‘They saw me begging for help’, bicyclist seriously injured after hit and run, now looking for driver

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) - Colorado State Patrol is investigating a hit and run incident, which has left a Widefield cyclist battling serious injuries, and he now wants help finding the person responsible.

34-year-old William Dolphin has ridden bicycles for thousands of hours in his life, and even owns his own cycling-related business in Colorado Springs.

The Widefield resident says that he was on a ride along Old Pueblo Road when a car struck him from behind. It's a road that Dolphin says is widely trusted by the cycling community, including Olympic athletes who use the route for training.

"They saw me on the ground. They saw me begging for help in tears and still chose to drive off." explained Dolphin. "I pretty much immediately thought my back was broken."

After calling 911 himself, Dolphin learned he had broken a few vertebrae, along with his right hip, and shoulder, an incident he says he feels lucky to have escaped.

"It would be much more likely for me to die than to have lived in that scenario." said Dolphin, citing the death of 17-year-old Magnus White, a U.S Cycling hopeful, when he was struck in a very similar fashion on the side of a road in Boulder during July of 2023.

Dolphin also explained that Colorado state patrol are looking for the driver of what appears to be a 2006-2013 Chevrolet Impala, with damage to the front passenger side headlight and bumper.

"I very clearly remember rolling backwards, kind of on to the car and then being thrown forward. So, I mean, it really it happened all at once. And it was very surprising because I didn't hear braking. I didn't hear acceleration. Those are normally the warning signs of something's about to happen." said Dolphin.

With years as a semi-pro cyclist, and even a bike messenger in San Francisco, Dolphin says he's never felt less safe riding his bike, than his time living in El Paso County.

"The person who is driving a car that's 5,000 pounds, versus me on a 15 pound bicycle -- has more of a responsibility." argued Dolphin.

He wants remind drivers to avoid using their phone, slowing down while passing a biker, and overall respecting those on two wheels, especially considering the rise in E-Bike usage in Colorado.

"We're going to see more people on the roads. These are your teachers, these are your mothers, these are your grandmothers, these are your children, and not everybody has the same skills I do. And they have an equal right to use the road as every motorist." said Dolphin.