Rally fatality????

Connie and all, I have copied the entire message about the accident from Robert Fleischer that was posted at SCT.

From: "Robert Fleischer dba Fleischer's Service"
Date: Thu Jun 30, 2005 10:00 am
Subject: accident near USCA Rally site

As you all may by now know, there was an accident some miles
West of the USCA Rally site, during the Rally period. Jay
(Dauntless Motors) [the Organizer of the Rally with Mrs.
Super-Busy-Never-Stops-Running-Working- (wife, Tara)], had
seen the accident site just after it happened, and reported
back to some of us at the Rally that it was a BMW airhead
with a chair. I did not 'report' on the accident
originally, as Jay could not find out who it was, whether
that person was registered, or even going to the Rally,
...as next of kin was not yet notified; the Authorities
would not say anything;....and so on. I did one report,
later.
There have, since, been some reports in the newspapers, and
I think on TV.

NOTE that, to MY KNOWLEDGE, not one of the reports included
that the bike had a sidecar attached.

This morning, I received some further details, so thought I
would post what I can; and I have slightly edited the copy
for clarity. NOTE the direction the motorcycle was
traveling....which the newspaper account says was AWAY from
the Rally Site, but came to rest on the eastbound
direction....towards the Rally Site.

I do not know, nor have heard of the rig driver, Mr.
Stafford. Perhaps someone here at SCT has, can fill us in.

I also want to mention that I had an invite to go to
Vancouver for a late Saturday afternoon bar-b-que and wild
party (so I have been told...)....and did not go, due to my
total distaste for riding my rig at night, on twisty roads,
where deer seem to like to hunt for my headlight....and
where it was likely also going to rain....
Of course, I greatly regret NOT being at the Party.

snowbum, one-time Party Animal

From the Skamania County Pioneer (they do not have a
website):

"Motorcyclist dies in county line incident"

A Portland motorcyclist died in a multi-vehicle accident
....near the west county line on Friday, June 24th, at 7:10
PM.

William T. Stafford III, 52, was riding a 1969 BMW
motorcycle westbound at mile post 22.7 on SR 14 when he
apparently crossed the double line
divider.

He collided with the left side and rear of an eastbound
2003 Dodge
Pickup driven by Mark R. Hartley, 36, of Kelso.

The motorcycle then veered into the path of a 2004 Jeep
Cherokee driven
by Scott A. Nylund, of La Center.

The motorcycle finally stopped and came to rest on the
eastbound fog
line about 30 feet from the original crash.

Stafford had massive body trauma, according to the
Washington State
Patrol, and was pronounced dead at the scene. He was
wearing a helmet.

The roadway was closed to traffic until 12:30 AM early
Saturday morning.

The motorcycle was totaled, and the Jeep Cherokee
sustained $5,000 right
front damage. Both were removed by Chucks Towing. The
Dodge pickup driven
by Hartley had minor damage and was drivable. The pickup
and Jeep drivers
were wearing seatbelts."

Hi all,

I've been pretty shaken up for a few weeks now…. Glad I found you folks on this board who seem to have heard about this. I was there. Here’s my account:

My husband and I had been riding our dual sport bikes up in the hills that afternoon, and came down to 'civilization' (paved road) at Beacon Rock SP along Highway 14. We stopped at the restrooms, and spotted William riding by. We exchanged smiles and waves with him. Shortly thereafter, we headed West on Hwy 14. Not too many miles had passed when we went around a curve, and found a very crumpled up bike, some very shook up motorists, and William, lying beside his bike on the ground.

Wondering why nobody was helping him (and being a CPR/First Aid instructor), I immediately pulled over, grabbed my first aid kit and gloves, and crossed the road to the accident site. I was greeted by the driver of the first vehicle William hit – who informed me that they had already attempted CPR, but with no luck, and that William had already passed on. At that point all we could simply do was to cover the body, control traffic until the emergency personnel arrived, and help those who were in the vehicles he hit.

The driver of the first vehicle, a dad traveling East on Hwy 14 with his wife and two young boys (heading up to Boy Scout Camp) said that William entered the curve too fast – that his sidecar was lifted off the ground as he attempted to gain more control. He crossed the centerline and headed for them. The dad tried to get out of the way, but William, heading Westbound, wound up catching his left leg on the back of his driver’s side rear bumper. He then continued onward, colliding next with a Jeep’s front passenger side, causing quite a bit of damage. After that, William ended up next to a concrete barrier. There was a copy of the 'Sidecarist' on the ground. His body did sustain considerable damage. 🙁

This was one of the tighter curves along Hwy 14. I can only assume, given my observations and from what the drivers of the vehicles said, that William simply entered the curve too fast and could not regain control in time. I do not know if equipment failure, or any other factors contributed to the accident.

I have only been riding a motorcycle for about 5 months, and had just gotten to the point where I was starting to feel comfortable in most situations. I have to say, this accident really shook my confidence a great deal.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any more questions. It’s nice to finally have found someone who had heard of this accident that is so permanently engraved in my mind.

- Janna 🙁

Thank you for taking the time to share this information. It is a tragedy that has etched itself in the threads of all those involved. It certainly is a reminder that life truly is fragile, and must be treated with respect, yet lived fully.

I hope that you keep riding, and accept this tragedy as a gift - a reminder to ride safe, and as they say, never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly.

Do take care, gp