Today my heart goes out to a man I never met. His name is Aaron Cohen.
I rode my bike to RSMAS today at 8:30 and was pleased that I did when I noticed a horrible and unusual traffic jam toward the entrance of the island. I immediately patted myself on the back for deciding to go green today by leaving my car at home. As I breezed past the hundreds and hundreds of cars and made my way onto the Rickenbacker Causeway, I noticed flashing lights at the top of the bridge up ahead and assumed it was a car accident. As I passed the scene and got a closer look, I saw police talking to each other near two mangled bicycles. No car, no victim, no witnesses, just two police cars, some flares, a couple cops, and two beat up bikes.
I continued along my way to find out much later that what I had passed was the scene of a hit and run. Evidently a motorist in a silver Civic hit two cyclists a bit after 6am and never stopped. One of them is now recovering from a broken leg while the other, as of 2 hours ago according to a local news source, is suffering serious life-threatening injuries.
I try to ride my bike to RSMAS once a week on average and I'm very familiar with that stretch of road as a cyclist because it's one of the few places in Miami that is bicycle friendly by the fact that it has a particularly large bike lane (the fact that it has a bike lane at all is a huge deal). I always see people making good use of it every day whether I'm one of them or not.
As someone who frequents the causeway by bike this story really hits home. Seeing the bikes myself really pounded it in. Just like his bike, Aaron Cohen is lying down broken right now on account of a horrifying hit and run. My heart goes out to him and his family as well as any and all cyclists who have been harmed in the unforgiving cycling environment that makes up Miami.
EDIT: Aaron Cohen passed away in the hospital on Thursday, leaving behind his wife, 3-year-old daughter, and 1-year-old son.
EDIT: The 24-year-old responsible for the fatal hit and run finally turned himself in the next day after a very public city-wide search was under way for a car matching his description. He was driving on a suspended license and has a history of traffic violations and drug charges.
I rode my bike to RSMAS today at 8:30 and was pleased that I did when I noticed a horrible and unusual traffic jam toward the entrance of the island. I immediately patted myself on the back for deciding to go green today by leaving my car at home. As I breezed past the hundreds and hundreds of cars and made my way onto the Rickenbacker Causeway, I noticed flashing lights at the top of the bridge up ahead and assumed it was a car accident. As I passed the scene and got a closer look, I saw police talking to each other near two mangled bicycles. No car, no victim, no witnesses, just two police cars, some flares, a couple cops, and two beat up bikes.
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| Photo: blog.mayacycle.com - Not from the accident today. |
I continued along my way to find out much later that what I had passed was the scene of a hit and run. Evidently a motorist in a silver Civic hit two cyclists a bit after 6am and never stopped. One of them is now recovering from a broken leg while the other, as of 2 hours ago according to a local news source, is suffering serious life-threatening injuries.
I try to ride my bike to RSMAS once a week on average and I'm very familiar with that stretch of road as a cyclist because it's one of the few places in Miami that is bicycle friendly by the fact that it has a particularly large bike lane (the fact that it has a bike lane at all is a huge deal). I always see people making good use of it every day whether I'm one of them or not.
As someone who frequents the causeway by bike this story really hits home. Seeing the bikes myself really pounded it in. Just like his bike, Aaron Cohen is lying down broken right now on account of a horrifying hit and run. My heart goes out to him and his family as well as any and all cyclists who have been harmed in the unforgiving cycling environment that makes up Miami.
EDIT: Aaron Cohen passed away in the hospital on Thursday, leaving behind his wife, 3-year-old daughter, and 1-year-old son.
EDIT: The 24-year-old responsible for the fatal hit and run finally turned himself in the next day after a very public city-wide search was under way for a car matching his description. He was driving on a suspended license and has a history of traffic violations and drug charges.
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