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[DavidB]

Cyclist dies on Dragon; second motorcyclist taken to UT Medical Center
 
By Mark Boxley
of The Daily Times Staff



One person was killed and another injured Saturday evening in a two-motorcycle crash on Calderwood Highway.

The accident happened at about 7:27 p.m. at a curve around mile marker 4 of a section of Calderwood Highway (U.S. 129) called the Dragon -- an 11.1-mile section of the highway with 318 curves.

Few details on the accident were available late Saturday -- including the identities of the two individuals involved in the accident.

According to Tennessee Highway Patrol Trooper Philip Warren, one motorcycle was driving southbound on the road and the other was traveling northbound. At some point one of the motorcycles crossed over the center line, Warren said. Information was not available late Saturday on the nature of the accident -- if the two motorcycles crashed into each other, or if the drivers wrecked trying to avoid one another.

At the scene, it appeared the southbound motorcycle applied its brakes in an attempt to stop, but skid for dozens of feet -- leaving a long, thin black line along the highway that eventually crossed into the northbound lane at the curve.

More than a dozen other motorcyclists were standing in the dark around the crash as emergency workers attended to the injured individual and law enforcement personnel cataloged the accident site.

Neither individual involved in the crash was identified, but Warren said the injured man was taken by Rural/Metro Ambulance Service to University of Tennessee Medical Center.

The two vehicles involved were also not identified by authorities, but three THP troopers spent time looking over and discussing a sport bike with a broken handlebar parked on the northbound side of the road.

The highway around the accident was closed in both directions for several hours while the injured man was removed, along with the driver killed in the accident, and as law enforcement personnel reconstructed the accident.

Saturday's accident was the 12th Blount County traffic fatality, the ninth motorcyclist killed, and the third death on the Dragon for 2008. At this point in 2007, there had been 21 traffic fatalities in Blount County.

Along with THP and Rural/Metro, the Blount County Sheriff's Office and Blount County Volunteer Rescue Squad responded to the scene.


Originally published: September 07. 2008 3:01AM
Last modified: September 06. 2008 11:57PM
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[DavidB]

I found out a little more on the wreck on another web sight.

SEPTEMBER 7: BULLETIN The third death of 2008 on the Dragon late Saturday afternoon (fourth if you count the accident involving a heart attack). An F4I rider hit a cruiser head-on near Parson's Curve (mm 4.1). Sportbike rider died at the scene, cruiser rider suffered ankle injuries. Speed and over braking caused the accident. There have been six additional motorcycle fatalities elsewhere in Blount County this year.

[Jock]

Since MV is up coming and we have some many members attending...A word of warning here...

[Spike]

I despise going to the Dragon now that it's a internet tourist trap but if you must go ride it, going during the week is the safest bet. No car clubs and only a few Ricky Roadracer wannabe's.