RED DEER COUNTY – A man driving a sport bike on a rural road at a speed three times the legal limit is dead after failing to negotiate a curve and then ejected and crashing into trees.
Innisfail RCMP Staff Sgt. Ian Ihme said at about 4 p.m. on Sunday, July 28, a Red Deer County peace officer observed a sport bike motorist travelling south at a high rate of speed on Range Road 25 and then passing Township Road 350.
The location is northwest of Red Lodge Provincial Park.
Ihme said the peace officer activated his radar and determined the sport bike rider was moving at a speed of 237 kilometres an hour (km/h).
Ihme noted the posted speed limit at that location is 80 km/h.
“It was 157 kilometres per hour over the speed limit,” said Ihme. “He failed to navigate a curve that was immediately behind the peace officer, and left the road into a slight wooded area, obviously at an extreme speed and hit trees,” said Ihme. “On a road such as that, a country road, it's excessive, beyond excessive really.
“It’s paved, single lane and not wide shoulders. No road is built for speed of that much, but definitely not on a small county road with curves.”
Ihme said the sport bike travelled “quite a distance” – up to 40 metres – south of where the sport bike rider crashed into the trees.
“The bike keeps going quite a distance past him, and he was immediately deceased,” said Ihme. “The police officer got out immediately, radioed for EMS and fire and us to come assist, but they located him right away, and he was definitely not able to have any first aid.”
Ihme said RCMP is not immediately releasing the name of the deceased as next of kin have not yet been notified.
The man, who resides in the area of the crash, was 33-years-old.
