Bike Noob

Because I'm Always Learning Something New

  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Partners

Kevin Underhill

08.18.2009 by Ray Niekamp // 6 Comments

Kevin Underhill
Kevin Underhill

One of the unexpected rewards of writing a blog is coming into contact with people I would never otherwise get to know. One of these was Kevin Underhill. I was stunned upon returning from Hawaii yesterday to learn that Kevin died Sunday of injuries sustained in a crash during the Thursday night Driveway race in Austin. The Austin American-Statesman ran the story this morning.

It turns out he was a reader of Bike Noob, although not a noob himself. As far back as 1985, Kevin took a monthlong bike tour through Germany and Austria. Last year, he did a three-month tour around Japan. But he described himself as a “recreational/fitness rider.”

He emailed me back in June after he thought he saw me while riding in the country south of Austin. “I did my first group ride in Austin yesterday and was between Buda and Kyle on Jack C Hays Trail when a saw a man coming the other way wearing a red shirt with a big ’50’ on it and it finally clicked that that might have been you.  Sorry for not waving, I was using all my energy to try and stay with a paceline.”

Others have commented elsewhere about how nice a guy Kevin was. He checked the blog that day to see if I mentioned the ride, and when he found that I had fallen, offered detailed directions for an alternate route.

He also told me that he lived in the Cedar Park area, northwest of Austin, and commuted between there and South Austin not far from my house twice a week. That “commute” for him is an extension of the Dam Loop, one of Austin’s classic bike rides, and roughly 35 miles one way.

Kevin wasn’t concerned with his image. “I ride a black touring bike with a pink rear luggage rack, usually with panniers on when I commute.  A somewhat less than normal recreational rider. :)” He wore plain bike jerseys, and unless in an organized ride that required it, he preferred to ride without a helmet. It’s ironic that he was wearing one in the race when he crashed.

In his Bike Journal profile, Kevin said he was “having delusions about trying a bike race.” He noted that in my post on my time trial back in May, he’s partly visible wearing red shorts in the picture of the check-in table. It was his first attempt at a time trial, too.

I never met Kevin, but because of our contact through the blog, I know I’ll miss him.

Like this:

Like Loading...

Related

Categories // Community Tags // people

Comments

  1. Bryan says

    August 18, 2009 at 8:28 pm

    Wow, that’s a terrible, sad story. It was his first race there. From what I could tell in the article he lived a full life and looks to have passed on doing something he loved.

    Reply
  2. Lisa says

    August 19, 2009 at 6:46 am

    Hi Ray. This is Lisa (Kevin’s girlfriend) – the reason he was commuting twice a week from his house to South Austin and back. He got a lot of pleasure out of seeing just how much he could get by without using his car. Part of the “short” route (28 miles) from his house to mine took 2222 from 620 to 360. He loved flying down that 2222 hill, sometimes hitting speeds of 46+ mph, which always scared me to death, considering his feelings about helmets.

    He and I used to take long (well, 35-45 miles – not long for him) rides together on the weekends. A few weeks ago, instead of just riding by ourselves, we went out with the Austin Flyers on their Sunday ride. One of the other guys on the ride crossed wheels with the bike in front of him and took an ugly fall, resulting in some bad road rash. Kevin was one of the people who stopped to help him, since he was carrying a first-aid kit in one of his panniers.

    Not long ago, Kevin said to me that riding near 18-wheelers scared him a lot less than riding in close proximity to other cyclists. It was just the skill set he had – riding solo for so many years made him excellent at following the rules of the road and being situationally aware and comfortable when it came to traffic. There’s a tendency to think riding in groups makes us safe, but that’s not always true – sometimes it just presents another hazard that we need to be aware of. And a whole different riding skillset.

    Thanks for posting about Kevin. He’ll definitely be missed.

    Reply
    • rainycamp says

      August 19, 2009 at 10:50 am

      Lisa, Thanks for adding the details about Kevin. I’m sorry for your loss.

      Reply
  3. Glenn_in_MA says

    August 19, 2009 at 7:56 am

    That is a truly heartbreaking post. I can understand why Kevin will be missed by many.

    Reply
  4. gtinla says

    August 19, 2009 at 12:08 pm

    Heartbreaking! – and a stark reminder to never take anything or anyone for granted! My heart goes out to those who knew and loved him. May he rest in peace!

    Reply

Leave a ReplyCancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Get Email Updates

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 259 other subscribers

Categories

  • Accessories
  • Bike fit
  • Bikes
  • Blogging
  • Books
  • clubs
  • Cold weather
  • Community
  • Commuting
  • Components
  • crash
  • cycling
  • Equipment
  • Favorite rides
  • fitness
  • food
  • guest post
  • Heat
  • Injury
  • logs
  • Maintenance
  • Mental
  • Nutrition
  • Odds 'n ends
  • People
  • Poll
  • Racing
  • Records & stats
  • Review
  • Rides
  • running
  • Safety
  • soreness
  • Specialized
  • Technique
  • Technology
  • Tips
  • tires
  • training
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Partners

Recent Posts

  • Getting Back on the Bike: Road Cycling Tips for Older Cyclists
  • Are BCAAs and EAAs Good for Cycling?
  • How to Fix Numb Toes When Cycling
  • How to Find and Vet a Bike Club
  • Celebrate Pearl Izumi with Big Savings in the Memorial Day Sale

Categories

  • Accessories
  • Bike fit
  • Bikes
  • Blogging
  • Books
  • clubs
  • Cold weather
  • Community
  • Commuting
  • Components
  • crash
  • cycling
  • Equipment
  • Favorite rides
  • fitness
  • food
  • guest post
  • Heat
  • Injury
  • logs
  • Maintenance
  • Mental
  • Nutrition
  • Odds 'n ends
  • People
  • Poll
  • Racing
  • Records & stats
  • Review
  • Rides
  • running
  • Safety
  • soreness
  • Specialized
  • Technique
  • Technology
  • Tips
  • tires
  • training
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized

Archives

  • May 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • March 2022
  • October 2020
  • November 2018
  • May 2018
  • September 2017
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • January 2016
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008

Copyright © 2025 · Modern Studio Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Go to mobile version
%d