PAC Streets For All is hosting their next virtual happy hour next Wednesday, featuring my councilmember, CD4’s Nithya Raman.

………

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

A former contestant on the UK’s version of The Apprentice criticizes plans for traffic filters on Oxford streets, saying you won’t be able to drive more than 15 minutes in any direction — and somehow manages to get the whole thing wrong.

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

A British Columbia man faces charges for stealing a truck and using it to smash through a gate, then hoping on a bicycle to make his escape after the truck was disabled in the crash. Which raises a lot of questions, like whether the fact that he wasn’t charged with stealing the bike means he just happened to have it with him in case he needed to pedal away from the crime scene.

There’s a special place in hell for the Kiwi ebike rider who faces charges for repeatedly kicking a wheelchair-bound handcyclist in the head for no apparent reason, unless he was upset that she could go faster than he could on his ebike. Which is a ridiculous reason to do something so horrific.

………

Local 

Protected bike lanes are usually intended to improve safety, but Burbank residents wanted the new quarter-mile protected bike lane on Leland Way in order to halt graffiti and drag racing.

A travel magazine recommends touring West Hollywood by ebike, but apparently can’t distinguish between WeHo and nearby Beverly Hills.

 

State

No news is good news, right?

 

National

Even an automotive website questions whether the newest generation of electric SUVs are too big, too heavy and too fast. Depends on whether the goal is to get from here to there, or to send as many people as possible to the promised land.

Forbes looks at five trends this year that could impact the future of transportation. Although the modest state and local tax rebates for ebikes pale in comparison to the massive federal benefits for electric car buyers.

A writer for Adventure Journal geeks out over an 1880s ad for a Penny Farthing from Boston’s Columbia Bicycle Company. Then again, he’s not the only one geeking out, since I have a version of that ad on a t-shirt.

House Beautiful recommends the best bike storage racks for your home or apartment.

Singletracks considers the ethics of editing trails to preserve them or remove hazards.

Digital Journal addresses one of the burning questions of our time — how to take your dog with you when you ride your bike.

My friends at West Seattle Blog managed to scoop the local news media about hit-and-run and vehicular homicide charges against an alleged killer driver who fled the scene after running down a 63-year old man riding his ebike home from work.

An Arizona man has made a remarkable recovery following the crash in a Show Low, Arizona master’s race that killed one man and seriously injured several riders; 37-year old Shawn Michael Chock was quietly sentenced to 26-1/2 years behind bars for second-degree murder and felony aggravated assault.

Denver announced the return of the city’s highly popular ebike rebate program at the end of this month, although at a reduced level, with $300 vouchers for buyers or regular ebikes, and $500 for e-cargo bikes.

North Carolina’s Department of Transportation is giving away bike helmets to organizations to give away to people who need them.

St. Petersburg, Florida, is remaking a dangerous residential boulevard with barriers at four intersections, forcing motorists to turn while allowing pedestrians and bike riders to pass through, and effectively turning it into a bicycle boulevard, even if they don’t use the term.

A kindhearted Florida man spends his days refurbishing and assembling bicycles so children in need can get to school, and adults can ride to work.

 

International

Calgary bicycle advocates are calling for safer bike infrastructure, after reports of snow and ice clogging bikeways and creating a hazard for riders. Here in SoCal, our snow and ice comes in liquid form, but still creates hazards on days like this. So be careful out there. 

Bike Portland goes riding in London. Which I deeply regret I didn’t get a chance to do when my wife and I visited earlier this century.

British foldie maker Brompton will begin sourcing more parts from other countries, over fears that tensions between China and Taiwan could result in supply chain disruptions.

If you’re already wanted on an outstanding warrant for failure to appear, maybe illegally riding your bike on a pair of UK highways isn’t the best idea.

The newly crowned world darts champ credits a broken hip suffered in a bicycle crash when he was 15 year old with setting him on the path to pointed greatness.

The Guardian follows along as an Australian woman attempts to set a new record by riding 2,500 miles in 13 days.

No surprise here, as a new Aussie study shows the biggest barrier to biking is a fear of cars. Personally, I’m not afraid of cars. But the people driving them scare the shit out of me.

 

Competitive Cycling

Four time Tour de France champ Chris Froome will finally get a chance to go for five after his Israel Premier Tech team got one of two wildcard invitations to the race, with the other going to Norway’s Uno-X.

A ‘cross fan captures the chaos after Ryan Cortjens crashed at the Superprestige Diegem, and apparently forgot to get the hell out of the way.

 

Finally…

Now you, too, can build your very own DIY 6-passenger, throttle-controlled ebike. That feeling when no one wants to steal you bike, even if you want them to.

And who says you need two wheels to mountain bike?

………

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

Oh, and fuck Putin, too.

 

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