For those that haven't seen the news, a young woman named Tracey Sparling was killed yesterday while riding her bicycle through downtown Portland. Jonathan Maus at BikePortland.org has extensive coverage at his site.

Though I've never met Tracey, I feel particularly affected by the incident. It happened only about 4 blocks from where I live, and Adrienne and I ride in that area quite frequently ourselves. We can all talk about our own defensive riding skills, and how we'd never put ourselves in a similar situation, but the truth is that every time we're on a bike we're at the mercy of individuals in much larger vehicles who are often far too rushed and careless to take the time to look out for us. More than the mere proximity of the tragedy to my home, what's really bothering me is that it could easily have been myself or someone I love underneath that cement truck.

Tonight at 6:00pm there will be a memorial ride in honor of Tracey Sparling. The ride will meet at the west end of the Burnside Bridge and proceed up Burnside to the site of the accident, outside of the Ringlers Pub on 14th and West Burnside. Coincidentally, Adrienne and I had planned a pre-wedding dinner with our families at Ringlers at the same time, so we'll be there to join the procession as it arrives at the site of the crash. I'd urge anyone else who rides a bicycle in this town, or just feels sad about this terrible event, to be there as well.

And yes, for those that don't already know, Adrienne and I are getting married tomorrow. I'll post more on that, and hopefully some pictures as well, in a few days.