Lance Ringhaver Killed In U.S. 41 Crash

APOLLO BEACH, FL — One of the men responsible for helping bring Major League Baseball to Tampa Bay is dead following a crash on U.S. 41 in the Apollo Beach area Monday night.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Isbel Perez Guzman, 38, of Tampa was driving a semi-truck eastbound on Towaway Avenue around 8:30 p.m. At that time, Lance C. Ringhaver, 76, of Apollo Beach, was heading south on U.S. 41 in the center lane. Trooper say Guzman failed to complete a left turn in one motion, resulting in the truck’s trailer blocking all southbound lanes.

Guzman, a highway patrol report noted, did not notice Ringhaver’s Infinity due to low lighting. The front of Ringhaver’s vehicle struck the left side of the trailer. The Infinity ultimately came to final rest under the trailer.

Ringhaver died at the scene, the highway patrol said. Guzman was ticketed for failing to yield the right of way.

Ringhaver was a minority owner in the Tampa Bay Rays, the former chairman of the Tampa Port Authority and served as chairman of RPC Inc., the parent company of Ringhaver Equipment and Ring Power.

Photo courtesy of the Florida Highway Patrol

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