Posted at 1:04 p.m., Monday, September 11, 2006
Man, 73, dies during downhill bike tour on Maui
Advertiser Staff
HALEAKALA NATIONAL PARK, Maui — A 73-year-old park visitor from Louisiana died Sept. 6 during a downhill bicycle tour.Robert Ogan of Gretna, La., was part of a tour group that began its ride at the 10,000-foot summit of the volcano, said Chief Ranger Mark Tanaka-Sanders. The group successfully navigated through dozens of turns in the wind and rain, but about 5 1/2 miles into the ride, on a straightaway protected from the weather, Ogan veered off the right side of the road, stopped abruptly and was launched over the handlebars, witnesses said. He landed about 8 to 10 feet down the roadway bank.
When rangers and a park medic reached the man, he was unresponsive and had no pulse, Tanaka-Sanders said. Efforts to revive Ogan failed.
Tanaka-Sanders said there were no obstructions in the road and it is not known why the bicyclist suddenly stopped. At the request of Ogan's family, no autopsy was done, so it is not known if he died of crash injuries or of a medical condition.
