A Bay Area scientist who was inducted into the Dipsea Race Hall of Fame this month was killed in a road crash in Nevada.
Edward Wesley Hildreth, 86, of Menlo Park was traveling on State Route 360 on Thursday morning about 30 miles south of Mina, according to the Nevada State Police. He was a passenger in a 2012 Chevrolet Tahoe.
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The collision happened when a 2021 Kenworth semi-truck with a refrigerated box trailer approached from behind, the state police said.
“The semi-truck entered the southbound number one travel lane to pass the Chevrolet Tahoe,” the agency said in a crash summary. “The Chevrolet Tahoe made a left turn, crossing the southbound number one travel lane to access a dirt road. The semi-truck’s front left struck the back left of the Chevrolet Tahoe, causing the Chevrolet Tahoe to rotate.”
Edward Wesley Hildreth
The Chevrolet came to rest on its wheels on the shoulder of the road. Authorities pronounced Mr. Hildreth dead and took the driver to a hospital for treatment of serious injuries.
The driver of the semi-truck, who was not injured, was booked into jail in Mineral County. The driver’s name and the booking offenses were not available Monday.
The state police said a homicide team has been assigned to the case.
Mineral County District Attorney Kenneth Tedford said the investigation is ongoing and no charges had been filed as of Monday.
Police did not release the name of the Chevrolet Tahoe driver.
Mr. Hildreth, known by the name Wes, was a former geologist with the U.S. Geological Service office in Menlo Park. He specialized in volcanos.
Mr. Hildreth grew up in Mill Valley and graduated from Tamalpais High School in 1956, according to a cousin, Guy Ashley. Mr. Hildreth was a nephew of Beth Ashley, the late Independent Journal columnist.
Mr. Hildreth obtained a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and a doctoral degree from the University of California at Berkeley.
Mr. Hildreth’s survivors include his wife Gail Mahood, a retired Stanford University geology professor, and his sister Deborah Hildreth Mills of Petaluma, Ashley said.
A younger brother, Bruce Hildreth, died previously. He was a longtime softball coach at the Branson School in Ross.
The Dipsea Race Foundation recently named Mr. Hildreth and Bill Ferlatte as 2025 hall of fame inductees, honoring them at a dinner in Sausalito on June 6.
Mr. Hildreth finished the race in the top 10 in eight events between 1955 and 1972. He placed fifth overall in 1957, 1960 and 1962.