Feature Story

By Trudy Helmsing

Lagniappe staff

For most people, Labor Day evokes thoughts of the beach, barbeques and relaxing with friends on a day off from work or school. For the friends and families of Archie Clemons and Bill Imle, the day can never be the same.

Shortly before 9 a.m. that Monday, Clemons and Imle were struck down and killed while riding their bikes on Bromley Road in Baldwin County.

The driver, Patrick Ballard, was under the influence of alcohol and speeding when he lost control of his vehicle and hit the two cyclists, according to authorities. He currently faces two murder charges. In 2005, at the age of 17, Ballard was charged with killing another biker, Larry McDuff in Fairhope.

Bromley Road, where the accident occurred, is a popular bike route, marked by signs urging motorists to share the road with cyclists.

From this tragedy, awareness of bike safety is starting to be raised.

According to a recent poll done by the Press-Register and the University of South Alabama, three out of four respondents would like to see tax dollars being used to create more bike paths. 403 Mobile and Baldwin County residents took the poll.

Mark Still, owner of All About Bicycles on Schillinger Road, thinks bike paths are great but only if they go somewhere. He would like to see awareness being raised so cyclists can better share the road with vehicles.

“It is a responsibility of cyclists if we want the driving community to respect us,” he said. “It may take a generation or two, but awareness needs to start now.”

According to Still, Mobile has a fairly healthy road riding community. Every weekday morning groups meet at Carpe Diem on Old Shell Road and ride one of several routes; a downtown route, various western routes, some as far as Snow Road, or a hill route toward the middle of town.

The biggest ride occurs on Saturday, starting at Still’s shop and ranges from 27-40 miles. The shortest version is referred to as “No Drop” because no one gets left behind. On some of these rides, more experienced bikers work with beginners on how to interact with traffic and follow the rules of the road, in order to promote safety.

In Baldwin County, numerous bikers can be seen riding down Scenic 98 and County Road 1 on Saturdays and Sundays.

“In general, the public is very accommodating. There have been very few incidents with bicyclists,” Still said.

But, there is a difference between riding a bike for recreation and riding a bike to actually get somewhere.

Other than building awareness, Still would like to see a long-term plan be developed for making the city more biker-friendly.

“It’s a little much to ask a 300-year-old city to redesign roads and completely transform to be bike friendly,” he said. Because the process of making Mobile more conducive to bikers will take time, changes need to begin now.

In Mobile, the option of riding a bike as transportation is nearly nonexistent with little room on the older, narrower streets. Still mentioned he would love to ride his bike to work and for his kids to be able to ride their bikes to school. With the obesity epidemic in America, he feels riding a bike to school could be helpful in alleviating the problem among children.

“Biking promotes a health-oriented lifestyle and is a great hobby to have,” Still said, adding that efforts need to be made to make our country healthier.

Still also mentioned that, from a recreational standpoint, he has seen the bicycling community of Mobile grow tremendously over the past five years, especially with women and children.

According to the same Press-Register/University of South Alabama poll, residents of Mobile and Baldwin counties believe in extending the law to require all cyclists to wear a helmet. The current law only applies to those 16 and under.

From the tragedy that occurred on Labor Day, the topic of bike safety has become raised. At this point, all that can be done is for motorists and cyclists to try to share the road until long-term changes can be made.

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