Linh Ta

lta@dmreg.com

GLENWOOD, Ia. — A cyclist was killed in a collision with a pickup truck Sunday morning near Glenwood, at the 2-mile marker of U.S. Highway 34, according to the Iowa State Patrol.

Wayne Ezell, 72, of Jacksonville, Fla., was westbound when a pickup truck hit him from behind about 6:40 a.m., said Sgt. Nathan Ludwig, spokesman for the Iowa State Patrol.

Robb Philippus, 34, of Glenwood, was the driver of the truck. The Iowa State Patrol is investigating to determine whether any charges should be filed, Ludwig said.

"The driver was just going down the road and didn't see the biker," Ludwig said.

Ludwig said Ezell was participating in the Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa. Ezell was a retired editorial writer for The Florida Times-Union, the newspaper reported.

He worked at the Times-Union starting in 2011. He transitioned to become a part-time editorial writer in 2013 and later retired, according to the newspaper, and he continued to often write letters to the editor. The most recent one, published Sunday, was titled “I have become a Republican — and it feels good!"

“Wayne Ezell was the ultimate journalist. Reporter, editor, publisher, reader advocate and editorial writer, he personified the best in journalism. His passion for the profession never wavered,” Mike Clark, editorial page editor of the Times-Union, told the paper.

He was also a member of the North Florida Bicycle Club, according to its Facebook page.

This year marks the first time RAGBRAI held a "Mile of Silence" to remember those who were injured or killed while cycling. Riders were preparing for the mile when the fatal collision occurred, said T.J. Juskiewicz, RAGBRAI director.

"It is the ultimate irony," Juskiewicz said. "Here we are, putting together an event to remember those that have fallen, and to start off while people were probably riding the Mile of Silence, there was a cyclist struck and killed by a vehicle."

MORE ON BIKING IN CENTRAL IOWA:

Cyclists who die during the ride typically do so from a medical condition, Juskiewicz said. During the span of RAGBRAI, Juskiewicz said, the number of riders killed in a collision is in the single digits.

Nine cyclists have been killed in Iowa in 2016 — double the number from 2015 and the highest total since 2010.

"Our hearts and prayers go out to the family, friends and teammates of the cyclist we lost this morning," Juskiewicz said.

RAGBRAI set out from Glenwood on Sunday, and the route goes east and does not travel U.S. 34 until 10 miles into the ride.

In RAGBRAI's 44 years, about 30 people have died. A precise tally is difficult to compile because, in some cases, it's debatable whether the death was connected to the ride. Most recently, two riders died in 2014, one of a heart attack and the other of apparent natural causes.

In 2010, a rider suffered fatal injuries in a collision with another cyclist.

in 2014, Juskiewicz told author Greg Borzo, who wrote a book about RAGBRAI, that five people in the ride's history had been fatally injured in accidents on a bicycle.

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