By Scott Mobley
Redding (Calif.) Record Searchlight
REDDING, Calif. - Bicycle commuter Dylan Reeves knew exactly what hit him.
A flatbed pickup plowed into Reeves, 37, around 4:45 p.m. May 4 as he was heading home on his single-speed Cannondale track bike after work at the California Smokejumpers base near Redding Municipal Airport.
“I had no warning,” Reeves said. “I felt a very violent impact. I don’t remember the next few seconds, but I was able to look up and see the truck driving away.”
Passing motorists, including two nurses, stopped to help Reeves, who is left with a back injury that could end his firefighting career.
Redding police have identified the suspected hit-and-run driver as Victoria Ann Miller after wrapping up their investigation Thursday. They have asked the Shasta County district attorney to issue an arrest warrant for Miller on felony hit-and-run and grand theft charges, said Lt. Tracy Beaupre.
Miller, 44, is suspected of stealing the truck she was driving when she allegedly hit Reeves.
Miller has been prosecuted for public intoxication, marijuana possession and driving under the influence several times during the past few years, court records show. She has received numerous traffic tickets and has been cited for driving on a suspended license, according to court records.
Reeves was the second hit-and-run victim on a bicycle in Redding in as many months.
A motorist reportedly drove off after running down a cyclist on Lake Boulevard the evening of April 11, leaving the rider lying in the street, according to police reports.
Redding is ranked 19th among 104 comparable California cities for the number of motorist vs. bicycle collisions reported in 2009, the most recent year for which statistics from the state Office of Traffic Safety are available.
Reeves had been riding his bike nearly 18 miles to and from work round-trip up to the day the truck hit him. He started bicycle commuting in 2009 for fitness and to save gas money. Reeves said he considers himself an alert rider who does not take his safety for granted.
But he always thought his safety was in his hands as long as he was vigilant. He never expected to get clobbered from behind while riding in the bike lane in the middle of the afternoon. Reeves was pedaling west on Hartnell Avenue about a quarter mile past Victor Avenue, perhaps halfway through his commute. The truck, also heading west, swerved sharply into the bike lane, struck Reeves and sent him flying. Reeves wound up with a fractured L-1 vertebra and a broken rib. He will lose this summer’s firefighting season and an estimated $30,000 of overtime and hazard pay.
Reeves, known to parachute over Australia and enter “tough mudder” endurance events in the o’season, will spend the summer doing light duty at the base and physical therapy at home.
He won’t really be able to exercise again until late fall. Longer term, he’s not certain he’ll be able to return to jumping fires.
“It’s pretty discouraging if I can’t come back,” Reeves said.
“I’ve been a Smokejumper for nine years, and I love it.”