Thousands of cyclists from every state and twenty countries rode through Boulder Sunday to honor the life of teenager Magnus White, a local cycling star killed last year while training for the junior mountain biking world championships.
On a misty morning, the riders rang bike bells as they streamed from CU Boulder’s campus and wound past Highway 119, near Gunbarrel, where White was struck and killed last year. A white ghost bike and American flag still commemorates the spot.
At a rally after the ride, Governor Jared Polis, Congressman Joe Neguse and other officials spoke about the need for urgent reforms to protect cyclists and pedestrians.
“We know that we need to do more to ensure that our roads are safe for everybody,” said Polis. “We’re doing everything we can to make (Highway) 119 safer as well as roads across Colorado.”
In July 2023, a driver struck White while he was biking on the shoulder of the highway. White was just days away from departing for the Junior Men’s Mountain Bike Cross-Country World Championships in Scotland. He died while wearing his Team USA jersey.
In December 2023, police arrested 23-year-old Yeva Smilianska and charged her with felony vehicular homicide. Police alleged in an arrest affidavit that Smilianksa fell asleep at the wheel before swerving and hitting White. She pleaded not guilty to the charges in May, and told investigators her steering wheel malfunctioned.
Her trial is set for December 16th.
White’s parents, Jill and Michael, organized the ride through their nonprofit, the White Line Foundation, which they created after their son’s death to end preventable road fatalities.
“We call ourselves a new voice for change because Magnus paid the ultimate price,” said Michael White.
Dan Langenkamp, founder of the Ride For Your Life movement, also organized the event. In 2022, a truck driver killed Langenkamp’s wife in Bethesda, Maryland while she was on a ride.
“We should be watching Magnus on television or cheering him on at the next Olympics,” said Langenkamp. “Instead we’re begging our leaders to make changes to road safety so people like him don’t have to die.”
Langenkamp said that over 4,000 people registered for the event.
Pushing for reforms
Organizers are hoping for three main reforms on the local, state and federal level to protect cyclists and pedestrians.
The Whites hope to fast-track construction of the North Foothills Bikeway on US-36, which connects Boulder to Lyons, and is used by tens of thousands of cyclists annually, according to Michael White.
At the state level, organizers want to increase penalties for careless and reckless driving that results in death and serious injury. Under state law, careless driving resulting in death is a class 1 misdemeanor that can lead to up to one year in county jail. Reckless driving is a class 4 felony that can result in non-mandatory prison time.
“It’s not about putting people in jail, it’s about a deterrent,” Michael White said. “If people know there are severe penalties for taking another life, maybe they’ll drive more responsibly.”
On a federal level, the Whites hope Congress passes a law to require all vehicles to have Automatic Emergency Braking that can prevent collisions between cyclists, motorcyclists and pedestrians.
Nationally, nearly 41,000 people died on American roadways in 2023. Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt, who attended the event, attributed the number of deaths to an increase in distracted driving.
“You see this as this epidemic of distracted driving, drunk driving, drowsy driving,” Bhatt said. “When you’re surrounded by 3,000 pounds of metal and steel, it’s no match when you hit somebody who’s on a bike or just walking.”
Preliminary Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) data shows that traffic deaths in 2023 declined by 6 percent when compared to 2022. However, there were 20 cycling deaths in 2023, which was 33 percent more than in 2022.
Colorado lawmakers recently passed a bill authorizing CDOT to use automated speed cameras on highways. The bill initially included a car registration fee, which increased by the weight of the vehicle, meant to fund up to $20 million in projects to make roads safer for pedestrians and cyclists. But Gov. Polis did not support the fee and it was removed, according to spokesperson Shelby Wieman. Instead, the bill now requires CDOT to spend at least $7 million from State Highway Fund revenue for road safety projects.
‘One in a billion’
Amedeo Claudia, 18, was one of White’s closest friends, and rode his cross-country race bike to the Ride for Magnus event Sunday. He and White did everything together, he said, and described him as a humble athlete and a devoted friend.
“Magnus was one in a billion,” Claudia said. “There’s a big hole in my life now.”
Alex Perkins, 17, came to volunteer at the Sunday event because his father was killed by a driver while riding his bike. He hoped riders would understand the safety risks that drivers pose to them.
“I hope riders think about the people that have been hurt and killed by drivers on the road,” he said.
Among his many accomplishments, White won the 2021 Junior 17-18 Cyclocross Championships and competed on Team USA for the European Cyclocross championships, according to USA Cycling.
As soon as White could walk, his parents began teaching him to ride. Soon, his cycling skills surpassed theirs.
“When I pushed him in a stroller I’d have the bike on it, because he always wanted to ride,” she said.
At the rally, wiping away tears, Jill said that part of White’s legacy, outside of his athletic accomplishments, was bringing together riders from around the world to act to prevent road deaths.
“He was just starting to see his dreams come true,” said Jill. “And that’s why we’re here today. Not just to remember, but to act.”
