The Driver Struck A Pillar—And Ran

 Every community has its “pillars”: People who lead, who show what is possible and give—of their time and, often, their own resources.

When such a “pillar” passes away, the community mourns. And when the death is particularly tragic, the grief is all the more palpable.

Cycling communities are no different. Granted, their numbers may be smaller and their pillars may not be as widely known, but the deaths of their leaders, as often as not, touch people outside of their networks—especially if the death was caused by someone else’s carelessness or indifference.

Photo courtesy of Mike Lucero for the Albuquerque Journal.

So it was for Chuck Malagodi. He was known, not only for his tireless advocacy, but also for the ways he used bicycles and bicycling to contribute to his hometown of Albuquerque, New Mexico.

During the 25 years he ran the city’s outdoor recreation program, he created the Free Bikes 4 Kids program and turned a library into Esperanza Community Bike Shop, where “kids could learn to be mechanics, kids could just have a space to hang out and be safe,” according to his daughter Angelina. It was “a community center,” she explained.

Oh, and Malagodi created a bicycle safety curriculum for elementary and junior high students. That makes his death tragically ironic:  A driver struck him less than a mile from his home and took off.

That, after he’d spent a Saturday afternoon fixing up bicycles to give to children. His friend Mike Lucero offered him a ride home. “I’ll ride my bike,” Chuck demurred.

In addition to his daughter and wife, Chuck Malagodi leaves behind hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of children who received bikes and bike safety training from him, and kids and adults he introduced to the joys of cycling and other outdoor activities. And, one can assume that most, if not all, had family, friends, neighbors, classmates and co-workers.

If and when the driver of the pickup truck is caught, I want more than a punishment. I want that driver to understand, to feel, the hole he/she/they tore, not only in Albuquerque’s cycling and outdoor recreation communities, but in whatever other communities—families, networks of friends, neighborhoods, schools, workplaces—of which they are part.