Motorcyclist dies in Highway 101 crash

BY ERIC LINDBERG
DAILY SOUND STAFF WRITER

A 42-year-old Goleta man died in a traffic collision on Highway 101 in Santa Barbara this morning after his motorcycle slid into a car that had stopped abruptly due to slowed traffic ahead, authorities said.
California Highway Patrol investigators determined the motorcyclist collided with a white Nissan Altima at approximately 8:35 a.m. south of El Sueno Road, CHP Officer Dan Barba said.

Despite wearing a helmet, the motorcyclist sustained massive injuries and died on scene, authorities said. Paramedics transported the driver of the Nissan, a 40-year-old Santa Barbara woman, to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital with unknown injuries, Barba said.
The Nissan had been traveling north at approximately 60 to 65 mph in the fast lane when the driver noticed traffic suddenly slowing ahead, he said. After braking hard and locking the brakes, the vehicle skidded to a stop partially in the center divider.
The motorcyclist, on a 2001 Honda cruiser, approached at an unknown speed and distance and also locked up his brakes in an attempt to avoid a crash, Barba said, but ended up sliding into the vehicle.
Officials closed down two lanes of the highway for approximately one hour for patient care, vehicle removal and cleanup. Authorities did not release the identities of those involved in the incident.
CHP officials also released additional details about a single-vehicle rollover on Highway 101 near El Capitan State Beach on Sunday that left one person dead and another with serious injuries.
Authorities said the driver of the southbound 2007 Chevy Outlander, a 58-year-old woman from Lakewood, Calif., had apparently lost control of the van at 10:39 a.m., left the roadway, hit a utility pole and flipped the vehicle near the railroad tracks.
Firefighters and paramedics extricated a 60-year-old man, also a Lakewood resident, and transported him to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital in serious condition, fire officials said. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene.
Authorities closed the slow lane of the highway for two hours and halted railroad traffic for an hour and 40 minutes as they cleared the scene. Routine toxicology tests will be conducted to determine if alcohol or drugs were a factor in the incident.