PHOENIX — A family and community is remembering and honoring beloved cyclist Rob Dollar who died nearly five years ago.
On Sunday morning, nearly 300 cyclists came out to ride down a mountain Rob did so often: South Mountain.
“Celebrating Rob’s memory. Rob died on this mountain, and it wasn’t his fault,” said John Dollar, Rob’s father.
Rob, who was 36 at the time, took a bike ride down South Mountain when Annaleah Dominguez hit him with her car. Dominguez was 19 years old at the time of the crash, and she admitted to being under the influence.
Since Rob’s death, his family created the Rob Dollar Foundation. It was an organization he wanted to create himself but couldn’t. Every year since 2017, the foundation and the cycling community hold a ride in his honor on the mountain. However, this year, it felt different.
That’s because the family feels they finally received some sort of closure now that Dominguez was convicted.
A little more than a week ago, a judge sentenced Dominguez to three years in prison for his death.
“It’s been brutal to tell you the truth. It’s been very difficult dealing with the sentencing,” John said.
Kim Rendek, who used to cycle with Rob, said Sunday’s ride felt different to her, too.
“It’s very emotional for a lot of people. People finally have some closure that they need now that she’s behind bars. I think that is the closure some people were looking for. This ride is meaningful for a lot of reasons,” she said.
“When something like this happens, where somebody loses their life through a tragic accident and through cycling, we all want to support each other and raise awareness for the safety of cyclists and athletes in general,” said Brad Large, who is also a cyclist.
Some who went on the memorial ride didn’t know Rob, but felt they needed to be there to support the cycling community. They still feel it’s still not safe enough for them to be on the road sometimes.
“When you see a bike on the side of the road, it’s not just a bike. It’s an actual person. It’s someone’s father, mother, son, uncle, brother, sister, give them three feet. The law says when you pass them, you’ve got to give them three feet,” John reiterated.
The foundation will continue the work to educate people on cycling safety while remembering Rob each year on his favorite mountain.
“I’ve ridden the mountain three times with his mountain bike after the event. I don’t know what kind of enjoyment he got out of it, because I don’t get no enjoyment out of it. I know he’s looking down and he’s laughing and giving us a thumbs up,” John said.
John says the foundation continues to grow, even seeing a record of nearly 300 people coming out to do the ride. For the fifth anniversary, John said they were able to give out 25 free bikes to kids as well as 100 helmets to promote bicycling safety.
