Sept. 15 – FORT RANSOM, ND – The North Dakota Highway Patrol is seeking information from motorcyclists who participated in a race on Sept. 15 that started in Jamestown, related to a crash that seriously injured a Jamestown man.
The patrol said in a news release Sunday, Sept. 15, that the motorcycle crash that injured 63-year-old Monte Rodacker occurred at 3:21 p.m. Sunday in the 6300 block of 119th Avenue Southeast in Ransom County, about five miles southwest of Fort Ransom.
According to the patrol, a group of about 300 motorcycles rode together north on 119th Avenue Southeast toward Fort Ransom as part of a September 11 tribute ride that had begun in Jamestown.
A Honda Shadow driven by Rodacker was in the middle of this group. A group of motorcycles, including a trike-style motorcycle, passed Rodacker at a high rate of speed, the patrol said. Once in front of Rodacker, the same group of motorcycles quickly applied the brakes as the group attempted to negotiate a curve in the road.
Rodacker was forced to brake suddenly to avoid a collision with the motorcycles that had just passed him and was thrown from his motorcycle onto the road. He suffered serious injuries and was transported by ambulance to Lisbon, North Dakota, before being airlifted to Sanford Medical Center in Fargo.
The North Dakota Highway Patrol is asking for assistance from motorcyclists who participated in the September 11th memorial run and who may have witnessed the crash involving Rodacker. The patrol is specifically seeking the identity of the person operating the trike motorcycle that passed Rodacker.
Anyone with information should contact the North Dakota Highway Patrol during regular business hours at 701-328-2447 and after hours at 701-328-9921, attn. North Dakota Highway Patrol Sgt. Andrew Cashin.
The accident is still under investigation by the North Dakota Highway Patrol.
