Cyclist Raising Money For Children Battling Cancer Struck, Killed

Authorities say a man making a cross-country trip on a recumbent bicycle to raise money for children with cancer was struck and killed on a Mississippi highway.

James Dobson, of Lebanon, Maine, started in New Hampshire on Oct. 1 for the Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth-Hitchcock. His goal was to ride 60 miles daily, to San Diego.

The Mississippi Highway Patrol said the 32-year-old Dobson was on Highway 98 west of Hattiesburg on Tuesday afternoon when he was struck from behind by a car. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The accident is under investigation.

Keith Loud, the hospital’s physician in chief, said in a statement he was moved not only by Dobson’s dedication, but the courage it took to ride across the country in an effort to give back.