Crashes Reported in the Media

[tk]

There seems to be a discrepancy. One report says he was wearing a helmet yet the link says he wasn't???

[GUZZI JOHN]

 Noon news said 2 bikes,triple digits,deceased helmetless(called experienced racer??),other bike didn't stop. Me thinks "Squid"-High speed in the dark!! "THE STREET GIVETH & THE STREET TAKETH AWAY!"

[pkpk]

Here is an updated report that addresses your comments:

http://www.startribune.com/local/minneapolis/249682451.html


Motorcyclist going 100 mph hits pothole on I-394, thrown to his death

    Article by: TIM HARLOW and PAUL WALSH , Star Tribune staff writers
    Updated: March 12, 2014 - 4:06 PM

The driver was heading east on I-394 when the crash occurred.



A motorcyclist with a passion for fast bikes was going at least 100 miles per hour when he struck a pothole or a crack along a winter-worn stretch of a Minneapolis interstate and thrown to his death, authorities said Wednesday.

Anand “Andy” Baskaran, 30, of the Long Island community of East Northport, N.Y., hit the road hazard along eastbound Interstate 394 near Theodore Wirth Parkway about 9:50 p.m. on Tuesday, according to the State Patrol.

Witnesses saw that Baskaran was wearing a helmet immediately before the crash, according to the patrol. A trooper who arrived at the crash scene reported that Baskaran’s helmet was not on and that one was recovered nearby.

Baskaran recently moved from Long Island, N.Y., to work at 3M in Maplewood as an information technology analyst, a company official said.

State safety officials say that Baskaran’s death is the second earliest on record in what they consider the motorcycle riding season, when winter nears its end. After a particularly cold and snowy winter, temperatures this week have climbed above freezing with no precipitation.

The temperature in Minneapolis was slightly above freezing and there was no rain or snow falling at the time of Baskaran’s crash.

Three witnesses said Baskaran and another motorcyclist were going at least 100 mph, and possibly as high as 120 mph, said Patrol Lt. Jason Bartell.

“We have one witness statement that the motorcycle hit a crack in the road and started to wobble … It’s really hard to come back from that,” Bartell said at a news briefing. The patrol’s initial report on the incident described it as a pothole.

“It falls back to speed; it falls back to that unsafe, illegal speeding,” Bartell said. “If you’re driving at that speed, no matter what the road conditions are like, it’s going to be tragic.”

Bartell said there have been “no reports of road conditions being unsafe in that area.”

The other motorcyclist “took off from the scene shortly after the crash” and has yet to be located, he said.

“The State Patrol would like to interview this person, but they have very limited information about this driver,” said Department of Public Safety spokesman Doug Neville, adding that the other motorcyclist had on a helmet and was possibly riding a black Honda CBR (2008 to 2010) sport-style motorcycle.

A passionate motorcyclist

The theme of Baskaran’s Facebook page is all about motorcycles, particularly fast ones.

“Finally first day in MN upper 30’s,” he wrote last week, with a photo of a mostly orange racing-style motorcycle. “So I might take this bad boy out for a spin this weekend.”

Danny Hirji, a fellow motorcycle enthusiast who accompanied Baskaran on many rides on a closed oval in New York, said his friend “loved bikes and rode all the time. … He was young and aggressive, but I don’t think he would do anything stupid.”

Star Tribune theater critic Rohan Preston was westbound on I-394 heading home from the Orpheum Theatre with his daughter when he came upon the scene.

“We drove slowly by it, taking in the horror with silence. There was no one near the bike,” said Preston, who described the motorcycle as being a racing-style bike. “That bike lying on its side in the middle of the highway, the police officers walking around the scene, and all the lights flashing into a surreal blur told us all we needed to know.”

Many potholes this winter

I-394 in both directions between downtown Minneapolis and Hwy. 100 was particularly vulnerable this winter to potholes because a thin asphalt overlay was peeling away. Crews have been patching up spots in recent weeks.

As efforts to fill in potholes continue, “people need to slow down and watch for them” Kent Barnard, spokesman for the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT), said Wednesday. “We will have a bumper crop of them this year.”

Two weeks ago, MnDOT was out patching potholes on the westbound lanes of I-394. It was not immediately known about work on the eastbound lanes, a MnDOT spokeswoman said.

Originally built as a concrete freeway, I-394 drew noise complaints from abutting Minneapolis neighborhoods.

The Legislature in the 1990s directed MnDOT to put down an asphalt mixture with a higher friction resistance to reduce tire noise, a state pavement engineer said in January.

The first layer was put down in 1996. When that wore out in 2004, MnDOT replaced it with a material that was stickier and gooier, allowing the agency to put on a thinner layer.

MnDOT said it has been that layer, scheduled to be replaced in 2015, that has been peeling away and creating the gaping craters.

Tuesday’s crash came just as the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Office of Traffic Safety began publicizing its 2014 motorcycle rider safety classes. Offered at 30 Minnesota state colleges and universities from April to October, instructors from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation offer training and education to “ride better, ride smarter and ride longer.”

“Riders are taking to the roads because of the warm weather, and safety is critical, especially early in the riding season,” the state Department of Public Safety said in a statement.

Bartell reminded motorists to be alert for motorcycle riders and check their review mirrors and blind spots before changing lanes. For motorcyclists, they need “to operate safely and at a safe speed, not distracted, wearing safety equipment to prevent further injuries,” he said. He also urged motorcyclists to be mindful of road hazards at this time of year, such as snow, ice and sand.

Preliminary reports show that 60 people were killed in motorcycle crashes in 2013. There were 55 motorcycle fatalities on Minnesota roads in 2012, according to the Office of Traffic Safety.

[Elk]

It is sad we have a death already.

High speed, potholes, scattered ice, dried salt and over-driving the headlights in the dark are not a good combination.  It was probably his first or second ride of the season, too.

[Deplorable, thank you!]

 Doesn't suprise me another person from "that" club kills himself with stupidity.

Any odds on the leader of that club being the motorcyclist who fled the scene?

[pkpk]

I checked out his FB page and it's clear Anand ate, drank and slept motorcycles.  It appears one of his bikes is a Repsol replica (not sure the real thing or just a home-made knockoff but it looked like it had a ton of aftermarket.)  It's a sad deal when a dude loses his self restraint while the roads are in dangerous condition for bikes.  I'm also peeved that his "friend" was so chicken shit to ditch the scene of his friend's tragedy.  Pretty sure he will be turned in since no doubt they are in a circle of riders.

[GUZZI JOHN]

 It will be interesting to see if the cause of his helmet coming off is reported. Unstrapped or broken? It was in the 70s that there was a redesign in helmets after 2 GP racers(Franco Uncini was one) had theirs come off in crashes. The lower neck area was extended to help prevent such. Here again this fellow may have survived if his had stayed on. GJ

[Jvs]

I checked out his FB page and it's clear Anand ate, drank and slept motorcycles.  It appears one of his bikes is a Repsol replica (not sure the real thing or just a home-made knockoff but it looked like it had a ton of aftermarket.)  It's a sad deal when a dude loses his self restraint while the roads are in dangerous condition for bikes.  I'm also peeved that his "friend" was so chicken shit to ditch the scene of his friend's tragedy.  Pretty sure he will be turned in since no doubt they are in a circle of riders.

It was a real Repsol 1000RR.

I met Andy at first thursdays back in September and ended up hanging out with him almost all night. Real likeable guy who used to race bikes back in New York and came here to MN for work.

We only did a few group rides together but no one ever had any problems with him or his riding. Guess he just made a bad judgement call and unfortunately it cost him his life.

I am very interested to see about this helmet thing too.  Some said he wasn't wearing a helmet, others said he was but it broke off, others said people on the scene took it off after he crashed... Sooo much misinformation going around from the news.

[Mike Duluth]

I feel bad for Andy's family, from what I understand they are from another country. I wonder what they would say to the person that left him for others to take care of. Who does something like that?

[gdawgs]

I checked out his FB page and it's clear Anand ate, drank and slept motorcycles.  It appears one of his bikes is a Repsol replica (not sure the real thing or just a home-made knockoff but it looked like it had a ton of aftermarket.)  It's a sad deal when a dude loses his self restraint while the roads are in dangerous condition for bikes.  I'm also peeved that his "friend" was so chicken shit to ditch the scene of his friend's tragedy.  Pretty sure he will be turned in since no doubt they are in a circle of riders.

It was a real Repsol 1000RR.

I met Andy at first thursdays back in September and ended up hanging out with him almost all night. Real likeable guy who used to race bikes back in New York and came here to MN for work.

We only did a few group rides together but no one ever had any problems with him or his riding. Guess he just made a bad judgement call and unfortunately it cost him his life.

I am very interested to see about this helmet thing too.  Some said he wasn't wearing a helmet, others said he was but it broke off, others said people on the scene took it off after he crashed... Sooo much misinformation going around from the news.

who really cares if he was wearing or not?  odds are he lost it during the crash.  isn't the real story of excessive speed, in bad conditions, from a veteran rider of bikes, that now forces his family to deal with his decisions? 

(ninja edit........i retract this statement as i didn't read the comments above clearly.  i agree it would be nice to know if helment technology could be improved or safety could be improved in some way to minimize the impact.....sorry. 

i too feel for Andy's family.  because there are no good answers for them.  all answers are futile. 

[GUZZI JOHN]

  For an experienced rider to do such leaves many questions. Were the two racing? Were there chemicals involved? Will this season's fatality numbers beat last year's? I generally think of rabid teenagers when this sort of thing happens. I'm sorry to see someone who should know better let a foolish mistake end his life.

[Jvs]

[quote/]
who really cares if he was wearing or not?  odds are he lost it during the crash.  isn't the real story of excessive speed, in bad conditions, from a veteran rider of bikes, that now forces his family to deal with his decisions? 

(ninja edit........i retract this statement as i didn't read the comments above clearly.  i agree it would be nice to know if helment technology could be improved or safety could be improved in some way to minimize the impact.....sorry. 

i too feel for Andy's family.  because there are no good answers for them.  all answers are futile. 
[/quote]
Like I said it would be nice to know the whole story not just some line of Crap that the news put out just to be the first to break the news Story on the tv.

Maybe he rode and hit one of the small potholes between the lanes and lost it.
Maybe his helmet was strapped on the back of the bike and broke off.
Maybe a car cut him off and he swerved and hit a pothole under extreme breaking.


All I'm saying is that before people make big accusations and start pointing fingers let's get some real evidence. For all we know they could have been riding in 2nd gear and some old lady thought it "sounded like they must have been going well over 100mph" therefore that's what all the news stories are going with now.

[tk]

Jeff is correct, we really don't know what happened. Some of the potholes
are SO BIG AND DEEP a motorcyclist could go into a tankslapper at legal
highway speeds. I never met him but since he is from somewhere else it
could be that he wasn't aware of how bad the road surface can be in MN
this time of year.

RIP

[pkpk]

All available information for
incident number 14800525.

    Incident Number:    14800525    Incident Date/Time:    4/9/2014 7:59:00 PM
    MSP District:    2800    Incident Contact:    MN STATE PATROL DISTRICT 2800 - (218) 316-3030
    Number of Individuals:    1       
    Number of Vehicles:    1    
                   
    Location:    HWY 47    Road Type:    BLACK TOP
    Milepost:    88    Road Condition:    DRY
    County:    MILLE LACS    Number of Lanes:    2
    Crash Type:    ANIMAL    Divided/Undivided:    UNDIVIDED ROADWAY
    Incident Classification:    PERSONAL INJURY    Hazardous Material:    NOT PRESENT
                   
    Assisting Agencies:
       
                   
     Person 1:    GUDIM, LANDON D , 20 , OF ISLE MN , DRIVER OF VEH 1 , Phys. Cond. : INJURY - NON LIFE THREATENING
     

    Vehicle 1:
       2001   SUZUKI ROAD-STRT 
     
          
    IncidentDescription:    V1 SB ON MNTH 47, V1 APPLIED BRAKES IN ATTEMPT O MISS COLLISION WITH DEER AND D1 LAYED BIKE DOWN ON IT'S LEF SIDE AND SLID FOR APPROIMATEL 132 FEET BEFORE OMING TO REST IN THE SB LANE. D1 SLID APPROXIMATELY 78 FEET BEFORE COMING TO REST, D1 WAS WEARING HELMET, D1 TAKEN TO ONAMIA HOSPITAL AND LATER AIRE LIFTED TO NORTH MEMORIAL HOSPITAL WITH NON-LIFE THREATENING INJURIES.
            
    Information Complete:    INFORMATION IS NOT COMPLETE   
    Last Updated:    4/9/2014 10:58:40 PM

Individual Records

    Listed below are the individual records that match the criteria you specified.
    *Estimated age used only when true age is unknown.
    Case Number:    14800525    Seatbelt:    N/A
    Incident Date/Time:    4/9/2014 7:59:00 PM    Airbag:    N/A
    Info Released:    NOT RECORDED    Helmet:    YES
                   
    Person ID:    14800525V1P1    Age:    20
    Full Name:    GUDIM, LANDON D    Estimated Age:    ACTUAL AGE ABOVE
    Associated Vehicle:    14800525V1    Alcohol in System:    NO ALCOHOL DETECTED
    Role in Crash:    DRIVER    Hospital:    NORTH MEMORIAL , ROBBINSDALE 
    Residence:    ISLE , MN , USA    Physical Condition:    INJURY - NON LIFE THREATENING 
    Sex:    MALE       
    Relation to Driver:    SELF    Fatal Date:    N/A - NOT RECORDED

[Elk]

Poor guy.