Near Lockwood Park on the Crabtree Creek Trail, the greenway leaves the side of the creek for about a mile. The trail climbs 65 feet over about a tenth of a mile, curving sharply near the top of the hill. From the apex, the trail descends roughly the same elevation over two tenths of a mile with a curve at the end of the descent – when cyclists typically reach maximum speed.
On the evening of July 29, 2019, a young woman was riding down the hill but wasn’t able to make the turn and hit the tree at the bottom of the hill. She was wearing a bike helmet, but the impact was too great, and she lost her life.
This memorial is maintained by her family in her memory. For all cyclists, the memorial is a sobering reminder that, while there are no cars on the greenway system, there are other perils. Sweetgum balls, wet bridges, wet leaves, and hills with curves, are among the potential perils for a rider – even on a route as seemingly safe as a greenway.