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Cross Country Bicyclist Hit, Killed By Molino Driver
October 7, 2010
A Gulf Breeze bicyclist on a cross-country trip to raise money to help oil spill victims was struck and killed Wednesday by a driver from Molino.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Roger W. Grooters, 66, of Gulf Breeze was riding his bicycle on the shoulder of State Road 20 in Bay County about 8:55 a.m. Wednesday. Eddie R. Hogg, 41, of Molino, traveled onto the shoulder of the roadway in his 2006 Chevrolet pickup where he hit the bicyclist.
Grooters was ejected from the bicycle and came to rest on the shoulder of the road where he was pronounced dead by Washington County EMS.
Charges against Hogg are pending further investigation, according to the FHP.
Grooters was on the final leg of a bicycle journey from Oceanside, California, to Jacksonville, Florida, according to his blog.
“I’m doing this to raise money to help the victims and communities on the Gulf Coast affected by the recent oil spill,” he wrote on his blog.
Comments
19 Responses to “Cross Country Bicyclist Hit, Killed By Molino Driver”
Roger Grooters was a bicyclist who cared and believed he could make a difference. There are still millions of drivers who do not understand or refuse to understand a bicyclist’s right to the road. They continue to pass cyclists with oncoming traffic and without clear distance for passing. They are good, honest, well-meaning people, but they are breaking the law and are responsible. On hundreds of occasions, drivers have put me, the cyclist, and those in the oncoming vehicle in danger because they refuse to slow down and wait for clear opportunity to pass. Its rarely a matter of more than a few seconds, yet they are usually angry or annoyed with me for being there. Roger Grooter’s ride will help victims of the oil spill. I hope his death will move drivers to realize the danger of ignorance, impatience, and intolerance. Perhaps some cyclists and drivers will be spared from future tragedy.
It would also solve the problem if we had a bike lane that had a barrier from
the cars and MORE ppl rode bikes.
Unfortunately thats not going to happen either anymore than all the cars
are going to be alternative fuel before I leave this earth so we can leave
something here for the children.
no argument, just calling one state archaic when all do it is what I triggered on.
It would be safer if nobody rode bikes (or if evertbody did), not gonna happen, though. Too many people too different..
David
I think I see what Molino Driver means….they’re saying that it would just
be safer for everyone…….
I agree……because there will always be moments of inattentiveness
in drivers for forever….and these deaths would be totally eliminated by
not letting cyclist’s on the hwys with cars….there is no contest and
I have said it before….
DEAD IS DEAD
IT DOESN’T MATTER WHO’S RIGHT OR WRONG.
NOBODY WINS!
REGARDING:
“Ok who agrees with this??? Florida Laws are absolutly retarded!!!!”
I can’t think of a single state in which bicycles aren’t legally awarded the same right to the road as motor vehicles. I wish there were always a separate lane for them but there isn’t. Even when there is, there are always the distracted or indifferent drivers or the ones who simply think the laws are retarded and to be ignored and bicyclists still get run over. Part of the price of enjoying a bicycle ride.
David for obeying all laws if at all possible
& not killing those who get in my way
Ok who agrees with this??? Florida Laws are absolutly retarded!!!! No Bicyclist on side walks and cars must share roadway with bikes!!!!! IM SORRY BUT I THINK i WOULD RATHER BE WALKING ON A SIDEWALK AND GET HIT BY A BIKE THAN RIDING A BIKE AND GETTING HIT BY A CAR. and yes i know there are not many sidewalks but come on! ur on a bike im sure u can ride in the grass!!!! at least move for traffic!!!!!
As a very avid cyclist, I hope the driver gets the full effect of the law thrown at him. If motorist want to drive somewhere and not have to pay attention for bicyclist or pedestrians then go drive the interstate.
When I was in fourth grade over spring break my pe teacher went bysicling somewere and he and his freinds were in between 2 dump truck the one in front slamed on breaks for a red light the one behind them slamed on brakes also hiting me pe teacher while he was goin in the ditch to try to ovide him thrown of his bike lucky he survived with just scrapes and cuts busted his head open and then he ce and told us this story and gave us all a bike course so we could be safe if we ever did ride bikes on the road I ride my bike on the road but I always think about that course he gave us a big thanks to Coach Voss
REGARDING:
The biker, it’s a shame but that is the danger of bicycles nothing between you and the person texting while driving a multiton vehicle at high speeds while listening to other sounds. I used to ride my little green bicycle around Auburn and always kept the wheel between the white line and the grass whenever possible. Cars would blow by me and the riders would look back to see if they had killed me.
You don’t really HAVE to pass a vehicle of any kind if you aren’t sure you can do it safely, be it a bicycle or a tank. You don’t really HAVE to drive if you can’t see where you are going.
Yet so many think they must.
AND
“Thinker-the remedy for the pollution scared windshield is a windshield replacement.”
I haven’t had the problem and include a 1970 F-350 on up to what? 2003 Dodge Caravan. Pecan sap blackens the outside if I don’t do my annual (semi-annual, eventual) car wash but nothing on inside. I wouldn’t think vinyl would vaporize although the solvents which make it supple (Phthalates) might. Still a bit of wiping and a bit of Windex or just soap and water do wonders (or so I am told).
David for sharing the road
luvs my 3 boys,
thanks for the info kiddo.
i was shocked that there just was no room and yet he would risk his life and ride there.
I don’t speed, so there was no problem, but i can see that one of these days
BOB is going to be gone…..
how terrible then that some innocent driver will have to live with his demise….
Careless drivers are all over the roads, I see way too many people on cell phones talking or texting and Not payin attention to their driving. There is a difference between negligence and an accident, unless there was a mechanical or health problem not maintaining control of your vehicle is negligence.
Horrific – It was not the same cyclist. The “older man” you are refering to riding up and down 95A is named Bob. I’m sure any one of us on any given day has seen him riding around the Gonzalez area. he has been hit MANY times usually becuase he gets drunk and falls off his bike into the road or rides into the road. Make sure you give him pleanty of room when you ride by him becuase you never know.
To Eddie – I know your heart is hurting but you will get through this.
Thoughts and prayers go out to both families.
Thinker-the remedy for the pollution scared windshield is a windshield replacement.
Well usually I have little simpathy for ppl who perpetrate this kind of crime.
Today however, I am thinking about a drive I took down 95A a couple of
days ago, or maybe it was yesterday I forget.
What I do remember is that there was someone riding a bike and he was
going down the edge of the road and I was thinking, “my golly, this guy is
going to get taken out”. There was absolutely no room for him on that
part of the road. People are driving 45 and around the corner you come
and THERE HE IS~ If there had been an on coming car so I could not safely
move over then i’m not sure if where he was I would have had time to stop
safely for either of us.
Now I am thinking that that guy was older that I saw and am wondering
if this would have been the same cyclist!
In any case, cyclists may be legal to the highways, but they DO have to
be aware that there are dangers out there. 95A doesn’t even have an edge on
it for a bike.
What if I were a speeder? That guy would have been hamberger!
Dead is Dead! “It reallly doesn’t matter if your right or wrong!
Nobody wins!
.
An accident is when a vehicle suffers a mechanical failure that is not the result of poor maintenance, causing the vehicle to move uncontrollably off the road, striking something/someone.
Hitting a person while driving a vehicle is driver inattention, which is a willful act. This willful act may have been checking a text message, not cleaning a windshield, or continuing to drive while not able to see.
Look up “accident”, this was not an accident. The driver is likely to not be charged, as with most auto/bike collisions, the driver of the car is given a pass for killing a legitimate user of the road.
Sad
God bless all involved. Prayers are with you Mr. Hogg! (Everyone makes mistakes)
When your vehicle is old, the windshield gets these little spots and “stains” on it that is caused by outgassing of vinyl seat covers, etc. On a hot day with your windows closed these vinyl molecules accumulate on the inside of your windshield and nothing I know will remove them. When driving into a setting son the “fog” of this coating makes it almost impossible to see details on the road like a person walking or riding a bike. We all put up with this and something ought to be done about it.
“Oh my God! I pray for both families!”
You are exactly right. This is a tragedy for all involved. The driver of the truck will suffer the consequences of this accident for the rest of his life. I did not know Mr. Grooters, and feel horrible for his family, but I do know the driver of the pick up truck. He is just an honest working man, trying to provide for his family. He is devasted by this.
Oh my God! I pray for both families!