Some terrible news from Yuma
R.K. from Yuma just sent me this awful news from the The Yuma Sun about Doug Flynn, president of the Yuma Bike Club:
A 37-year-old Yuma man was killed Thursday morning when his bicycle was struck by a vehicle while he was riding with a group of other cyclists in Somerton.
Somerton police have identified the cyclist as Doug Flynn, who was the current president of the Yuma Bike Club. He was employed by the Yuma Sun since 2002 as its creative services manager. His wife had just given birth to the couple’s third child last month.
Flynn was an avid cyclist. In addition to organizing Yuma’s premier biking event, the North End Classic, he worked with the city of Yuma to get more bike lanes built in the city.
“Yuma could become a city that is great – and safe – for bicycling,” Flynn was quoted as saying in a January 2007 article that appeared in The Sun.
On his Facebook page is the following entry, a quote from Bill Nye, “Bicycling is the future. It has to be. There’s something wrong with a society that drives a car to workout in the gym.”
According to Officer Ed Quintero of the Somerton Police Department, the accident happened at about 6:41 a.m. in the 300 block of East Madison Street as the cyclists were riding through town.
Quintero said a preliminary investigation shows that the vehicle that struck Flynn was traveling eastbound on Madison Street and the cyclists were riding in a long single-file line on the opposite side of street, heading west.
He said the vehicle, driven by a 25-year-old Somerton woman, tried to pass a tractor pulling a farm implement in a legal passing zone.
During that passing attempt, Quintero said, her car struck Flynn and another cyclist. Two other cyclists were riding ahead of Flynn at the time.
As always, our condolences to Doug’s friends and family.
–Erik Ryberg
September 24th, 2009 at 5:25 pm
Another terrible loss! Makes me cringe. Doug sounds like a wonderful person. My condolences to his family…so horrible!
Erik- this tragedy brings up something I have wondered about before and meant to ask you. If a cyclist is riding in the shoulder and a car heading towards the cyclist from the opposite direction is attempting to pass a vehicle in the opposite lane, is it against the law for them to do so? The situation has happened to me on several occasions, and I assume that the driver is probably breaking the law because it is absolutely terrifying having a car moving the opposite direction come so close. Because there is a road shoulder, the driver is able to pull off the maneuver without hitting me head-on. But if no shoulder exists then you find yourself in just about the worst position you could be in on a bike- a car is accelerating towards you head-on in your lane.
It seems to me that drivers have an obligation to make certain that there are no vehicles or bicycles in the lane or shoulder heading towards them before they attempt to pass in that lane. What does the law say?
September 24th, 2009 at 5:36 pm
You most certainly do not have the right of way heading into a lane which is an opposite direction of traffic than what you are traveling. 3-foot rule aside, I’m pretty sure when you hit something head on while passing on the left you’re at fault.
September 24th, 2009 at 11:15 pm
Another fine person is cut down far to early in life. My deepest sympathy , thoughts and prayers to Doug’s family. “LAR”, The statute is located in Arizona Revised Statutes, 28-725. Before any driver can pass a vehicle on the left it requires the passing vehicle to have “clear visibility” of the on coming traffic lane and it must be free of on coming traffic before a driver can legally cross the center line. Then the passing vehicle must return to his/her lane 100 feet from any approaching vehicle. So tragic, and as in most cases , the bike rider is the innocent victim, now his family too is victimized. I couldn’t sleep, so here I am, I don’t wish to leave my family to early in life. So I ponder, is bike riding worth it? I would be very interested in your thoughts. I can only think of Doug’s family and what they must be going through now. I know there is no guaranty in life, death comes to us all at some point , but biking seems to rush the process. I can’t imagine the pain my family would experience, should I be the next Ghost bike. I really am interested in what you think. I can’t be the only bike rider who has had this dilemma. Thank you
September 24th, 2009 at 11:35 pm
[...] maintenance facility is bike racks. Long Beach’s cycling expats offer a report from the road. An Arizona cyclist was killed riding with a group of other cyclists; he leaves behind a wife and three children, including a [...]
September 25th, 2009 at 12:56 am
I am the widow’s cousin as well as a cyclist from the State of Washington. So sad the man is gone after a short-lived life.
Take care, Mary and kids. Hang in there and keep Douglas’/Daddy’s memory alive.
September 25th, 2009 at 4:56 am
I went to high school with Doug Flynn and he was a wonderful person. He will be sadly missed by all. My prayers and love go out to his wife and family. May God bless them in this hard time. This is going to be very hard for his family since this is the second son that they have lost tragically and young in life. God Bless you all.
September 25th, 2009 at 8:41 am
Yes, it sounds as though the driver was extremely negligent and did not check the visibility in the other lane before attempting the pass. How do you miss a group of cyclists heading towards you wearing colorful jerseys?
My question pertains to a slightly different scenario than what occurred in Doug’s case. I am wondering if this kind of pass is legal if the cyclists are in the shoulder of the road and not riding in the actual lane. It seems that in Doug’s case there was no shoulder at all and the driver did not carefully check to see that no one was in the lane before making the pass.
Don, the more people start ditching their gridlocked commutes for a bike ride to work, the more aware everyone will be of cyclists out on the roads. I’ve ridden a bike in a lot of different cities in the country, and you can often feel the difference in driver awareness in cities where cycling is a very popular form of transportation. Believe it or not, there are some places in the world where cycling is not looked down upon. I think part of what Erik is trying to work towards is getting law enforcement to stop treating cyclists like second class citizens undeserving of the same rights as motorists.
September 25th, 2009 at 9:27 am
It’s a difficult concept for us to
comprehend as cyclists, but drivers
see us…it just doesn’t register
that we are traffic or are legitimate
in our use of the lane. We are not
big in a culture where size matters.
The “I didn’t see them” response has
become an accepted lie, IMHO.
Glenda Rumsey, killer of Jose Rincon, Jr.
should be pondering a similar delemma in
prison for the next several years…is
driving worth it? Putting our own emotional
and self-centered desires ahead of social
obligations is the big question.
I have cycling friends who have altered
their routes away from heavily traffic-ed
streets in an effort to shift the odds in
their favor a little. Cycling is safe. For
every Doug and Jose, there are many hundreds
of riders who have put it thousands of miles
without major mishap. Those are good odds.
September 25th, 2009 at 4:57 pm
LAR, to help answer your question, the shoulder is part of the roadway and is protected as part of the lane. I agree with you as to other cities and the bike culture. I am 62, I have ridden for more that 30 years now, and I find Tucson to be a very dangerous place for bikes. I ride mostly in the county, north toward Oracle. I have found the Oro Valley police and Pima County sheriff very helpful and friendly. The Tucson Police are a different animal. I try to avoid the city as much as I can. I also agree, maybe more bike riders seen on the streets will bring us a little more respect. Coghauler, you make a good point, thank you. But in Rumsey’s case she was DUI. I have no patience for those who drive DUI, there is no excuse for what she did. Right now cell phones are our worst enemy and the most often used excuse for not seeing something. It’s because they are texting. Right now my emotion and “self-centered” thoughts are toward living, and I still wonder if biking pushes the envelope. Is it fun anymore when I have to dodge motorists that do not see me, respect my rights or care less about what part of the road I use. I too have put thousands of miles on my bikes over the years. I have been hit twice, my two sons have been hit once each. I’m lucky to be alive after being hit by a motorist making a left turn into me. three surgeries an artificial left knee and a year of rehab , I still ride almost every day. BUT, I wonder anymore, is it worth it?
September 27th, 2009 at 12:50 pm
Fund set up for bicyclist
He leaves behind his wife, Mary, and three children, including a newborn son.
Those who would like to donate funds to the family can do so by visiting http://dougflynndonation.appspot.com/ and use a credit card.
http://www.yumasun.com/news/yuma-53076-vehicle-bicyclist.html
Another related article in the Yuma Sun today:
Tragedy highlights bicycle safety
http://www.yumasun.com/news/bicycle-53075-related-safety.html
September 30th, 2009 at 6:52 pm
Thanks for letting us know Ron…. Now come on guys , we can do better. Only $1,700 has been donated as of 9/30. Although it is wonderful to give, and $1,700 is a nice gift, we can do better. God bless the Flynn family.
October 21st, 2009 at 5:51 am
As a member of Doug’s club I am saddened and concerned. I also manage the youth team and we train daily on this same roadway. So my question is if the driver pulled off an illegal manuever why was she not cited by the police? I cannot help but wonder if she had hit a car doing this she would have been at least cited. In this case she was deemed not at fault.
October 21st, 2009 at 5:54 am
We will be holding the first Carrera de San Luis and will be presenting the Doug Flynn award to honor his memory. Information and registration is available online at http://www.yumabikeclub.com
November 29th, 2009 at 12:46 pm
No charges filed yet in cyclist’s death
November 26, 2009 9:45 PM
http://www.yumasun.com/news/yuma-54486-case-attorney.html
_________________________
“The case involving a woman whose car allegedly struck and killed a 37-year-old Yuma man two months ago has been referred back to the Somerton Police Department.
Once the county attorney’s office receives the lab report, it will review the case again and determine whether to file any charges.”
_________________________
December 15th, 2009 at 2:44 pm
The driver was extremely negligent and did not check the visibility because there was none. She was staring directly into the rising sun. If Doug had been in a vehicle both drivers would’ve been killed which was evident by the fact that there were no skid marks implying she attempted to brake. It’s time cylcists be treated/respected as if we were motorists when involved in accidents.