Five Killed in CA Motorcycle Crash

[sprtbkbabe]

RIP for the riders involved. Hopefully they catch the driver who left the scene

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/11/14/cal...=ib_topstories

(CNN) -- Five people were killed and six others seriously injured when a car struck a group of 12 motorcycles on a California desert highway Saturday.
"I was one of the first emergency officials on the scene. Of my 23 years on the department, it was the most devastating scene I've been to, and I've seen a lot of fatal accidents," said Deeann Goudie, a spokeswoman for the California Highway Patrol.
Police are searching for another car, which left the scene of the afternoon accident.
Goudie said they got a 911 call from one of the motorcyclists.
The motorcycles were on a highway in El Centro, Imperial County, just east of San Diego, when a gold Honda Civic tried to pass them, police said.
Goudie said the Honda passed the motorcycles, but a Dodge Avenger swerving to avoid hitting the Honda struck the motorcycles head on.
Four motorcyclists and a passenger in the Avenger died on the scene. Five of the six people injured were in serious condition, Goudie said.
"The gold Honda Civic left the scene without stopping and police want to talk with that driver," Goudie said. "We're looking for a 1995 to 2000 model-year gold Honda Civic."
The bikers are part of the Saddle Tramps motorcycle group in Lakeside, California. They were taking a casual ride on their Harley-Davidsons to celebrate the group's 10th anniversary.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the California Highway Patrol.

[tecknojoe]

This makes me want to do very bad things

[Matty]

RIP to all the riders and passenger.... Glad i don't ride nor live in Cali anymore. Too damn dangerous to be on 2 wheels out there.

[gtn]

Horrific.

[Nick_Ninja]

My condolences.

[sloridr]

Sad RIP and ma God bless their families.

[sprtbkbabe]

This makes me want to do very bad things

I couldn't agree more!

[CYCLE_MONKEY]

That sucks. Hope they find the bastard. don't think that can't happen anywhere.

Condolences, RIP riders.

[asp_125]

Yet to be confirmed, a friend of mine in LA on another forum says the Avenger driver is pending toxicology test results. Of course that may just be SOP in a fatal.

[Matrix]

Very sad. RIP riders.

[Captain Obvious]

Yet to be confirmed, a friend of mine in LA on another forum says the Avenger driver is pending toxicology test results. Of course that may just be SOP in a fatal.

Usually is SOP in a fatality and sometimes in excessive property loss.

Imagine being drunk doing okay and almost getting home. Someone else causes the crash and leaves, and you get tagged for the vehicular homicide due to DUI... ouch.

Not that I excuse DUIs but man, what a price.

RIP riders.

[Sarge]

Definitely messed up, RIP riders.

I hope they don't sensationalise this to the point that it causes people to rally for things like more restrictions for motorcycles, etc. This is clearly a case of a cager in a hurry to get somewhere, causing an accident that killed a bunch of people. I feel sorry for the guys on the bike, and especially the guy in the Avenger. I mean, what do you do in a situation like that? He dodged a head-on collision, and fate determined that was just the wrong move. Sad, sad story.

Funnily enough, my wife was in a somewhat similar situation just the other day, albeit with no motorcycles involved. She was driving on Airport road, with our 6 month old son in the back of the car, during one of the first rain/slush/snowfalls of the year, and was doing nearly 10 MPH or so under the speed limit, heading towards Powers. Some idiot was tailgating her from behind, flashing high beams, etc, when all of a sudden he hops into the center "mutual" turn lane you see in residential areas, floors it, and WHAM, slams head first into some guy in a big dualie pickup, waiting to make a turn into the neighborhood. My wife, being the paranoid sort, stopped and checked with the trucker to make sure everything was alright, the guy told her not to be worried, he was calling the police, etc, he saw the whole thing and my wife had nothing to do with it. In this particular situation, the idiot got what he deserved, he just HAD to pass, and now he's paying for it. It really sucks that this gold Honda got away. I hope they catch this guy and throw the book at him, felony hit and run, leaving the scene of an accident, etc. Jail time and permanent loss of license, at the least.

[Sarge]

Actually, I found the same article on Time.com, and it details what happens just a little better:

An eastbound car was attempting to pass the motorcycles, then forced a westbound sedan to swerve on to the sandy shoulder to avoid a collision, authorities said. The sedan veered out of control and back on to the pavement, into the motorcyclists.


Read more: http://www.time.com/time/nation/arti...#ixzz15M0s31rH

This makes a little more sense, I got the impression from the CNN.com article that the other drive swerved into the motorcycle lane first.

[Bueller]

Maybe if the asshole wouldn't have been drunk he could have kept control of his vehicle.

SAN DIEGO - A driver who slammed into a group of motorcycle riders, killing four of them and his companion, has been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, and police are looking for another driver who may have triggered the crash.

http://www.wtvm.com/Global/story.asp?S=13501131

[Matt]

Driver who caused crash arrested...

http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_16613278

[asp_125]

... but the real culprit is still on the loose, in a gold Honda.

[Sarge]

Driver who caused crash arrested...

http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_16613278

Smith was leading the motorcycles and watched in his rearview mirror as Ramirez turned his sedan into oncoming traffic and struck the middle of the pack. There were 21 riders on about a dozen motorcycles.

"The car was out of control when I went by him. He narrowly missed me and my vice president," Smith said.

Smith doesn't blame Ramirez, despite the allegation that he was driving under the influence. He considers Ramirez a victim because his companion died. "It looked like he overreacted, but the guy in the Honda Civic was at fault," said Smith, who estimated the Civic was going 95 mph when it passed the motorcycles.

I think the fact that he was "under the influence" has very little to do with it. Granted, he should NOT have been drinking and driving, but I don't care who you are and how sober you are, sh*t happens when you try to play Chicken on the highway, with one of the cars pushing 100 MPH.

[MetaLord 9]

RIP all.

So many lives ruined on all levels...

[SOCAL4LIFE!!]

... but the real culprit is still on the loose, in a gold Honda.

I would not be surprised if the color was changed or that vehicle was in Mexico already. I would never do something like this and flee the scene because that is just wrong and I have had it done to me. But if I were to do that and knew my vehicle was being targeted I would take it down south for some paint work.

[aerofaze]

The news about this yesterday left me shaken. RIP riders... My heart goes out to the injured survivors and families of the victims.

Hope the other cager is found, and if not by witnesses or authorities, then by karma...

[Mista Black]

when they find the guy in the gold honda he needs to go to jail for the rest of his life for causing this. but so does the guy in the avenger. he screwed up too. and he should pay too.

RIP to the riders.

[Mista Black]

and then i read that he may have been drinking too. just confirmed my avenger driver is an ass-hat thought... people in this country are some of the shittiest drivers. seriously.

[asp_125]

That story gives me the shivers. I think about that stretch of 285 between Buena Vista and Jefferson. You're all familiar with the way traffic is on there; really high closing speeds. I've been on group rides where we were the ones doing mass passes of slower traffic, and also seeing oncoming passes from other cars and riders. Not a lot of runoff room in either case.

Those San Diego riders didn't have a chance.

[asp_125]

Driver of the Avenger was not intoxicated. From the LA Times

Search continues for driver who triggered deadly Imperial Valley crash
November 15, 2010 | 9:29 am


Authorities continued to search Monday for a hit-and-run driver who
triggered a motorcycle crash that killed five people in the Imperial
Valley.

A 36-year-old man from Mexicali, Mexico, who was initially arrested on
suspicion of being under the influence of alcohol, has been released.
A blood-alcohol test came out negative, officials said.

The crash occurred Saturday when a group of 21 motorcyclists from the
San Diego County-based Saddletramps Motorcycle Club were traveling
east on Highway 98. A gold Honda Civic with California plates
attempted to pass the entire group by pulling into the westbound lane,
the CHP said.

Carlos Ramirez Bobadilla, who was driving a Dodge Avenger westbound,
tried to swerve to the right shoulder to avoid the oncoming Civic and
overcompensated by swerving left. He lost control and slammed head-on
into at least six motorcyclists, CHP officials said.

Bobadilla, whose wife was killed in the accident, was released when a
blood alcohol test showed he was not under the influence, said Officer
Pablo Torrez, a spokesman for the CHP in El Centro.
Four motorcycle riders were killed. Five others were airlifted or
taken by ambulance to UC San Diego Medical Center or El Centro
Regional Medical Center, according to the CHP.

The Civic was estimated to be traveling 90 to 100 mph when it tried to
pass the entire group of motorcycles, according to the CHP. The Civic
fled the scene after the accident.

Sad..

Looks like the only thing the Avenger driver did was lose control trying to avoid a head-on. A lot of cagers drop two tires off into the soft shoulder and then in an attempt get back onto the road, turn their wheel too far left. Of course once the tires get traction it launches the car across the road.

If you ever drop two tires off the pavement, slow down as much as is safe. Then smoothly merge back onto the pavement and be ready to react once the car comes back level.

The other lesson learned is that more of these riders might have survived if they rode in a smaller pack. If they broke up the pack it might have allowed the civic to duck back in. I know some groups want to ride at the speed of the slowest rider, and keep the formation together. But that just causes a long string of riders, and if some asshat wants to pass they are just going to have to go the length of a football field or more.

I hope they find the asshat Civic driver.

Sad..