The two men killed by an allegedly drunk driver on the Sea to Sky Highway on Sunday were both fathers and key figures in the Whistler cycling community.

Friends have confirmed that Ross Chafe and Kelly Blunden died Sunday afternoon after a car plowed into a group of cyclists out for a weekend ride about 60 kilometres northeast of Whistler. A passenger in the car was also killed, but he has not been identified.

“It’s going to be a shock to the cycling community all over the Sea to Sky (region),” said Gary Baker, vice-president of the Whistler Cycling Club. “You can do everything right, but if someone else drinks and drives, it could happen to anybody.”

The cyclists were struck head-on when the vehicle crossed the centre line of the highway.

Chafe had young children and travelled frequently for his work in business development for a flag company. Blunden’s children are young adults. He worked in IT for the municipality.

Both men were keen cyclists and very active in the club. Chafe was “instrumental” in securing non-profit status for the group, according to Baker. Blunden maintained the club’s website and had instituted a beginners’ road ride that stressed safety for novice riders.

A third cyclist was riding slightly behind Blunden and Chafe when they were struck. Baker said the three men had just finished a steep 14-kilometre climb east of Mount Currie and were coasting back down the winding road when the collision happened. Initial reports suggested that the third man was also struck, but RCMP Sgt. Rob Knapton said Monday that was incorrect and the cyclist was uninjured.

Whistler Mayor Nancy Wilhelm-Morden described the crash as devastating for the resort town. “We’re a small community. We’re a small town at heart, and to lose two community members like this is a huge tragedy,” she said.

The driver of the car was airlifted to hospital in Vancouver, accompanied by a police officer. His condition is unknown.

Police are investigating impaired driving as a “probable cause” of the crash, Knapton said, but officers will wait until lab analyses are complete to recommend charges.

The area where the collision happened has poor-to-nonexistent cellphone coverage, according to Knapton, and a witness had to drive away from the scene in order to call 911.

However, he added that it’s unlikely emergency workers would have been able to save the victims’ lives, even if they had been immediately alerted.