A grieving father leads a sea of cyclists on his wife’s last route - The Washington Post

For the family, their accomplishment has brought alleviation — and pain. Relief due to the fact that it means they volition nary longer person to unrecorded retired of suitcases. Pain due to the fact that those boxes incorporate truthful galore reminders of Sarah Langenkamp, who was killed successful August erstwhile the operator of a flatbed motortruck struck her arsenic she rode her bicycle from an unfastened location lawsuit astatine her sons’ simple school.

“It’s heartbreaking,” Dan Langenkamp said of sifting done his wife’s belongings. So galore items telephone retired for her, helium said, “They accidental ‘I request her.’ They say, ‘I request the proprietor of my worldly for maine to beryllium useful, and she’s not here.’ ”

Those boxes don’t conscionable incorporate yoga pants; they incorporate her yoga pants. They don’t conscionable incorporate boots; they incorporate her boots.

“Right now, it’s acold and she has this beauteous brace of wintertime boots that are conscionable empty,” helium said. “I had to enactment them successful the backmost of the closet.”

On Saturday, drivers passing done Bethesda, Md. and D.C. mightiness person seen a oversea of cyclists riding done the streets together. They were pursuing Dan Langenkamp on the past way his woman traveled — and then, they rode further than she was able. Together, they rode from her children’s simple schoolhouse to the clang spot connected River Road. They past continued on, riding until they reached the Capitol Reflecting Pool. There, they called connected national lawmakers and officials to dedicate resources and enactment successful spot measures that would assistance marque roads crossed the federation safer.

More than 1,500 radical were expected to enactment successful the “Ride for Your Life” event, which was promoted by Trek, the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, Families for Safe Streets and others. Among those who participated were radical who loved Sarah Langenkamp, including her children, and radical who had ne'er met her but recognized successful her decease a request for action. She was a U.S. diplomat who fled Ukraine to question safety, lone to dice connected a Washington-area road.

“Deadly roadworthy plan is simply a argumentation choice,” said Colin Browne, of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association. “The tools for making streets safer for everyone — radical walking, rolling, biking, taking the bus, driving — exist, and they are successful usage successful cities each implicit the world.”

Browne described Saturday’s thrust arsenic a mode to protestation “a simple, grim reality: hundreds of radical dice and thousands endure life-altering injuries connected our region’s roads each year, not due to the fact that we don’t person cognize however to forestall it, but due to the fact that excessively galore of our elected officials and bureau leaders are inactive acrophobic to marque driving and parking marginally little convenient.”

In an earlier column, I told you astir Sarah Langenkamp. I’ve besides told you successful different columns astir different pedestrians and cyclists who person been fatally injured connected roads successful the region: 32-year-old Brett Badin, 5-year-old Allison Hart, 70-year-old Michael Hawkins Randall, 64-year-old Charles Jackson, 65-year-old Michael Gordon and 40-year-old Shawn O’Donnell. Those past 4 deaths happened wrong the aforesaid month.

Behind each of those names is simply a household that was unexpectedly thrust into mourning and activists who roseate up to ask, again, for officials to bash much to forestall aboriginal deaths.

There person been different rides and gatherings successful the portion aimed astatine bringing consciousness to the request for roadworthy information improvements. But astir of those person demanded section officials instrumentality action. At Saturday’s event, participants called connected Congress to money harmless biking and pedestrian infrastructure and the Transportation Department to instrumentality measures to amended motortruck safety. One measurement would necessitate ample trucks to adhd structural guards connected the little beforehand and sides to forestall cars, bicycles oregon pedestrians from sliding underneath.

Langenkamp said his woman could person survived if that measurement had been successful place. The motortruck that deed her was traveling successful the aforesaid absorption arsenic her erstwhile it turned close into a parking lot, according to police.

“These deaths are truly violent,” Langenkamp said. “We should not screen that up. Nobody should beryllium killed connected our streets similar this. People accidental she was ‘struck by a truck’ oregon ‘hit by a truck.’ No, she was crushed by a truck, and killed instantly connected the broadside of the road.”

His dependable shook arsenic helium said that. He knows that’s not a gentle image, but what she experienced was not gentle, and helium believes radical request to admit that to afloat recognize what postulation victims and their household members experience.

On Saturday, respective radical gave speeches and a fewer high-ranking officials sent statements that were work aloud. One of those came from U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. In it, helium admit the value of the lawsuit coming the time earlier World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims.

“Each year, connected the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, we mourn those who person mislaid their lives successful postulation crashes,” the connection read. “But mourning is not enough. We indispensable each dedicate ourselves to ending this situation connected our roadways and creating a safer proscription strategy truthful that much families bash not person to stock this grief.”

After his wife’s death, Langenkamp received notes from senators and different U.S. officials. One missive came from President Biden.

“Sarah volition ever beryllium remembered for her unwavering committedness to our Nation,” reads Biden’s letter. “She was an exceptional diplomat who dedicated herself to fulfilling America’s committedness to its citizens and the world. We are particularly grateful to your household for some your and Sarah’s courageous work successful Ukraine.”

In a letter, Attorney General Merrick Garland told of moving with Sarah and described her arsenic representing “the champion of America, moving tirelessly and astatine sizeable idiosyncratic hazard and sacrifice connected behalf of our state to prosecute peace, democracy, prosperity, and adherence to the regularisation of law.”

Dan Langenkamp worked astatine the authorities section with his wife, but helium has taken a permission since her death. He has spent his days instead, helium said, trying to marque definite she didn’t dice for thing and learning however to genitor 2 children connected his own. Their sons were 8 and 10 and had conscionable enrolled successful a caller schoolhouse erstwhile the clang happened

“It’s been truly hard,” Langenkamp said. “It was ace affectional to spell to Target the different time to bargain immoderate other wintertime stuff. We ever went to Target together, and abruptly I was this hapless dada by myself doing it. I was trying to take pants that fit, and Sarah knew that worldly cold.”

When helium talks astir unpacking those boxes, helium wavers betwixt describing it arsenic portion of the “unraveling of our lives” and the “raveling our lives.”

“Sometimes,” helium said, “I’m walking backmost from my sons’ schoolhouse and I’m thinking, ‘I don’t cognize however I’m going to bash this by myself.’ ”