Cyclist Killed By School Bus Remembered For Love Of Adventure
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Alan Grahn loved being active, even well into his 70s.
Family photos show him climbing, camping, skiing all over Minnesota, often with his grandchildren.
On Wednesday, Grahn was on his bike, headed home to Minneapolis after having lunch with some friends in St. Paul.
At the intersection of Summit and Snelling avenues, where bike paths and lanes of heavy traffic come together, Grahn died.
He was struck by a school bus.
"I was shocked and kinda sad, but in a way it's kinda nice he was doing something that he liked," said Dale Simon, a former co-worker of Grahn's. "He retired because he wanted to do more of those things."
Grahn and his wife opened Grahn's Upholstery shop in the Prospect Park neighborhood in the early 1970s.
He retired about four years ago.
"He enjoyed working with his hands," Simon said, adding that Grahn was up to try all sorts of different activities, especially those that involved the outdoors.
"He was in a climbing club, he used to climb up mountains," Simon said. "He'd go on trips, he'd bike here in the cities."
On Thursday, people left flowers at the scene of the crash and dropped by the shop Grahn owned for 40 years, paying their respects and sharing their sadness.
"I know there's lots of good drivers, but people don't pay attention," said Joe Berens, a cyclist. "And I drive. I know you are not always looking."
St. Paul Police are reviewing video from cameras on the school bus and statements from witnesses.
They also interviewed the driver of the school bus, 80-year-old Leland Jacobs.
