It was a fun two-hour day ride that went horribly wrong! A heads-up!
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- Опубліковано 12 січ 2024
- KRQE Investigative Report by Larry Barker:
www.krqe.com/news/larry-barke...
"MOUNTAINAIR, N.M. (KRQE) - There is a remote stretch of pavement along Highway 60 just outside Mountainair in Central New Mexico that’s quiet today. But back on a Fall day in September four years ago, Mile Marker 204 was ground zero for heartbreaking tragedy. That Saturday afternoon, all hell broke loose and lives were changed forever."
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"TAKE IT EASY ... TAKE A TRIKE!" - trike hobo
Steve's current recumbent trike is a 2021 HP Velotechnik Scorpion fs26 Enduro, outfitted with Schwalbe Marathon PLUS road tires instead of the stock knobby off-road tires. He has also owned a 2015 ICE Full Fat off-road trike, a 2014 Catrike 700 speed trike, and a 2007 ICE Qnt trike ... not to mention three bikes (Specialized Roll Elite - Motobecane Night Train fat tire - Easy Racers Gold Rush recumbent)
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Other websites by Steve:
trikeasylum.wordpress.com
silentpassage.wordpress.com/
trikegypsies.wordpress.com/
trikephantoms.wordpress.com/
mojavetraverse.wordpress.com/ - Спорт
My personal take-away from this regarding the cause is that the district judge had been using a small electronic communications device prior to her striking the two cyclists. This is based on what she is recorded saying, that "I did not see them, and then when I did see them, it was too late to miss them". Of course, this is circumstantial based on the KRQE reporting, but a driver who was attentively driving would notice the cyclists far sooner, being able to easily avoid striking them in plenty of time. Her admission that when she did see them, it was too late, certainly indicates to me that she most probably looked up from her electronic device at the last millisecond, thereby spelling tragedy. I wonder if that head-size breakage in the passenger's side windshield was caused by Billy's helmeted head.
I am a huge advocate for extreme visibility while cycling, but of course, there are rare instances when a driver is distracted to the point that people lose lives ... very sad. Cyclists will never receive the level of roadway design needed to avoid this type of incident because governments are focused on what the majority does, and since most drive huge metal vehicles that travel at high speeds, that is how roadways have always been designed, to accommodate the masses. Cyclists do not stand a chance! I have been fortunate so far to not be involved in a horror such as what occurred here in Mountainair, New Mexico, and this report further intensifies my focus on roadway safety when surrounded by automobiles.
steve
So many of these vehicle/bicycle accidents seem to always end up being a minor infraction to the vehicle driver. 😠 😡 😤
I had TWO friends who were struck by vehicles, both were obviously grossly negligent.
My one friend was riding his bicycle on a open straight road on a clear morning.
The driver of the vehicle was later found to have dozed off and veered over on to the shoulder of the road.
Striking my friend from behind, much like this accident.
My friend was a young man in his early 30's and in great shape.
None of that mattered being struck by a vehicle traveling the speed limit on a open highway.
My friend died at the scene.
The driver got charged with vehicular manslaughter and was fined minimally for taking the life of my friend riding his bicycle on the side of the road with a small shoulder.
My other friend was riding his motorcycle along with myself on a open road at night.
A young female motorists traveling in the opposite direction decided to unsafely pass the vehicle in front of her. She was in our single lane when she struck my friend and almost in a head on collision side wiped him.
Sending him and his motorcycle flying in the air.
He suffered life changing injuries and she received minimal penalties for her grossly ignorant driving actions.
Both of my friends were well within their rights to being on the road.
Both vehicle driver's were blatantly at fault, yet received basically a slap on the hand for their actions.
One friend dead, and the other permanently physically altered for the rest of his life.
No matter if they both survived and received millions upon millions of dollars.
It takes YEARS to battle it out in court and all that heavy burden of time that is taken away from the victims.
Its a NO WIN either way 😢 for the innocent victims.
These two incidents were before Smartphones too!
Factor in this current Smartphone area that we live in where driver's of all ages are distracted by looking on their Smartphone's.
What's the solution!???
Whether you're on a rural road with little to no traffic or a highly congested road doesn't matter.
Also!... Factor in that there is a Highly biased opinion AGAINST cyclists in a lot of these cases by the courts and lawyers who try these cases.
Somehow these vehicle drivers end up receiving a slap on the hand compared to the cyclists who end up permanently injured or dead from the often negligent driver's.
Why!??? Because America deems vehicles much more important than cyclists.
Even though cyclists have the Right of Way on the roads.
In courts, that never seems to be the case. 😠 😡 😤!
Even with a huge settlement, which seems to be highly unlikely in most of these cases.
Your life is never the same!
What's the solution?
Unless you choose to stay off the road completely, I really don't think there is a fool proof solution.
Even if you wear bright colored clothing and bright colored flags, multiple bright flashing taillights and flashing headlight.
Which helps greatly vs not wearing and having those things.
Driver's have always been careless and distracted (especially with the Smartphone nowadays) in their driving habits.
Good video Trike Hobo Steve!
Its a good reminder for all of us to get a serious reminder when either driving or cycling to be EXTRA CAREFUL out on the road.
FWIW: For rider's safety, rear radar is vastly superior to using a rear camera.
Tried rear camera here. Rider must pay vastly more attention to rear, IF, camera is used.
Rear radar lets rider know WHEN to be visually aware using rider's rearview mirror.
Rear radar can signal closing distance gap of vehicle coming closer to rear of rider's bicycle.
Texting and Driving..? her phone records need to be subpoenaed then checked against the date/time stamp on the video of the rider's camera.. in oregon, this is equivalent to drinking and driving.. Was she texting while driving? is so, that is a felony that resulted in manslaughter.. in oregon, (first offense) is a mandatory 1 year in jail.. Always film every ride and keep the original MicroSD card as evidence.. Juries do not like cyclist and without the card, you have no case in court.
that is why iam extra carefull when riding . plenty of lites and flag signalingand rear view mirow and still pay attention watch your back .especialy on state rds . this story is very sad she was not paying attetion .problably on her phone . drunks .druggies .meds . sleepie .speeders in a rush . no enought cops to police the roads . their are lucky in a way most cases drivers just keep going and fix their cars and get away . that she called in the crash for fear of wittness becouse of her job . that is why when spot and inpared driver i called .it may save a life even my own . i ve see the white bikes with flowers on the side of the road meanig a biker got killed there .
I believe that her position as a district court judge influenced the outcome because from the evidence it seems to me that she was using an electronic device, which is the reason she did not see the cyclists until the final millisecond, too late to swerve away. The report said the authorities cited lack of solid evidence as the reason they did not pursue it further. I think that a normal citizen would have experienced a different outcome with the law.
steve
I watch a lot of UA-cam videos and see a lot of cyclists BLOWING STOP SIGNS. We are at fault as much as the vehicles by not following the rules of the road. I remember being a kid ( I'm 73 years old ) was taught to ride against the traffic so you can see the idiot drivers. At least that way you can see what coming your way. Even hiking back in the 50s I was taught to walk against traffic. Boy Scouts taught that.
Do you have an email to contact you about a job position? I am also very interested in e trikes and covers.
Hello Mike,
I assume you are asking about this with regards to the KRQE station, so here is their contact information to get started:
KRQE News 13, Albuquerque, New Mexico
(505) 243-2285
13 Broadcast Pl SW
Albuquerque, NM 87104
newsdesk@krqe.com
I hope that helps Mike! As for me, I have no employees, and am just a single human powered recumbent trike enthusiast who enjoys sharing things with others.
steve
@@EZSteve Hey thanks! I am looking for anyone I can talk to as I am looking for a job and I am also interested in these vehicles. They aren't very common near me or if they are there aren't many brands to look at and choose from. If you need a consultant, I would definitely be interested. Maybe we can get these kinds of vehicles to an area near me.
Why do these women always feel they need these big heavy stupid inefficient SUVs & trucks as personal transport? Is it that they want to be capable of inflicting greater damage when they crash? I'm certain that with a sedan or smaller vehicle @ same speed of 72 km/h, those guys would/may have both survived
I didn't catch the traveling speed of her SUV, but any vehicle traveling at a average speed on the highway vs a cyclists is going to cause great damage if not death.
The impact and speed is no match for a bicyclist.
I had a friend who was riding his bicycle and was hit be a automobile in a very similar situation as this accident.
He flew a good distance and died at the scene.
It's a subjective summation to conclude that IF the traveling vehicle was smaller, that the one bicyclist would have survived.
Point of contact, traveling speed, angle of contact, and even age of the victim all play a part in the individual's chances of survival.
Meaning it's a very subjective situation with many variables.
A pedestrian hit by a passenger car is likely to fly over the car and suffer serious injuries. A van or SUV will hit with blunt force before driving over the person. That wasn't a factor in this case, but pedestrian deaths are on the rise. That's partly because of the popularity of vans and SUVs. Cell phone use is another factor.