The bicyclist who was killed by a cougar last weekend in Washington state had strong ties to Boston, was active in the city’s arts community, and pursued a doctorate at Boston University.

S.J. Brooks was also active in the Greater Boston bicycle community. For many years, Brooks served on the board of directors of Bikes Not Bombs and was a mechanic and staffer at the Cambridge landmark Broadway Bicycle, according to Brooks’ LinkedIn account.

“We at Bikes Not Bombs are sad to share that our beloved friend and former board member S.J. Brooks passed away this weekend,’’ the Jamaica Plain nonprofit posted on its Facebook page.

Authorities said Brooks, who was 32 and lived in Seattle, and Isaac Sederbaum, 31, were attacked while biking Saturday morning on a logging road about 30 miles outside Seattle.

Sederbaum “heard a scream from behind . . . and he looked back and he could see a cougar was pursuing them,’’ said Captain Alan Myers of the Washington state Department of Fish and Wildlife Police.

He said the two bicyclists tried to ride away from the cougar but realized they could not outpace an animal believed to be capable of running 30 miles per hour, Myers said in a telephone interview Tuesday.

Taking actions that match suggestions by state wild game experts, the two got off their bikes and shouted at the animal, and one swung a bike at it.

“They did everything right,’’ Myers said. “It seemed to work, and the animal ran into the bush.’’

But as the two friends were about to leave, the cougar burst out of the woods and attacked Sederbaum, latching onto his head and shaking him violently, Myers said.

At that point, Myers said, Brooks dropped the bicycle and ran away, but the cougar followed and killed Brooks, he said. Sederbaum pedaled 2 miles to get a cellular signal and called for help. Searchers found the cougar a short distance from the original attack site, standing over Brooks’s body.

Myers said a team of hunting dogs was called in, and the animal was tracked down and euthanized. The carcass has since been sent to a state lab for a necropsy and analysis, in the hope of determining why the animal attacked and caused the first fatal attack on a human in Washington since 1924.

As the news circulated Tuesday in Boston, friends of Brooks were mourning the tragic loss.

“We were shocked and saddened to hear about the death of S.J. Brooks,’’ the Boston Center for the Arts in the South End said in a Facebook message. “S.J. was a valued member of the BCA staff.’’

The organization described Brooks as a “kind-hearted, generous, and wonderfully creative person with a deep commitment to their work in the community. We extend our sincerest condolences to S.J.’s family and friends during this horrible time.’’