{"id":275669,"date":"2026-05-18T21:20:08","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T21:20:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/275669\/"},"modified":"2026-05-18T21:20:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T21:20:08","slug":"alleged-drunk-driver-nearly-hits-ironman-participants-before-florida-officers-stop-him","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/275669\/","title":{"rendered":"Alleged drunk driver nearly hits Ironman participants before Florida officers stop him"},"content":{"rendered":"

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (CBS12) \u2014 A suspected drunk driver drove into the Ironman Jacksonville race course Saturday afternoon, nearly hitting runners and cyclists before officers stopped him.<\/p>\n

The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office<\/a> said it happened around 4:30 p.m., on May 16, near the 5 Points area, where athletes were in the middle of the cycling portion of the race. Officers already stationed along the route quickly noticed something was wrong. A vehicle was driving straight into lanes clearly set aside for competitors.<\/p>\n

JSO said that the driver did not just wander in by mistake. He kept going and ignored commands to stop, which forced DUI and traffic units nearby to respond.<\/p>\n

As officers followed the car, the situation became even more alarming. The sheriff’s office said bodycam showed the driver coming close to hitting several athletes, who were focused on the race and likely did not expect a car to be in their path.<\/p>\n

\"{p}A<\/p>\n

A suspected drunk driver, identified as Darrell Simon, was arrested after entering the Ironman Jacksonville race route and nearly hitting participants. (JSO) <\/p>\n

The vehicle continued toward Riverside Park, one of the busier stretches of the course, packed with spectators. Officers determined they needed to act quickly to prevent anyone from getting hurt.<\/p>\n

DUI Officer Ernesto Valerio used a PIT maneuver, a tactic designed to safely stop a moving vehicle. The maneuver worked, bringing the car to a stop. Officers said they then moved in and took the driver into custody.<\/p>\n

No one was injured.<\/p>\n

See also: Mother performs CPR after toddler found in Palm Beach Gardens pond, PBSO says<\/a><\/p>\n

The driver was identified as 62-year-old Darrell Simon. He faces eight felony charges along with nearly a dozen misdemeanors and traffic violations. Police say this is his third DUI arrest in the past 10 years.<\/p>\n

\"{p}Police<\/p>\n

Police say Darrell Simon drove into the Ironman Jacksonville course while impaired, nearly hitting athletes before officers used a PIT maneuver to end the threat. (JSO) <\/p>\n

The Jacksonville Sheriff\u2019s Office says the incident highlights why road closures are necessary during major events like Ironman Jacksonville. While some drivers may have been frustrated by delays, those precautions are meant to protect athletes and spectators.<\/p>\n

Investigators say the outcome could have been much worse without the quick response from officers.<\/p>\n

The investigation remains ongoing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (CBS12) \u2014 A suspected drunk driver drove into the Ironman Jacksonville race course Saturday afternoon, nearly…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":275670,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[28,30,29],"class_list":["post-275669","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275669","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=275669"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/275669\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/275670"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=275669"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=275669"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=275669"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}