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Deadly start to MN motorcycle season

Last weekend alone, eleven people didn't escape—at least five of them on motorcycles—a deadly start to what experts worry could be a dangerous Minnesota summer.

ST PAUL - After 50 years and thousands of rides, biker David Smith says there's one he won't forget.

A pickup truck swerved into his lane and sent him flying toward a concrete wall.

“I was looking at the cement wall right next to me, and I really don't know how I escaped,” said Smith. “Someone was looking after me that day. It shook me up for quite awhile.”

Last weekend alone, eleven people didn't escape—at least five of them on motorcycles—a deadly start to what experts worry could be a dangerous Minnesota summer.

Drugs and alcohol were factors in four of those deaths; speed played a role in another four. And in 80 percent of fatal crashes this year there were no helmets.

“Riders need to do what they can to avoid these crashes,” said Bill Shaffer, the Motorcycle Safety Coordinator at the Minnesota Department of Public Safety.

That's why state leaders are begging bikers to change, pushing them to be more aware, to take training courses and to wear protective gear, all things they say are even more important with the rise of distracted driving.

“Not only do I have to be aware of what the driver next to me is doing,” said Michael Kamrad at Wild Prairie Harley Davidson in Eden Prairie, “But also what they're doing in their car.”

David Smith agrees, saying he's more cautious than ever, and also more committed.

“You’ve got to be really observant on your bike,” Smith said. “But I just love it. I'm going to ride until I can't.”

June has been a deadly month for motorcycle crashes, and 2018 has been a deadly year. The Minnesota DPS says there have been 21 fatalities statewide so far this year, compared to 16 at the same time last year.

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