Bixby Rolling Memorial to Shut Eastbound Lanes of Gerald Desmond Bridge This Morning

For one hour this morning, half of the Gerald Desmond Bridge will be closed to all vehicles while cyclists en masse make a farewell ride for someone who'd championed their very right to do so.

Friends who call each other "Freddies" said it was a very personal way of saying goodbye to Mark Bixby, scion of a founding Long Beach family who was killed with four others in last week's Long Beach Airport plane crash. 

The City of Long Beach tweeted a ''commuter alert'' warning eastbound bridge drivers to find an alternate route between 8:15 and 9:15 this morning. Bixby was a major force behind the city's bike-centric evolution (there is a cycling master plan and in the Shore, you can't miss the green-painted bike-car shared lanes. He effectively got the California Coastal Commission to take the lead in including a 15-feet-wide bike and pedestrian lane to be built into the planned Desmond replacement bridge.

And fellow Freddie and dear friend Walter Howard said the ability for people to gaze out over the water as they walk or ride high above Long Beach Harbor will be  Mark's legacy. He hopes to one day get the future replacement bridge named after Bixby.

The descendant of original Long Beach ranchers, Bixby will be remembered for many things to many different people, from husband, Dad and son, to real estate broker and sport enthusiast.

He was bound for a ski trip in Park City, Utah the morning of March 16 and was traveling with five other friends or business partners when, shortly after take-off, the plane crashed and burned on a runway. Bixby and four others, including plane owner Tom Dean, whose family lives in Naples; Dean's business partner Jeff Berger; their banker, and the pilot, were killed. Survivor Mike Jensen, who worked with Bixby in retail real estate and is a Naples resident, is recovering from serious injuries at the UC Irvine Burn Center in Orange.

His condition was said to be improving, according to family members who post messages on Caring Bridges daily.

This morning, the bicycle ride will deposit riders back at the U.S. Sailing Center beach, where a large crowd is expected to amass on the sand for a 10 a.m. service followed by a noon traditional Hawaiian paddle-out, in which those who bring their own kayak, surboard or other board may join in. Afterward, the family will go together for a private farewell.

For parking and other details, and a message to the public from Bixby's wife, click our last story.