By Jen Benepe
Billy Dominguez was killed early Monday morning in Georgetown, SC, by a young male driver driving a pickup truck.
The 43-year-old had started out in the early morning when he was struck by the Ford truck driver in the northbound lanes of U.S. 17 near the bridges at the entrance to the city of Georgetown, SC. said Bob Beebe, public information officer for Midway Fire, which responded to the scene.
Dominguez’s girlfriend, Adrienne Rasmussen of Fort Lee, NJ said that he was on his way back to New Jersey after having bicycled out to see his parents in Florida, a total of 1.071 miles.
The crash is being investigated according to Beebe, and no word so far on how it might have occurred. But Dominguez was an unusual person for more than one reason: he was autistic but had traveled to every state on his bicycle.
“He used to say, ‘I am a nomad,'” said Rasmussen. The last time she saw him was just after Hurricane Sandy, she said, before he left for Florida on his Trek road bike.
“I have ridden to every state except Arkansas,” wrote Dominguez on his Facebook site. ” And every province except Manitoba, Quebec, Newfoundland, and the lowest Territories.”
Dominguez had bicycled from Michigan to California and back he wrote. The Detroit. MI native also had attended the University of Michigan computer studies program and was a cancer survivor said Rasmussen.
But what he really loved was cycling. On a good day he rode 120 miles. One of his favorite rides was from Fort Lee, NJ to Piermont, NY to visit the Piermont Bicycle Connection.
Dominguez’s autism had no effect on his bicycle riding, said Rasmussen. Autism, a developmental disorder, is largely considered to be a congenital condition. In Dominguez’s case, it had no effect on his physical ability to ride his bicycle.
“He was going to teach me how to ride a bike and we were going to take trips together,” said Rasmussen, breaking into tears. “He was also going to teach me how to play chess.”
Rasmussen would like to talk to the driver, she said and tell him “He took away my Billy’s life. I want him to feel really bad.”
William Carlos Dominguez is survived by his parents who live in Leesburg, Florida.
