Bike Hugger 

wow… the deceased is my baby sisters’ age, and I grew up in Brownsville (and a very long time ago rode along this very road in a previous incarnation of this race). I don’t see an Alejandro Alvarez in any of my HS yearbooks, but there were two other public high schools in Brownsville in the 80s, he could have gone to one of them.

Brownsville and Matamoros only ever get in the news when someone dies horribly, be it in a building collapse (la Tienda Amigo) or a Spring Breaker gets kidnapped and “sacrificed” by a satanic drug cult at Rancho Santa Elena (Mark Kilroy).

People wonder how I can deal with Boston’s crazy drivers so calmly? Look at what I grew up with.

One of the great facets of bike culture is a general aversion to the politics of fear. We all honor these people and their families in light of this horrible tragedy. At the same time, this and other horrific accidents receive press because they are sensational. Bicycling adds years to your life, though it may be hard to remember this fact when we are faced with these images. Bikehugger is a great site and I hope that in the future they can find ways to honor the fallen without spreading fear.

Good points Eric and I fretted about posting it to avoid sensationalism, but readers sent it to me and when I noted other’s had posted, I went ahead and added it with my commentary. I reduced the image size as an editorial choice.

If you reminder how awful we felt here after [dissing AlleyCat races](http://bikehugger.com/2008/02/the_hip_and_the_dead.htm) to then the next day have someone die in one, I hope it’s understood that we’re not posting images like this for traffic or fear.

It’s a new story and I thought better for the bike community to voice their opinion than for it to play like Nascar crash on TV.

DL,

Any chance of changing the ‘how dangerous bicycling is’ to ‘how precious life is’ or something similar? I’m mostly kidding—but I’m troubled by the widespread notion in the US that cycling is dangerous and is thus an unsuitable transportation option for all but the most foolhardy extremists. This accident is a horrible anomaly that tends to represent biking to the general public—especially when framed this way by a well-read and considerate bike blog. In reality, cycling is a comparably safe mode of transport and is only getting safer as uptake increases. That’s the kind of info I’d love to see as an asterisk to a horrific image in effort to balance. Thanks for your consideration.

Erik

It won’t stop me from biking any more than all the obsessive coverage of plane crashes will stop me from flying.

That being said it is one of the most frightening “what if” images I have ever seen, probably because it is the “moment of impact” rather than the usual “aftermath” photos.

A shiver ran down my spine when I first saw it. All I can say is it is incredible only one person died.

CARS are dangerous.

Reading this article in the paper totally blew my mind, and the picture of the bikers literally in the air made it even more mind boggling. You hate to hear of tragedy, but you almost cannot turn away from looking. The picture that captured the actual incident was astonishing. I live in Brownsville and travel to Matamoros every now and then for dinner. However, I am always on foot, I never drive because of the stories that I have heard, and now even more reason to walk or not go at all. The intoxicated driver must have taken more than cocaine. In order to smash into a group of bikers without the knowledge of seeing them right in front of you makes no sense to me. Well, if the driver was taken to a Mexican prision, believe me, he will not have it easy, he might not ever get out. Well, at least that is the rumor.

Neither cars nor cycling are as dangerous as the cavalier attitude our society has toward highway safety. I am perpetually mystified at how we shrug our collective shoulders at 42,000 deaths per year—why this is not viewed as a public health crisis is beyond the scope of my understanding.

100% agree Erik, the phrase “how dangerous bicycling is” seems excessive and does not convey how unusual this incident is.

I do see your points on the phrasing, but stick by the term, as it’s being vetted here in the comments and discussed. Assured of our skills, effective cyclists, and knowing how to ride in traffic or a pack, we often don’t realize that riding on a city street with cars can frighten would be cyclists.

I was talking about this with another cyclist, who quipped, “a bike has never killed someone in a car.” Yes the photo and tragedy shows a race, but crashes and deaths occur with commuters or when training or a group ride.

Two days ago, we got brushed on Lake WA BLVD—that’s a road where bikes have the right-of-way—twice. First one was a general car-hates-bike brushing; second one was an attempt to take me out.

By stating cycling is dangerous, that doesn’t mean I’m saying, “stay away *fraidy cat, wussy commuter in your plain clothes*.” I’m owning it and talking about it. I did the same with my love tapping cars post. Admittedly, not a good thing to do, but hey I’ve lost my cool; presumably the commenters that criticized me have NEVER got mad at a car.

Joe Matava memorial (killed in training), a year ago a women was killed riding to work,  another two were killed in traffic, another local cyclist killed abroad a few years ago; the list goes on and what the Ride of Silence memorializes.

It’s our task and Bike Huggers to help educate, inform, and advise. A very contextual example for me is when new riders come into the sport and don’t realize we ride in a pack not only to benefit from drafting but for safety (like a herd). They’re on the left, the right, three abreast and wham a car comes by in the opposite lane, they’re near the center line—f’ing idiots? No, they just don’t know any better.

With respect to the community, I appreciate the comments and discussion and I’ll bubble this up to a post and let’s continue.