toledoblade.com --

For South Toledo resident Dean Weygandt, motorcycle drag-racers have been an annoyance for as long as he can remember.

“[They’re] like a pack of bees,” said Mr. Weygandt, a motorcyclist himself, whose home sits along the wide, open stretch of the Anthony Wayne Trail. “You could just see them flying 100 miles per hour.”

On Sunday, drag racing for Kenneth Jones turned deadly.

Jones

Zoom | Photo Reprints

Police estimated the 34-year-old newlywed was going between 118 and 131 mph when he crashed about 8:45 p.m. along the Trail near South Avenue. Pronounced dead at the scene, Mr. Jones became Toledo’s fifth motorcyclist to die on city streets this year.

It’s a grim and growing statistic, and one reflected both in statewide and national numbers. Deaths among motorcycle riders nationwide last year continued a nine-year upswing, increasing by 5.1 percent over 2005 — even as overall motor vehicle fatalities decreased nearly 2 percent to the nation’s lowest level in five years, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Though injury and fatal accidents involving motorcycles dropped slightly last year in Michigan and Ohio, those rates are still higher than they were just two years earlier.

Speeding is often to blame, but experts say they are unable to pinpoint a reason for the steady increase in motorcycle fatalities. “Sometimes, [motorcyclists] are intoxicated, sometimes they’re not. Sometimes someone pulls out in front of them. Sometimes they run into things. Sometimes it’s the road conditions,” said Dr. Cindy Beisser, a deputy Lucas County coroner.

Dean Weygandt has suffered bumps and bruises over the years, but he credits his helmet with saving his life.
( THE BLADE/ANDY MORRISON )

Zoom | Photo Reprints

“Most are [other drivers] who turn left in front of [motorcyclists] or pull out of private drives,” said Toledo police Officer Jason Brown, an accident investigator.

Michigan State Police Lt. Thad Peterson agreed.

Motorists easily overlook oncoming motorcycles because of their size and the often dark-colored bike and helmet that blend into the background, he said.

“Our brain isn’t trained to perceive a motorcycle coming. We are used to looking for cars, pickups, and semi-trucks,” he said.

According to investigators, Mr. Jones was riding with a group of motorcyclists, all of whom were traveling at extreme speeds. Original reports suggested that Mr. Jones’ bike and that of another rider’s might have glanced off each other, but it wasn’t clear, Officer Brown said.

The accident sent the motorcycle careening 1,094 feet, and Mr. Jones’s body rolling with such force that, according to one witness, “parts of clothing appeared to be flying from his body.”

Bill Cox gives instructions to students, from left, Kim Shelton, Crissy Dansak, and Brenda O’Shea during a riding session at Owens Community College.
( THE BLADE/AMY E. VOIGT )

Zoom | Photo Reprints

The other riders have not been charged, though the investigation continues.

More motorcycles
There’s another set of numbers that is likely driving up the motorcycle accident statistics: sales.

The number of registered motorcycles nationwide increased in 2004 to more than 5.78 million, which was a jump of more than 410,000 bikes compared to the previous year, according to the NHTSA report.

Additionally, the average age of bike owners has also risen. In 2003, more than 25 percent of motorcycles were owned by people 50 years old and older compared to just 10.1 percent in 1990, the report also shows.

Zoom | Photo Reprints

“When you put more motorcycles in the mix, it’s not surprising you see an increase in fatalities,” said Anne Readett, spokesman for Michigan’s Office of Highway Safety Planning. “As all of us get older, it becomes more difficult to survive crashes.”

The helmet issue
Michigan is one of 20 states that require all motorcyclists to wear a helmet. Ohio only requires motorcyclists to wear helmets if they are under age 18 or have less than one year’s experience.

But helmets, especially at excessive speeds, don’t always help. Mr. Jones suffered massive head and neck injuries, Dr. Beisser said.

“A helmet won’t keep your neck from breaking,” she noted.

Still, riders wearing helmets are 37 percent less likely to die or be seriously injured, according to a NHTSA report.

“A very minor accident can become very major if you strike your unprotected head on the wrong thing,” Lieutenant Peterson said. “The helmet suffers the major trauma. It sacrifices itself to protect your head.”

That’s why people like Mr. Weygandt insist on a helmet.

While on his way to a funeral about 10 years ago, Mr. Weygandt said he misjudged the direction of a curve on an off-ramp, tried to correct it, but hit some loose stones, catapulting him over the bike’s handlebars.

He credits the helmet with saving his life.

Zoom | Photo Reprints

“It was the difference of getting up and brushing myself off or going to the morgue,” he said.

Still, Mr. Weygandt, a biker for about 30 years, doesn’t agree with mandatory motorcycle helmet laws. It should be each individual’s choice, he said.

Mr. Weygandt has suffered minor bumps and bruises over the years. But he said he’s escaped serious injuries by playing it safe — for starters, he doesn’t drag race — and acting as though he’s “invisible” on the road.

VICTIMS OF 2007 TOLEDO MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENTS

In addition to Ken Jones, four motorcyclists have died on Toledo’s streets this year. In at least three of the accidents, another driver was faulted by authorities.

• Frankie Hunt, Jr., 32, of Toledo, died after a pickup pulled into a lane and struck a second motorcyclist near Mr. Hunt at Burnham Avenue and Laskey Road shortly after 9 p.m. March 24. Mr. Hunt
tried to avoid the first collision and lost control. He was not wearing a helmet. His injuries included a fractured neck. The 22-year-old driver of the truck pleaded no contest to recklessly operating a motor vehicle and paid a $150 fine and $78 in court costs.

• Jeff Murray, a 38-year-old Toledoan, was northbound on Jackman Road when a southbound pickup turned in front of him about 10:30 p.m. April 20. He was wearing a helmet . His injuries included a ruptured aorta. The driver of the truck has been charged with negligent vehicular homicide.

• Lamonte Layson, 25, of City Park Avenue, was westbound on Central Avenue about 10:30 p.m. June 12 when, according to police, a 16-year-old driver drifted into his lane to turn left. Mr. Layson was not wearing a helmet. The cause of Mr. Layson’s death was blunt force injuries to the neck and chest. The teenager has been charged with vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of the accident.

• Jerold Milks, a 53-year-old Erie, Mich., man apparently didn’t see a stopped Ohio Department of Transportation truck along I-475 near Central Avenue about 11:15 p.m. July 23. He braked and lost control
of his bike, police said. He was wearing a helmet . The cause of death was listed as internal decapitation.

“I pretend like I have no rights whatsoever,” he said. “I try to get in the heads of everyone around me and figure out what they’re going to do.”

Safety courses
Others take classes to learn how to safely drive a motorcycle.

Last month, Owens Community College began offering a three-day motorcycle safety course to riders. Financed by a $270,500 grant from Motorcycle Ohio, the sessions offer training on defensive driving, how to maneuver motorcycles in tight spaces, and staying out of motorists’ blind spots, among other skills.

Bill Cox, a rider coach with the newly formed program, said the students enrolled in the safety class don’t want to become part of the increasing numbers of motorcycle fatalities.

Although there is no way to guarantee a motorcyclist’s safety while riding, Mr. Cox said there are several ways to decrease the chance of being involved in an accident.

The problem is, he said, people don’t take the time to learn.

“Many people think it’s a bicycle with a motor on it,” he said. “They just jump on it and go.”

Contact Laren Weber at:lweber@theblade.com or 419-724-6064.

Permanent Link