Memorial ride planned for St. Paul cyclist who died in crash
Updated: 2:11 p.m., May 14 | Posted: 4:15 p.m., May 13
A community of bicyclists is coming together to honor Alan Grahn, who died in a crash last week in St. Paul.
Grahn's family told MPR News the 75-year-old was an avid cyclist. He was cycling back to his Minneapolis home after lunch with friends at Dixie's on Grand in St. Paul on Wednesday when he collided with a school bus leaving Ramsey Middle School near Snelling and Summit avenues.
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Local cyclists have organized a memorial ride for this Wednesday. They'll gather at 6:30 p.m. at the empty parking lot of the former Wild Onion, 788 Grand Ave. in St. Paul, and head out at 7 p.m. to bike to the intersection where Grahn died.
Organizers moved the location of the event from Dixie's due to the number of participants expected.
The ride is intended to remember Grahn "and all other cyclists who have been killed while cycling on public roadways," organizers said online. "This memorial ride is happening at the same time as the Ride of Silence so we will honor all of those lost by riding in silence."
A "ghost bike" will be at the intersection of Snelling and Summit, and riders can bring memorials to leave with the bike before continuing to "an end point that was very special to Alan Grahn."
Authorities said it wasn't immediately clear who had the right of way before the collision last week. The crash remains under investigation.