Eugene Bicyclist Jan Higdon Killed by Unyeilding Log Truck

It doesn't serve cyclists to tell only half the story. To the best of my knowledge, Jan was maneuvering around another cyclist who had fallen in front of her. The way this post reads, it sounds like the cyclists were just riding along and one got run into by the logging truck.

That being said, there is NEVER an excuse to pass that close and fast. This is an excellent example of why cyclists should be passed at a distance equal to the distance between the bottom of the bike tires to the top of the cyclists head. Cyclists often have to go around obstructions in the road: potholes, broken glass, fallen branches, suddenly-opened car doors, cyclists who crash in front of them (not that this happens much!), and a person on a bike is not nearly as stable as a four-wheeled vehicle, so tipping is a concern.

Some states / localities have a 3-foot passing rule (not that I think this is always enough room), it would be a great idea I think of Oregon had one. There is a discussion now about this crash and road safety at bikeportland.org:
 http://bikeportland.org/2006/06/01/fatalities-responsibility-and-safe-bikeways/

"roadway with no shoulder was not designed to hold both vehicle and bictcle traffic, according the Eugene Register-Guard report."

YEAH stupid bicyclists. They shouldn't have been there! gee if you wern't in my way maybe I wouldn't have killed you. I own the planet. I am greed. I own you. I own the road. I own your money. I own your house. I own your time. I am capatilism.

blame the victim. good . great

I'm so angry right now

I was one of the four cyclists on the ride. Jane was riding behind me. When I decelerated rapidly to avoid running over the rider sliding down the road in front of me, she most likely made no conscious choices, but was simply forced to fall. Tragically to the left instead of the right.

The Oregon State Police original news release on May 31, 2006 and the June 1, 2006 Eugene Register Guard newspaper story from the morning after both include a totally erroneous set of statements about the incident. Most of the original news stories, including the AP release were crafted from the totally erroneous initial Oregon State Police news release.

The road was straight as an arrow for approximately .3 mile or five hundred yards before the point of impact. There was a blind left curve in the road about 50 yards past that point. The riders' involvement with the log truck occurred entirely within the timeframe of the truck cab coming along side us and the rear wheels passing us. Below is how the R-G newspaper accurately recounted my words in a later edition, with my addition in [ ]. Several other statements taken from the original OSP news release, in the Friday article in particular, are patently inaccurate.

The Oregon State Police have removed from their website all news releases that state any 'facts' of how the accident happened and the current news release simple states that there was a fatality, that a thorough investigation is underway and that the case will be referred to the District Attorney's office if warranted.

Friday article Eugene R-G 6/2/2006:
One of Higdon's riding companions questioned the official story. Paul Moore of Eugene said the truck came up behind the foursome on a straight stretch of the road and was passing "less than an arm's length away from us."
The cyclists rode in a single-file line, and Higdon was at the rear. Moore was in front of her. The rider in front of him fell.
Moore was able to brake, but he said he thinks Higdon may have clipped his rear wheel and fallen to the left, under the trailer's tires, although no one saw what happened. He said there was no way an experienced rider like Higdon steered into the truck as police said. And although he empathized with the driver, he questioned why the trucker decided to pass the group rather than slow down until it was safer.

"There's one thing I want people to be real clear about: This wasn't some unavoidable accident," Moore said. "Rather than making the choice to slow down, he chose to try to go for it and get around us before the curve, and he just totally misjudged it."

 http://www.registerguard.com/news/2006/06/02/a1.higdon.0602.p1.php

Saturday R-G 6/3/2006:
Paul Moore, who was on the ride, has said the truck came upon the group quickly and passed within an arm's length of the cyclists, causing one of them to fall. Moore said he braked to avoid the fallen cyclist, and [he theorizes that] Higdon clipped his rear wheel and fell into the truck's path.

 http://www.registerguard.com/news/2006/06/03/d1.cr.bikefolo.0603.p1.php

There was a great editorial in the June 5, 2006 issue of The Register-Guard regarding the accident and sharing the roads. Please read it and if you are inspired as I was, please phone the R-G (541-485-1234) to congratulate them or send a letter to the editor. They deserve support on the stand they have taken. There are a few artifacts of the bad info from the original news reports, but things are getting somewhat cleaned up.

Register Guard editorial June 5th:

"Jane Higdon's tragic death last Wednesday in a truck-bicycle accident on Territorial Road was all the more heartbreaking because it was entirely avoidable. There is no roadway anywhere - if it is legally open to bicyclists - that cannot be shared safely by safe-riding cyclists and safe-driving motor vehicle operators. No roadway, anywhere."
...........................

 link to www.registerguard.com