PEMBERTON — The two men killed by an alleged drunk driver on the Sea-to-Sky Highway this weekend 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 on Highway 99 about 60 kilometres northwest of Whistler. A passenger in the vehicle was also killed in the crash.
“It’s going to be a shock to the cycling community all over the Sea-to-Sky Highway,” 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.”
Chafe had young children and travelled frequently for his work in business development for a flag company. Blunden’s children were young adults. He worked in IT for the municipality.
“It is definitely a big blow,” Baker said.
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.
In lieu of the club’s usual Tuesday night ride, a grief counsellor will speak to members about their loss.
A third cyclist was riding slightly behind Blunden and Chafe when they were struck, but his condition is unknown. Baker said the three men had just finished a steep 14-kilometre climb and were coasting back down the winding road when the collision happened.
“I could hardly sleep all night, so I imagine he would be just devastated,” Baker said of the surviving cyclist.
The driver of the car was airlifted to hospital in Vancouver with a police officer at his side.
