Local physician says he and his wife were shot at on RCR 27, while cycling

August 12, 2024 Shannon Lukens

By Shannon Lukens.

Local physician, Dr. Alexander Meininger, says he and his wife were shot at recently, while biking on Routt County Road 27.

It was on a Sunday morning, July 21. They were about 20 feet apart when they heard loud pops. Dr. Meininger’s wife saw the shots ricochet off the shoulder of the road.

“My wife said it was a near-death experience claiming that it was pretty scary and bullets resonating at us was somewhat terrifying. I think it represents a peak in the animosity between cyclists and the rural community which I’d like more people to know about, how severe it has gotten or what we’re dealing with out there, that we’re at risk that someone could get hurt.”

Dr. Meininger is a physician with Steamboat Orthopaedic & Spine Institute in Steamboat Springs.

Routt County Sheriff Doug Scherar confirms there were definitely gunshots.

“The Routt County Sheriff’s Office definitely believes that there were gunshots in the area. We just don’t have enough evidence to prove whether they were harassing in nature or whether they were ricochets from somebody shooting in the vicinity.”

Animosity towards cyclists is also a concern for Amy Charity, the co-founder of the SBT GRVL ride, which is this Sunday. Race organizers have listened to concerns and frustrations from rural residents about all of the cyclists on county roads during the SBT GRVL ride. Charity says they’ve increased safety, bike traffic is only one-way on a road now, all cyclists will be off County Road 44 by 9:30 a.m. instead of late afternoon as in years past, and they’ve done an extensive campaign to educate their riders.

“The SBT GRVL team has dedicated the past year to increasing the safety out on course. We have done several things from making the course to no two-way bike traffic, which will make it easier for people to get in and out of their homes. The new courses are much more rural so they go out towards Hayden and Oak Creek, so they are more rural than what they were previously. We’re off of the busy roads, like 44, by 9:30 a.m. In the past, we were on 44 up until 7 p.m. so that’s a significant change of where we know that there’s a higher population. We’ve also really done a campaign to educate our riders and that campaign is about being good stewards of cycling. That includes the rules of the roads, staying on the right-hand side of the road, using Portalets when out on course and treating everyone out there with respect, whether it’s somebody who is walking, driving, on a bike, no matter what their doing, just understanding that we’re sharing these roads.”

Despite the efforts, Charity says signs have gone up around the county that are against the gravel race.

“It seems that when riders don’t feel welcome, some of them may consider what is the worse case scenario. So when there are a handful of rural residents that don’t want bikes to go by their homes, then the riders are concerned about their safety.”

Charity says she has received calls from cyclists, asking if it is safe to come to Steamboat. Three-thousand cyclists will be in one of four distances offered in the ride this year. The SBT GRVL ride is this Sunday.

Long version of the incident from Dr. Meininger.