Boy scouts kill motorcyclist with tree!

[Bounce]

A word of caution going forward in this thread.

Church/state type deflections in the conversation are political in nature. Politics (of any type) are to be taken elsewhere and are grounds for closing a thread and issuing advisories or warnings.

THIS is the advisory. Going forward down that path would then be points-earning warnings.

Thanks for your consideration.

 

[RPrice]

A word of caution going forward in this thread.
Church/state type deflections in the conversation are political in nature. Politics (of any type) are to be taken elsewhere and are grounds for closing a thread and issuing advisories or warnings.

THIS is the advisory. Going forward down that path would then be points-earning warnings.

Thanks for your consideration.

Sounds good!!

 

[erixun]

Here is what I heard from someone that had some more insight. The tree in question was 'cut' down by two twelve year old boys who left the group that was cutting other trees with chainsaws further away from the roadway, the group was not intentionally felling trees across roads. The two boys 'fell' the tree uphill towards the road, the tree did not fall 'across' the road, but it fell above the roadway at the time the motorcyclist was coming around the bend. I do not know if they cut the tree wrong because of lack of knowledge or if the tree was leaning towards the road already. I do not know what they used to cut the tree down or if they pushed a dead tree over. I do not know how far away from the group they were, I do not know if they were under any direct supervision when it occurred, or if the supervisors were even aware that the two boys were not with the group. From the pictures I saw it did not look like the tree struck the motorcycle itself, so I assume that it only hit the rider.

I am certain that those responsible will be held accountable, there will not be a free pass. Both for the boys and the supervisors. Some things take some time, and the media rarely reports all the facts needed for us to make an informed decision. What they don't have, they either blatantly make up or just assume or we jump to conclusions.

In any case this is a tragic event for all involved, and unfortunate timing can certainly be applied, as the tree only may have been in that position for an instant before rolling back down the hill.

 

[Old Guy]

Too many unanswered questions. But I'd find it hard to believe that two 12-year-olds would be let loose with a chainsaw.

 

[nankoweap]

Here's an update...

https://www.cedarcityutah.com/news/archive/2014/10/12/ams-uhp-releases-name-of-man-killed-in-motorcycle-falling-tree-incident#.VD0-j9R4qcQ

 

[Spud]

I came by the accident scene on Saturday.

I knew something grim went down, there were about 6 sheriff's deputies and state troopers, pieces of wood on the road outlined with spray-paint etc.

What a bummer--it was a simply fantastic day, the fall colors were so beautiful, quite a few bikes out enjoying the ride.

 

[LagerHead]

From the update provided above, it sounds like this was just the absolute worst possible luck on the part of the rider. One second either way and he either craps himself as he sees the tree fall right behind him in his mirrors or he hits it with his bike and suffers at worst broken bones and road rash. This is definitely an example of where the rider was doing absolutely nothing wrong and still got nailed. The two guys I know that have died on motorcycles were exactly the same. One was stopped and the other was doing about 35MPH. Sometimes **** just happens.

 

[Spud]

I'm going to do a ride report on my ride through there, but as I said it was just about the most perfect day and place for a ride I can remember in a long time. The weather, the scenery, everything. Here's a pic I took probably only a mile or two from where that accident happened a little earlier in the day. I hope the guy didn't suffer, and I guess at least he died doing something that I'm sure he loved as much as we all do....

 

[Old Guy]

I rode through there in June of '13. Beautiful country.

 

[1maxman]

I feel horrible for the rider, his family and friends, this is an utter tragedy and something like this could happen to any of us. The other side of the coin is that the two kids will live with the fact that they killed a man because they were careless. One question I have is when you are felling trees shouldn't you know where your entire party is, especially when they are kids?

 

[stealth1]

I feel horrible for the rider, his family and friends, this is an utter tragedy and something like this could happen to any of us. The other side of the coin is that the two kids will live with the fact that they killed a man because they were careless. One question I have is when you are felling trees shouldn't you know where your entire party is, especially when they are kids?

Makes sense to me.

 

[stealth1]

Latest word

https://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/58524671-78/tree-county-riecke-scouts.html.csp

 

[Spud]

Stolen from the Stromtrooper website:

Former Senior Research Scientist at Eastman Kodak Company
Studied at The University of South Dakota
Lived in Durango, Colorado


Prayers for his family and friends.

 

[Rider]

Thanks for the update. I'm expecting it will take long enough to determine if charges for the motorcyclist's death will be filed that I'll forget about the story.

 

[wheatonFJR]

RIP fellow rider...

 

[RPrice]

Thanks for the update. I'm expecting it will take long enough to determine if charges for the motorcyclist's death will be filed that I'll forget about the story.

+1 Yep, it will take a long time, and I hope that we will hear what the final determination of responsibility/liability is. Perhaps our UT forum members can keep us apprised?

Still, the questions remain:

12 year olds with chainsaws???? Cutting wood along a state Highway?????? Leadership????? Supervision??????

BTW chain saws are among, if not the most, dangerous power tools known to man. Yeah, I trained my son to operate them, when he was 17 years old, and only when very closely supervised. I can't even imagine 12 year olds wielding them!!!

I really feel so bad for this man and his family, and I trust they will seek justice! If only to assure that this inept leadership will someday be eliminated from the Boy Scouts of

America, in the state of Utah!

BTW, if there's any ability to contribute to this man's family, let me know!

And yes, RIP fellow rider.........

BP

 

[Redfish Hunter]

I have been operating a chainsaw since I was 13 years old. My Dad NEVER let me operate it unsupervised until I was 15 or 16.

Since there seems to be some confusion about the ages of the "boy" scouts, we don't know if they were 12 or they were between 14 and 17. We also don't know if they were using a chain saw, an axe, or just a hatchet.

We don't why these two wandered off, we don't know why they were allowed to separate from the group. We don't know what they were thinking and we don't know what their group leaders were thinking.

In short, there are just a lot of things we don't know.

What we do know is that a fellow rider has died. We do know that there are two young men who (hopefully) have the weight of that death on their conscience and who are going to carry this tragedy for the rest of their lives. We do know that the Scout Leaders are ultimately responsible for the actions of their Boy Scouts.

 

[exskibum]

Same here - using a chain saw since age 13, taught by my Dad. Heavy McCullough then, though, esp. compared to the three Stihls I have now. Sounds like a tragic accident that a little more diligence could have prevented.

Thanks for the pic and info on the rider, Spud. Sympathies to his family and friends. He died in a beautiful place, in the wind and on two wheels. Compared to many alternatives, I might prefer going out on that road amidst fall colors.

RIP, sir.

 

[RPrice]

I have been operating a chainsaw since I was 13 years old. My Dad NEVER let me operate it unsupervised until I was 15 or 16.
Since there seems to be some confusion about the ages of the "boy" scouts, we don't know if they were 12 or they were between 14 and 17. We also don't know if they were using a chain saw, an axe, or just a hatchet.

We don't why these two wandered off, we don't know why they were allowed to separate from the group. We don't know what they were thinking and we don't know what their group leaders were thinking.

In short, there are just a lot of things we don't know.

What we do know is that a fellow rider has died. We do know that there are two young men who (hopefully) have the weight of that death on their conscience and who are going to carry this tragedy for the rest of their lives. We do know that the Scout Leaders are ultimately responsible for the actions of their Boy Scouts.

+1, Your dad did good to always supervise chain saw operation until you were competent. And yeah, there's lots of things we don't know. The point of many of the previous posts involves speculating if we ever will know. I hope we do, and I hope justice will be served. BTW, have you ever lived or spent any time in Utah? Iif not, then you might want to reserve judgment/comments and wait until the "things" you don't know are determined (if ever). Hopefully we will learn them soon, so we all will have more information. However, I doubt that any further information will mitigate the fact that an incredibly poorly supervised, and poorly lead activity resulted in the death of a fellow rider. But, I'll be waiting for "things" that change my mind. I'm not sure it will add a lot to determine "what the group leaders were thinking", do you??

 

[dcarver]

Somehow, seeing his picture really drove the deep sadness home in my heart.