Cyclist rescued on McKenzie Trail

Linn County Sheriff Bruce Riley reports the Linn County Sheriff's Office 9-1-1 Center received a call at 11:23 a.m. on Sunday reporting an injured mountain bicyclist on the McKenzie River Trail near Sahalie Falls. Sahalie Falls is located on Highway 126 near the Clear Lake Resort,  a popular destination for hiking and mountain bicycling.

The trail is narrow and consists of lava rock, large boulders, steep drop-offs and hazardous terrain. Deputies and 19 Linn County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue (SAR) members responded to assist the injured bicyclist. They found Michael Roszak, 72, of Bend, had crashed his bicycle approximately eight-tenths of a mile south of the entrance to Cold Water Cove Campground. Roszak had been riding alone south toward Carmen Smith Reservoir when he collided with a large boulder on the side of the trail, possibly fracturing or dislocating his left hip. Roszak was unable to walk or move and remained on the trail for a short time until two off-duty Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT's) out of Grants Pass located Roszak.

The EMT's were identified as Brandon Rigaud and Jared Nichols; they too had been on the same trail mountain biking. Rigaud and Nichols were equipped with medical supplies and administered first aid.

An additional mountain bicyclist in the area rode from the crash scene to the Clear Lake Resort to make a satellite telephone call to 9-1-1. SAR members carried Roszak approximately one mile south to the trailhead at Carmen Smith Reservoir where he was transported by Sisters-Camp Sherman ambulance to St. Charles Hospital in Bend.

The Sheriff's Office was assisted by the Linn County Parks staff at Clear Lake Resort and the U.S. Forest Service.

Photo Courtesy Linn County Sheriff's Office

McKenzie River Reflections