COLORADO SPRINGS — Colorado Springs police said there have been 11 deadly motorcycle crashes in the city this year. Plus, a wreck involving a motorcycle happened around 11:30 on Monday morning at Austin Bluffs and Dublin in Colorado Springs. Thankfully, the driver survived.
But tomorrow is the first day of summer, and as the days get warmer, more motorcycle riders will be out on the roads. News5 spoke to local riders about what they do to make sure they stay safe.
“It can definitely be pretty scary out there. A lot of people aren't paying attention to cell phones or music,” said Jesse Board, who is getting his motorcycle safety certification.
Board has been riding motorcycles for about 3 years. He said some of the things he’s learned in the class though are “people like to speed obviously, and just keeping your eyes open and be more aware of your surroundings.”
Chris Horton teaches motorcycle safety classes across Colorado Springs. Meanwhile, he’s been riding motorcycles for 16 years.
“At least on the training side of the house, we teach motorcyclists how to be seen as much as possible on the road, and give themselves more space and get training,” said Horton.
The training is in place to make sure riders stay safe. However, motorcycle fatalities in Colorado Springs and El Paso County are on the rise this year. CSPD says there have been 11 motorcycle fatalities this year. While according to the CDOT website, there were six motorcycle fatalities in Colorado Springs and Fountain at this time last year.
“It is sad to see those numbers climb,” said Horton. “But unfortunately, there's just a lot of things going on, whether that be at an intersection with that interaction of traffic going multiple directions, or in a curve where the motorcyclist tends not to do the things that they should probably should be doing.”
Horton says that's why it's important for both motorcyclists and other drivers to be aware of their surroundings.
“We’re looking out for others and what their intentions are. Are they using turn signals? Are they, you know, moving across lanes quickly, so that I can position myself well to be able to see those things,” said Horton.
A total of 19 people died in motorcycle related accidents in El Paso county last year.
That said, today is the first day of summer and the riding season is in full swing. MC fatalities tend to surge during the summer months.
Sam Cole, the traffic communications manager for CDOT told News5, the riding season is in full swing as summer begins Tuesday. He also mentioned motorcycle fatalities tend to sure during the summer months.
Click here for a link to CDOT's Motorcycle Safety Page.