Local rider gone missing

ashman

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This morning the wife and myself went to town in our local area of Sandgate on the Northside of Brisbane, as we were going past the local Police station there was a news crew outside, I said to my wife something must have happened, then on the nights new a local man aged 66 went for a ride out to Esk on Monday about a 250km round trip on some of the best motorcycle roads around, its very popular on the weekends with bike riders, in fact I was out that way on Sunday visiting a mate on my Thruxton.
Well the rider has not been heard of since he left home on Monday for his ride out, there are many different ways to go from Sandgate and a lot of back roads all with some great riding that goes through the hills and ranges, some places with steep drop offs or tight corners that come up very quickly and can easely get caught out, even knowing the roads, he could have gone off somewhere and no one would know and it has happen many a times.
The police have followed most of the popular roads for bike riders but there are so many back ways where bikes goes that are not well known to most and I am sure the police would not have been on them roads, they are great back roads some biker use because the cops don't hammer them like the popular roads on the weekends, so thinking of going out that way tomorrow where myself and my mates go I case he has gone off some where.
I don't know the rider but he hasn't come home and its out of his norm to not come home, his phone has been turned off but he does that when riding and his debit and credit cards haven't been used, so something has gone wrong somewhere and if there is something I can do to help I will out.

Ashley
 
Any news on missing rider , maybe turning into a sad story , please post up any new news .... thanks
 
Wow, I sure hope he's located and survives whatever get-off he may have suffered...
 
Well I went out my way to Esk yesterday and another way home didn't see nothing out of the ordinary and nothing more on the news about it, just hope he has decided to go off for a longer ride, some people just like to get lost for a few days or weeks, but if he is laying somewhere it not looking good as the night temps get down a bit out west.
I might drop down the local cop shop today and ask if any news, Sandgate area has a big biker population and has always been and we look out for each other even the ones we don't know.
I find out and get back here if any news.

Ashley
 
Well on the news tonight the rider is still missing and the police are asking anyone who seen him on his blue Triumph on Monday to come forward, they also showed pics of him on his bike, the police have also said there is 21 different ways from Sandgate to Esk and so far they have done a major search of 18 ways, but I am sure there are a lot more ways one can go.
So far no sign of him and all motorcycle riders heading out that way to keep a open eye on any places he could have gone off, it is now coming up to 6 days and his family is desperate to know what has happen, but he could have changed his riding plans at the last moment, so he could be anywhere, he also has a habit of turning his phone off when riding, not sure why he would do that.
At this point of time things are not looking good for the missing rider.

Ashley
 
Well bad news rider found on the Stanley River road decease beside his bike, it took another rider to come off on the same part of the road and the missing rider was near where the other rider came off, down a drop off 6 days after he went missing, the Stanley River road is a very popular road for the hi speed rice burner boys, but where he went off was on the section of tight twisty road through a hilly forest, if it wasn't for the other rider's bad luck he would not have been found as it was no where near Esk where he was going and heading up range toward Maleney up in the Hinterlands of the Sunshine Coast, so bit of a distant from Esk.
I have rode this way many of times in my 45 years of riding and has a lot of high speed sections as well tight twisty section and high speed corners and is very popular but the last year or so the speed limits have been dropped from 100kms to 80kms and is heavely enforced on the weekend to catch the bike boys, me and my mate's no longer ride this way on our monthly Sunday rides because of the drop in speed limits and the fun police patrols, but a lot of motorcycle crashes has caused this to happen but some bike riders push their bikes way over the speed limit on this road.
They showed where he came off the road on tonight's news and you could see the twisty section of road and the drop off where he was found with a lot of heavy forest, so would have been hard to find him without the other rider bad luck and was out of the search area.
A few bike groups and other riders have been out looking for him over the weekend and its great how every body who didn't even know him got together to look for him, its bad news but at lease he has been found and closure for his family and all involved.

Ashley
 
Condolences to the family & friends...Can do nothing for the poor gentleman except hope he was smiling at the end.
 
That is bad news hoped for a better ending , I had just stopped to text wife where I am as riding little used backroads , your news prolly slow me down a bit , on the Duc though , and it just so much fun .....
 
Are Duc's capable of sub light speeds? Only times I've ever seen them they were parked or going past very fast.
 
Local rider gone missing
Local rider gone missing
Local rider gone missing
Local rider gone missing
Not sure of top speed on this particular model .... fast enough for me no doubt .... during cross Canada Ride spent an entire tank of fuel at 160+kph made up for a rain delay the Duc seemed to work very well at that speed .... it is a sport tour bike bags and all , no bags today ... great day to be out today temps just right not too many cars... bike looked like this going cross country ,this photo in Alberta somewhere cold & wet day , also couple photos of typical western truck haha! Thinking it was Cranbrook maybe behind Starbucks ...
 
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Very true Swoosh , most of us don’t get to choose ....
 
Yes very bad news but better knowing than not knowing where he was and without the other riders bad luck he would have not been found for some time yet, it was only by accident he was found at all, its so sad to hear of any riders fate, but that's the risk we all take when out on our bikes or anything we do in our lives, so I take each day as it comes and enjoy life to the fullest and don't think what could happen, every day I wake up is a good day.

Ashley
 
Sad to hear that the outcome was grim. IMO there could have been a better outcome, you said that he turned his phone off, he would have been better off if he had just turned it to silent and installed a remote locate /finder to someone he knew, assuming you can get a phone signal out there.
 
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