Just passing on some sad news of Todd Martin from an FWBA ride this morning.  For those that knew Todd, he was a joy to ride with (if you could keep up), and a great person to be around.  What a great loss.
 
Steve
 
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Subject: [FWBA] Todd Martin's accident this mornig may not be caused by an automobile
   
This morning Todd Martin was found along side the road and was not alive. Please do not jump to conclusions. The bike does not appear to be damaged as would be the case if he was hit by a car. The police are doing a forensic check and we may know something later.  Right now we just need to reflect on how we knew Todd.

This is unbelievable. Only one week ago, I was cheering him on from my corner at TTTT, as he raced by every lap. Here is what Betty Brown posted on the FWBA yahoo group:
 
 
Jerry and I just now returned home from our ride in Peaster today.  What started out as a fabulous day turned into a very tragic day.  Here is what we know, which is not much.  Todd rode out fast and we think he was out in front.  We have 3 hills right away on Precinct road.  Todd had only rode just under two miles when his bike went off the road on the opposite side.  We had a big group of approximately 50 riders and we think everyone was behind him and no one saw him go off the road.  Where it happened there was a bend and the start of the 3rd hill on that road just past a small bridge.  If anyone riding out front remembers seeing anything, please let us know.  His bike landed a good ways off the road and he was not as far away but could not be seen from the road as he was down in a culvert of sorts.  Also the bike was not visible from that direction.  We rode back in on that same road.  Jerry was sweeping the ride and two miles before the finish a motorist stopped Jerry and told him about seeing the bike off the road.  Jerry went back to investigate and he found Todd but did not know then that it was him.   He called 911.  He realized after looking at the bike that it was Todd.  This was very devastating for Jerry as he and Todd are very good friends.  It was Jerry who first introduced Todd to the FWBA several years ago.  To have it happen on our ride only made it even more devastating for us.    
 
The investigators on the scene were very kind and helpful.  There was no visible damage to Todd’s bike and no indication on the road of any type of collision.  It is odd that he was on the opposite of the road as Todd was a very experienced and safe rider and he always rode on the right side of road.  The medical examiners could not determine the cause at the scene.  Once we get more information from the ME’s office we will let you know.  Jerry apologizes to the many people that tried to call him today and did not reach him.  He was devastated and he had to stay until the investigation concluded because he was basically the only witness to finding him.  Thank you to all those many folks that stayed and waited for us and thanks to Jerry Franks for the prayer for Todd.  You are a great group and Jerry really appreciated the support.
 
I will have to say again thank goodness for the sign in sheets.  Todd had listed his father in Ohio as his emergency contact and we had a number for him.  Without the sign in sheets, we would have had no way of knowing.  They sent officers in Ohio to personally notify his dad.  We are thankful for that.  Jerry will try to reach his dad tomorrow,
 
Jerry would also like to personally talk to Todd’s good riding friend Robert.  We do not have his last name or a number for him.  If anyone has that please let us know.  
 
All we can do in the meantime is remember Todd and pray that he did not suffer.  He was a great guy and a staple of the FWBA and the Lone Star Randonneurs.  He was always quick to help out anyone in need.  We will miss him dearly.  
 
Betty

Subject: [FWBA] Informal Gathering to Memorialize Todd Martin at 4 pm Today
 
  We are gathering today at the large covered pavilion at River Legacy Park at 4:00 pm to remember our beloved friend Todd Martin.  We chose River Legancy because if you knew Todd, you knew he loved to ride his bike at River Legacy Park, rain or shine.  He would probably be out there today in the rain, so we will remember him there instead.  There is parking near the pavilion, and there is seating, but it may be wet,so bring towels or you can bring your own dry camp chairs.  Also dress for the wet weather as it could be worse by this afternoon.   Go into the main entrance of the park on Green Oaks Blvd and take the first left.  There is a sign pointing to the pavilion which is at the back.  Someone, please post this on the LSR group and pass this on to anyone you know who may not be on this group.  Thanks for all your support.

Quote from aikigreg on Oct 3^rd, 2009, 9:36pm:

 
Todd's family was almost exclusively those with whom he rode bicycles.  We were lucky to know him.
shellene

Keep an eye on lonestarrandon.org.  The pictures that are normally cycling through on the main page have been replaced with some shots of Todd during rides and other stuff.
 
Steve

Here's a quick tribute page that's been put up at the Time Trial site:
 
http://tt24tt.com/todd_martin/
 
Anyone that has any "Todd" stories, feel free to post them up on the LoneStarRandon discussion list.  There's a few going around already.
 
Steve

Is it weird that I'm glad to know it wasn't just another hit and run?

Quote:

 
No Greg, I've been praying it wasn't a car, I'm sick of the death toll to cars.  
 
-- Nelson.