On June 14, 2018, when almost at the halfway mark of the 4,208-mile Trans Am Bike Race from Oregon to Virginia, Minnesotan cyclist John Egbers was struck from behind, in broad daylight, by a car driven by Mr Angel Labra. The weather that day was clear, and the road was straight and dry. Three weeks later, John's heart stopped beating.
Mr Labra's excuse was that he was distracted by the nearby fields. The Kansas Highway Patrol and the Wichita County Sheriff's Office failed to charge Mr Labra, and Wichita County Attorney Laura Lewis agreed with them that John's death was just a tragic accident. In doing so, she failed to hold the driver accountable for his actions or to deliver justice for John, his wife and their family.
That same week two other competitors in the race were also struck from behind by Kansan drivers - Englishman Ash Sharp and American T.C. Cheng. While Ash made a full recovery, T.C. struggles daily with life-changing spinal injuries.
In telling their stories, Diminished By One celebrates their love of cycling and the friendships that develop in races like the Trans Am Bike Race. It is also a testament to how the human spirit can triumph over adversity.