A 34-year-old motorcyclist was killed in a single-vehicle crash Saturday on U.S. Highway 550 near the top of Coal Bank Pass, between Durango and Silverton.
Forest Pivirotto of Tucumari, N.M., was driving a KTM 990 motorcycle northbound on Highway 550 when he attempted to pass another vehicle on a double-yellow line, said Capt. Angela DeGuelle, with the Colorado State Patrol.
As he did, Pivirotto entered a sharp left-hand turn and lost control, crashing into the guardrail, she said.
The crash was reported at 11:48 a.m. near mile marker 58, about a mile north of the summit with Coal Bank Pass.
Pivirotto was endorsed to ride motorcycles and was wearing a helmet, DeGuelle said.
Investigators have no reason to believe drugs or alcohol were involved in the crash, she said.
Off-duty medical personnel driving by at the time attempted to save Pivirotto’s life by applying a tourniquet. A Flight For Life helicopter arrived on scene and was in route to St. Mary’s Hospital in Grand Junction when Pivirotto was pronounced dead. The helicopter landed in Montrose.
