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A Fatal Bike Crash Plays Out — 2 Years Later

05.13.2014 by Ray Niekamp // 4 Comments

On Monday, an 87-year-old man pled guilty to criminally negligent homicide in a crash that killed a cyclist. The crash happened in April, 2012. I wrote about it at the time, and about a memorial ride several area bike clubs staged some weeks later.

We all knew at the time that an older man had been driving the car that killed Verter Ginestra, 54. Verter had been riding on the shoulder of Loop 360, a popular biking route just west of Austin. The road is also a high-speed route that gets drivers through the western suburbs. We were convinced the case would be a slam dunk for the local prosecutor. The driver had pulled his car out of the traffic lane onto the shoulder, because he was upset about having to wait in traffic. He sped up, and hit Verter from behind.

But as weeks went by, nothing seemed to happen. I checked in with riders who were friends of Verter, and they said they had no information about the case. The driver had been charged with criminally negligent homicide with a deadly weapon. But after time passed with no resolution, the case dropped off my radar.

Now, its turns out his attorney and the prosecutor worked out a plea agreement. The driver hasn’t been sentenced as of this writing, but newspaper accounts say he is expected to get five years’ deferred adjudication. In other words, probation.

One of the things the incident spurred on was an increased effort by local cyclists to get the authorities to levy tougher penalties on drivers who kill cyclists. That didn’t seem to happen here, although given the age of the driver, it might be the best that could be hoped for.

Since that fatality, we’ve had others in town. We’re still waiting for stiffer sentences for drivers.

 

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Categories // crash, Safety Tags // crash, fatality, rear end

Tribute Ride For a Fallen Biker

05.20.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 3 Comments

About three weeks ago, a cyclist was killed while riding on the shoulder of a popular cycling road just west of Austin. A protest ride on his behalf several days later took cyclists from Austin City Hall to the State Capitol to call attention to car-bike crashes; in many cases, car drivers are not cited. Cyclists want more vigorous prosecution of motorists who hit cyclists.

Verter Ginestra

The deceased biker is Verter Ginestra. The group he rode with, CyclingTexas.org, scheduled a tribute ride for him last week, but because of several evenings of rainfall, had to postpone it. It was rescheduled for today.

The ride was to leave from Southwest Cycle Sports, a bike shop Verter patronized. The shop is a 17-mile ride from our part of town, so I figured a ride out there from our usual starting place, then joining the tribute ride, and peeling off to head home from the crash site, would be a good B ride. Our A ride leader thought it could work for him too, but added some miles for his riders.

Southwest Cycle Sports is on Bee Caves Road, a four-lane highway with generous shoulders that sees a lot of cycling traffic. Riders from CyclingTexas, Southwest Cycle Sport, Lake Travis Cycling, and my Circle C Ranch Cycling Club turned out for the ride, along with sundry other riders. I guess we totaled about 50. One of the CyclingTexas riders told me they were pleased with the turnout. Before the ride began, Verter’s wife, Jane, thanked everyone for riding, and said that, if things had been different, Verter would be out with us. A cyclist read a letter of condolence from Lance Armstrong. Group pictures were taken, then Jane told everyone, “Let’s ride!” and jumped behind the wheel of the sag truck. (Click pictures to enlarge.)

Verter’s wife Jane with the group just before the ride. We’re flashing the “V” for Verter sign. (Photo courtesy Dena Curry.)
A cyclist reads a letter of condolence from Lance Armstrong. (Photo courtesy Dena Curry.)
Getting everyone to ride out on cue is a little like herding cats. The ride quickly organized into a double file and headed briskly over the rollers on Bee Caves Road.

The ride was to be a slow roll to the crash site, about 10 miles from the bike shop, but the peloton shot down and up the rollers almost immediately, leaving some unprepared riders way off the back. The group slowed when the lead riders realized the problem. One reason Bee Caves is a popular cycling road is its rollers. The uphills are challenging. The downhills are fast. There’s usually a cross wind to make things interesting, as there was today, and car traffic on the road is usually heavy.

I suppose it’s impossible to put 50 cyclists together without problems. It’s just that all the problems seemed to be happening to the Circle C folks today. Donald broke a spoke. That limited him to maintaining only a 21 mph average for the rest of the ride. Steve got a flat. Mike and Laura, on their tandem, dropped a chain. But everybody got back together by the time the group turned off Bee Caves Road south onto Highway 360, then snaked through the Westlake neighborhood in a retracing of Verter’s last route. We turned north onto 360 and rode back to the intersection of Westbank Drive, where the crash happened. I was disappointed to learn that a ghost bike that had been set up there had already been vandalized and torn down. I’m told it will be replaced.

From there, the Circle C group headed south again to our home base, while the rest of the riders returned to the bike shop. My total mileage was 39 — the A group, which added some additional hilly roads — wound up with 45.

My friend John waits for a left turn arrow as the remainder of the tribute ride heads back to the bike shop. The brown SUV on the shoulder behind them is the sag vehicle, driven by Verter’s wife.

The ride was a reminder that we are all vulnerable while on our bikes. Verter was riding on a wide shoulder when a car left the road and hit him in an effort to pass traffic. It’s not enough to be doing everything right — you can still be caught unaware. The driver of the car that killed Verter — an 85-year-old man — still has not been charged as of this writing.

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Categories // crash, Safety Tags // crash, fatality, rear end

A Fatal Rear-End Collision

05.01.2012 by Ray Niekamp // 13 Comments

Like the rest of the Austin cycling community, I am saddened by the death of cyclist Verter Ginestra, 55, over the weekend. He was riding on the shoulder of Loop 360, a major highway on the west side of Austin. The shoulders on 360 are very generous.

Television news stories of the crash show the car in the shoulder. Sound bites from police did not lay blame on the cyclist; in fact, they urged motorists to watch out for them because 360 is such a popular cycling road. It features long hills and few stoplights. The worst part about riding 360 is having to cross exit and entrance ramps, and being on the outlook for fast-moving cars in those spaces.
Verter Ginestra (From KVUE Television website)
Crash scene (From KVUE Television website)

Ginestra apparently was not crossing an entrance or exit ramp. He appears to be the victim of a type of collision that is fairly rare — the daytime rear-ender. One statistic I saw (and cannot vouch for) says that only three percent of car-bike collisions are daytime rear-enders.

On top of it, the driver of the car is 85 years old. So you’ve got a bike on a wide shoulder, in bright daylight, and still he gets hit.

What can a cyclist do?

Not much, apparently. Cyclists should always be aware of what’s happening around them. “Scanning” — looking behind — is a riding technique everyone needs to learn. But if you’re riding with traffic, and you’re on the shoulder, you’re not likely to spend a lot of time looking behind you. The most common advice for avoiding rear-enders I’ve been able to dig up is to wear a rear-view mirror. That idea has its pros and cons. It might have alerted Ginestra to the car moving onto the shoulder, but since traffic on 360 is fast, it might not have given him enough time to react.

I didn’t know Verter Ginestra, but Dan Colvin, who joined me on my birthday ride, rode with him often. Dan says Verter was the kind of cyclist you’d want to ride with: “He was strong enough to ride with most A groups, but was not one to force the pace if others weren’t as strong. Interesting conversationalist. Helpful with mechanicals. The whole nine yards.”

Cyclists plan to converge on Austin City Hall Thursday evening to urge tougher enforcement against drivers who hit cyclists. As I write this, the 85-year-old driver has not been charged in the crash.

The KVUE story about the crash can be seen here.

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Categories // crash, Safety Tags // crash, fatality, rear end

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