Letter: R.I.P. James Shearon

Graphic by Lori Deaton

Being one of the many cyclists in this area who are forced to share the road with so many angry motorists and put ourselves in danger every time we hit the road, I felt the urgent need to speak out after the senseless murder of Mr. James Shearon. More than likely because he was in the way of some impatient motorist.

Being a cyclist myself, it’s sad to admit that I completely understand; it’s not to that horrible extreme. Yet! Oh, yes, I have been run off the road or almost hit numerous times. By motorists who are busy. Busy talking on the phone or texting. Putting on makeup, eating. Or because I am just in their way or believe it or not, because of the color of my skin.

These fellow human beings have little time to pay much attention to that pesky cyclist who is in their way.

Because of this sad fact and out of necessity, I have become somewhat of a renegade on my bike. And recently, in honor and memory of James Shearon.

So, all of you motorists who spread hatred for whatever ignorant reason, by creating a dangerous situation in any number of ways for us who pedal, it might be this renegade angry cyclist pedaling defensively. (Beware if it is me!) For my safety, of course, but also in honor and memory of James Shearon and all my other fellow cyclists who were murdered merely because of their love of cycling.

It goes without saying that this area needs major improvement when it comes to bicycle infrastructure!

But how many more senseless murders will it take for that improvement to happen?

So in the meantime, let us all try to keep this in our minds: “Do unto others as you would have them do to you.”

— Cynthia R. Tomaszewski
Asheville

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4 thoughts on “Letter: R.I.P. James Shearon

  1. T100

    You street riders are crazy brave — or maybe just crazy. I had to give up running due to repetitive stress injuries when I was age 43.. I decided to try biking for exercise. I lasted about 2 weeks and 2 close calls before I quit …. too dangerous for me! .

    Now here is the odd part. At that time I was a daily motorcycle rider commuting 30 miles a day to work and had been a daily motorcycle rider for 20 years and was used to people asking ME why I would engage in such a dangerous activity. Thirty-five years later I’m retired and still riding motorcycles, but the only places I would consider bicycle riding are places like the dirt roads in the NC Arboretum where there are no cars allowed.

  2. Big Al

    It is kind of hard to sympathize with bikers bleating about their RIGHT to ride their bikes in WNC. They CHOOSE to ride on roads that are narrow and twisting which are shared by the worst and least considerate drivers outside of metro Atlanta. Bad drivers in WNC are like forces of nature: too ingrained in “don’t tread ne me” anti-gubmint sentiment to care about things like speed limits or double yellow lines, and too great in number to legislate, manage, or mitigate. That is bad enough for folks like me in cars with seat-belts and airbags. Soft and squishy riders on flimsy metal frames are just nuisances needing a little push.

    Keep yelling into the abyss, you will just die hoarse and breathless. The SMART thing to do would be RIDE SOMEWHERE ELSE beside WNC mountain roads.

    And, hey, go ahead and be a “renegade”. I will nod in somber respect at your little cross and flowers shrine as I ride by, albeit very briefly as I need to watch the oncoming hillbilly crossing the double yellow at 70 mph…

  3. SpareChange

    It’s a shame that the writer has chosen to exploit and objectify the tragedy of James Shearon’s death, in order to bolster an exaggerated and overly generalized rant about inconsiderate drivers in Asheville.

    By all that is known and been reported thus far, Shearon’s death was the result of a criminal hit and run, and police have gone public in expressing their belief that the killing was an “intentional” homicide.
    https://wlos.com/news/local/asheville-hit-and-run-deadly-suspect-charged-accused-intentional-police-department-calvin-tyler-dion-victim-james-shearon-grove-street

    Without diminishing any of the challenges bikers face trying to navigate the narrow streets, hilly terrain, and the occasional inconsiderate or even reckless driver in Asheville, to even suggest that this despicable act resulting in the death of James Shearon is in any way comparable, is both an insult to him, and a gross misinterpretation of the facts of this case. To then go further in suggesting that the writer will now become some kind of, avenging “renegade, angry cyclist,” just pushes things to an even more irresponsible extreme.

    • Worker Bee

      Agreed. This is not a bicycle infrastructure issue so much as a Calvin Tyler Dion issue. I doubt he weathers the vicissitudes of life calmly. Wouldn’t want to mistakenly take “his” parking spot at the supermarket or tell a joke he didn’t find funny. As a commuter cyclist, I don’t feel sharrows keep me any safer from the CTDs of the world than a restraining order, but they might give me a post hoc legal platform.

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