Be VERY careful on Hwy 224!

[duc_fan]

I'm guessing this was the same right-hand bend that messed Dad up...

Man dies in motorcycle accident near Estacada
by The Oregonian
Sunday October 19, 2008, 8:49 PM

A 25-year-old Gresham man died Sunday afternoon when the motorcycle he was riding in rural Clackamas County slid on a curve and ended up beneath a pickup truck pulling a fifth-wheel trailer.
Milo Evan Poxleitner was at the rear of a group of three motorcyclists traveling eastbound on Oregon 224 about 20 miles east of Estacada. He was attempting to negotiate a right-hand bend when he lost control of his motorcycle, police said.
Poxleitner was wearing a helmet, but had not yet obtained a motorcycle endorsement for the vehicle, which he bought several weeks ago.
The pickup's driver, Bradley Raines, 52, of Milwaukie, and a passenger, Christopher Raines, 31, of Seattle, were not injured.

- Dana Tims of The Oregonian

The parts highlighted in red are eerily similar.  We were almost exactly 20 miles from Estacada, and it was a right-hand bend with that whoop in it that unsettled the CBR.  Dad and Dave then sat there and saw almost every sportbike get messed up by that corner, and several that crossed the double-yellows.  Only bikes that were "fine" were dual-sports, cruisers, and sport-tourers who were going a lot slower.  When I got back out there with the trailer to haul the CBR home, I heard a high-strung twin make a couple odd throttle blips... turned around to see an Aprilia RSV Mille in the middle of the opposing lane, trying to recover after he hit the same whoop in the road.

My condolences to their family.

Ride safe everyone.

[ryandalling]

Read the fine print...the dude did not even have an endorsement. I am not saying it is any less tragic. I have ridden that stretch 100 times and have been fine, but I swear this would have been corrected we pushed for more MSF training.

[duc_fan]

While training is definitely a factor in this kid's death, Dad, Dave, and I saw enough other riders get screwed up by that corner to say that the corner is also a problem.  It unsettled Dave's bike, and he got close to the centerline.  We know what happened to Dad.  It hammered me (ouch...), but I didn't get thrown way off-line only because I was expecting it.  I'd ridden that stretch before and knew there were some hidden bumps, and so I consciously loosened up as we got 15-20 miles out from Estacada (which is where it starts to degrade).  Kinda like horseback riding, I suppose, you just learn to let it move without white-knuckling.

Anyway, the point is: there are corners on 224 that catch people off-guard.  It's not a proper racetrack.  Please ride carefully.

[marvellous]

Makes me sad...  Please ride safe everyone!

[oregunduc]

This is one of the risks that one must accept as a very real possibility when choosing to ride on a two wheel object without a cage around you... RIP

[ryandalling]

Anyway, the point is: there are corners on 224 that catch people off-guard.  It's not a proper racetrack. 

I agree. I just hate the calamari giving motorcycling a bad name. Yes riding is dangerous, and 224 is a very technical route. Get training and start small.

[bnbmike]

Hey guys, BB has a point.  That is a bad spot in the road.  As I ride on the crappiest roads in the state, Tillamook County, I always advise you guys about specific near death road conditions before I ride with you (when you come down to visit).

I recall reading on the Bay Area thread on the old board about a blind corner on a popular moto-road that has claimed the lives of a lot of riders.  They got together and went out to paint a warning on the road.  I think they made a sign as well.

A known tricky corner should be known by all.  Squids and MSF passing riders are our 2 wheeled brothers.  Don't blame this or Dans dad shunt on inexperience alone.

[end rant]

[ryandalling]

I agree. Point out the dangerous spots. My point was pretty close to a threadjack of its own... the last two deaths from motorcycles in Oregon were as follows:
Non-endorsed rider on 224.
Guy riding wheelies down MLK loses control and hits a telephone pole.

At what point do people read, "another motorcyclist died" and not "guy doing something he shouldn't have"

Plus... it is crappy weather and I am in a bad mood... so I will rant and pregnant dog and moan and complain and try and figure how this is any different from how I normally act.

[bnbmike]

You need a vacation.  It's sunny and 60º here.  [moto]

[JohnnyDucati]

I can recommend an excellent B&B!   

[duc_fan]

The stuntas who get themselves killed in town... those irritate me.

I guess I didn't see this news story so much as the stupid getting their just desserts, because that stretch of road hits a little close to home.  If there'd been an oncoming car, that story could've been about Dad.

Can't chalk his incident up to gross inexperience, either.  Dad's ridden dirtbikes, and probably has 30,000 miles throughout his life on different streetbikes.  He doesn't have as many miles on a sportbike as Dave or I, but you can't flatly say he's "an inexperienced rider."  Dad was also going slower than I was through that corner... my Michelins stuck going 55-60, the CBRs Dunlops let go while travelling between 45-55 (indicated... and my Duc's speedo indicates slower than the Daytona or CBR do).  They weren't new tires, but they weren't bald either.  They'd also had the pressure checked that morning.

How many inexperienced riders buy RSV Milles?  Granted, not everyone who owns one knows what they're doing, but your average inexperienced squid doesn't usually think enough to go for an Italian thoroughbred (they buy the first YamaKawiHonZuki that crosses their path).  I personally saw that one way across the double-yellows.  Again, had there been an oncoming car... could've been the same headline, but without the "no endorsement" note.

Anyway... I guess I'm just reiterating the original point: public highways are not ideal for 10/10ths riding, and in many cases not even 8/10ths.  Please ride carefully.  They're uneven, off-camber, have tar seams, potholes, bridge crossings with bad seams, inconsistently marked, etc.  This article is just a stark reminder of the risk associated with riding on some of the roads we do, and at least for me, was even more poignant because there's some "family history" on that stretch of road.

[NEIKOS]

The stuntas who get themselves killed in town... those irritate me.

I guess I didn't see this news story so much as the stupid getting their just desserts, because that stretch of road hits a little close to home.  If there'd been an oncoming car, that story could've been about Dad.

Can't chalk his incident up to gross inexperience, either.  Dad's ridden dirtbikes, and probably has 30,000 miles throughout his life on different streetbikes.  He doesn't have as many miles on a sportbike as Dave or I, but you can't flatly say he's "an inexperienced rider."  Dad was also going slower than I was through that corner... my Michelins stuck going 55-60, the CBRs Dunlops let go while travelling between 45-55 (indicated... and my Duc's speedo indicates slower than the Daytona or CBR do).  They weren't new tires, but they weren't bald either.  They'd also had the pressure checked that morning.

How many inexperienced riders buy RSV Milles?  Granted, not everyone who owns one knows what they're doing, but your average inexperienced squid doesn't usually think enough to go for an Italian thoroughbred (they buy the first YamaKawiHonZuki that crosses their path).  I personally saw that one way across the double-yellows.  Again, had there been an oncoming car... could've been the same headline, but without the "no endorsement" note.

Anyway... I guess I'm just reiterating the original point: public highways are not ideal for 10/10ths riding, and in many cases not even 8/10ths.  Please ride carefully.  They're uneven, off-camber, have tar seams, potholes, bridge crossings with bad seams, inconsistently marked, etc.  This article is just a stark reminder of the risk associated with riding on some of the roads we do, and at least for me, was even more poignant because there's some "family history" on that stretch of road.

You're oppressing me - ain't cross platforms posts grand? 

[ryandalling]

Can't I post an irritating comment just to be irritating?     

Dan - I didn't disagree with you in any way. Just threadjacking and trying point out that if he wasn't on the road at all, he wouldn't have had the accident. Not being endorsed, he should not have been on the road. And, lastly, I like to argue.  As a side note, chuck smells.

[oregunduc]

Can't I post an irritating comment just to be irritating?    

Dan - I didn't disagree with you in any way. Just threadjacking and trying point out that if he wasn't on the road at all, he wouldn't have had the accident. Not being endorsed, he should not have been on the road. And, lastly, I like to argue.  As a side note, chuck smells.

he could have had a permit and been with someone who was endorsed then it would be legal and he would have every right to be on the road, I think that most articles about accidents need to be taken with a grain of salt as they will only put in the info that they feel is neccisary...  I know that I rode a solid 2 years on a permit before i was endorsed just out of not wanting to take the time to go take the test, and yes there were times I ventured out without someone with a endorsement.

[duc_fan]

You're oppressing me - ain't cross platforms posts grand? 

 

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