Dan Carrigan

We were saddened by the sudden passing of Cycling Savvy Instructor Dan Carrigan on January 30, 2021. Dan died unexpectedly at his home in Yellow Springs, Ohio. We will miss Dan’s adventurous spirit, his discerning intellect and his humorous outlook.

Dan’s contributions to cycling

Dan was a longtime board member of Ohio Bicycle Federation, working with others on the 2006 Better Bicycling Bill, which improved the traffic laws for Ohio cyclists, and contributing to other programs and services of OBF. He made contributions to the cycling community in his hometown of Yellow Springs, encouraging city staff to erect Bicyclists may Use Full LaneL signs at the city limits, advising on safe infrastructure for both cycling and walking, leading Safe Routes to School efforts, and leading a middle school program called “Into the Wild”, a 3-day bicycle adventure with some writing, arithmetic, history and a whole lot of physical activity.

Dan’s career

Dan had a varied career in photography and library science. He worked for many years in the research library at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, commuting daily by bicycle from Yellow Springs. Dan was a bicycle educator, first as a League of American Bicyclists instructor and later as a Cycling Savvy Instructor. Dan attended the “I am Traffic” conferences in Orlando and St. Louis, andwas thrilled to be able to meet the leaders in bicycle education. I was fortunate to travel with Dan to both conferences and in Ohio to teach CyclingSavvy. The time would fly as we discussed bicycle advocacy and politics, for which we held similar views. Since Dan wasn’t on Facebook, he would call me regularly to talk about the latest bicycle news. I will miss those amicable conversations.

A favorite memory will be riding the 50^th TOSRV with Dan in 2011. We didn’t often get to ride together, so I’m grateful we could ride the epic tour.

A warm tribute to Dan from his loving family can be read here.

A memorial for Dan will take place on July 10, Saturday at 1 pm at John Bryan State park, lower picnic shelter.

A note from Kate Carrigan, Dan’s wife:

I would be happy if some of Dan’s bike family could come. It’s a time to tell stories, to reminisce about those epic bike rides and Dan’s work with OBF and other bicycling passions. Dan’s love of cycling has a long history and was one of his greatest passions. You all were very important people to him in his cycling endeavors and I thank you for that.

Please let anyone else in your group who might want to attend know about this event.  Memorial donations in Dan’s name can be made to OBF or Yellow Springs Library Association. 

I hope you will join us to celebrate Dan’s life. I look forward to seeing and meeting you all.