Young Men Often Fatal Motorcycle Crash Victims

Motorcycle crashes have killed two young San Diego County men in three days, a tragic tally that follows alarming regional trends.

In recent years the number of people killed in motorcycle crashes has risen dramatically, and men under 35 are comprising a greater share of the victims. The most recent fatalities fall into this group: a 27-year-old Escondido man who died Saturday after crashing a 2009 Harley Davidson into two cars and a concrete wall on Interstate 15, and a 22-year-old Ramona man who on Thursday collided with a BMW on State Route 78 on a 2012 Kawasaki Ninja 650.

Ramona has had an average annual motorcycle death rate of 5.2 per 100,000 people over the past decade, according to the San Diego County Medical Examiner's latest report. San Diego County's rate was a little less than two per 100,000 people in 2012.

Though the number of county motorcycle deaths dropped from 61 in 2008 to 30 in 2010—the lowest since the dot-com bust—that figure had nearly doubled by last year, its growth partially fueled by the lives of more young men.

No one younger than 25 died in a motorcycle crash in 2010, but the next year 14 did. The following year it was men 25-34 who died most often. Between 2010-12, young men went from comprising 16.6 percent of county motorcycle deaths to one-third.

The San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office, which compiles death statistics, attributed falling motorcycle death rates throughout the '90s to increased helmet usage thanks to new laws. But an upward swing since then has been linked to greater motorcycle popularity, according to the office.

What do you think would reduce the number of motorcycle deaths in San Diego County?