2 cyclists killed in Florida

http://sunone.com/apps/pbcs.dll/arti...OCAL/202080340


Article published Feb 8, 2004
RETIRED UF PROFESSOR, STEPSON
2 area cyclists killed near High Springs
The driver was arrested and charged with leaving the scene of the accident.

A retired University of Florida professor and his stepson, who had just left
Gainesville for a round-trip bike ride to Georgia, were killed Saturday
morning when their bicycles were hit by a vehicle whose driver appeared
impaired, state police said.

Gainesville resident Gustavo A. Antonini, 66, and Jupiter resident William
W. Cupples, 42, were pronounced dead at the scene.

They had been riding north in the bike lane on State Road 45, just north of
NW 46th Avenue near High Springs, when a 1979 Chevy pickup traveling in the
same direction drifted to the right and struck them at 8:55 a.m., according
to the Florida Highway Patrol.

At the scene of the accident, two gray bicycle helmets rested side by side
several feet from a mangled mess of tires and metal.

It was Antonini's birthday on Saturday.
Charles Ray Porter, 46, of Alachua, was arrested and charged shortly after
he fled the accident and lost control of his vehicle when he struck a
neighborhood crime watch sign, FHP Lt. Mike Burroughs said. His pickup had
flipped about 3.5 miles north of the accident scene along SR 45.

After complaining of an injury, Porter was taken to the North Florida
Regional Medical Center where he was waiting to be evaluated Saturday
evening. He was later booked into the Alachua County jail on two counts of
leaving the scene of a traffic crash involving death, according to Sheriff's
Office records.

Burroughs said investigators are looking into whether drugs or alcohol
played a part in the crash.

"There is a suspicion of impairment," the lieutenant said. "Where that
impairment was derived from we're not totally sure as of yet. We feel that
it is a controlled substance other than alcohol."

A blood alcohol specimen was taken and sent to the Florida Department of Law
Enforcement for analysis, Burroughs said. Results are expected within 10 to
14 days.

If test results show Porter was impaired or under a controlled substance,
"it is highly likely that we will review upgrading his charges to DUI
manslaughter," Burroughs said.

According to court records, Porter has been arrested on more than a dozen
charges since 1980, including worthless checks, possession of marijuana,
grand theft, dumping industrial substance and battery.

He has been found guilty of writing a worthless check in 2001, use or
possession of drug paraphernalia in 1995 and theft in 1995, according to
records.

"We're fortunate to have caught him this quickly," said FHP Sgt. David
Roberts.

For friends and family members of both men, however, the arrest provided
little consolation. But at least they died doing what they loved, some said.

"We like to think it was a fast death," said Deborah Cupples, Gustavo's
stepdaughter and William's sister. "They were doing what they liked, and
they liked being together doing it."

Deborah Cupples, 38, said the men had been on the road early Saturday
morning for a 190-mile ride organized by the Gainesville Cycling Club. They
were part of a group of 30 or more riders headed for the Georgia border,
with a lunch stop planned at Lake City Community College.

"My mother was going to bring them soup and bread," she said, "but they
never called."

Instead, Cupples said, state troopers came to her mother's house in
northeast Gainesville and reported that the two had been hit and killed.

Antonini, who retired from UF in 2000 after 30 years with the university,
was a Florida Sea Grant professor emeritus and expert in water management,
according to a UF colleague, Bob Swett. In 2000, he was presented with a
leadership award by the governor's Council for Sustainable Florida, Swett
said.

His stepson worked for Florida Power and Light.

For years, Antonini and William Cupples had turned their enjoyment of
cycling into a full-blown passion. In retirement, Antonini had even begun
putting as many as 200 miles per week into the pedals.

"When we went to Atlanta over Christmas he took his bike with him," his
stepdaughter said. "This was a real serious part of him."

Jim Wilson, who had organized the cycling club's ride, said the accident was
further proof that biking can be a dangerous sport.

"You certainly have that sort of view when something like this happens."

In 2001, the latest year for which statistics have been compiled, Alachua
County had four bike fatalities. It was surpassed only by counties with much
larger populations - Palm Beach with 11, Miami-Dade with 10 and Hillsborough
with nine. Leon County, which is similar in size and demographics to
Alachua, had no fatalities.

Statistics show that Alachua County also has a high per-capita rate of bike
accidents with 102 in 2001, the lowest number in several years. But Leon
County had only 41 in 2001 and has consistently fewer than Alachua County.

Greg Bruno can be reached at (352) 374-5026 or greg.bruno@ gvillesun.com.