Motorcyclist Critically Injured In Clearwater Crash Tuesday Evening

By
Steven Hirschfield
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Photo: Amanda Beach
Photo: Amanda Beach

Motorcyclist Critically Injured In Clearwater Crash Tuesday Evening

Posted: June 30, 2015 – 9 PM

At approximately  5:14 PM at Tuesday, June 30, 2015, multiple reports of a motorcycle crash were reported at the intersection of Countryside Blvd and Curlew Road in Unincorporated Clearwater.

Arriving units located a motorcyclist down and injured in the roadway and quickly requested an air transport unit.  Bayflite was dispatched to the scene and the patient was transported to Bayfront Health St. Petersburg.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP), 76 year-old Robert Smith of Clearwater, Florida, was driving a 2015 Kia Soul westbound on Curlew Road in the left turn lane.  28 year-old Stone F. Whitener was riding on a 2015 Yamaha R1 eastbound on Curlew Road in the curb lane.  Smith failed to yield right-of-way to the motorcyclist when making a left turn.  The front of the Whitener’s motorcycle struck the right side of the Kia Soul.   Whitener was airlifted to Bayfront Health St. Petersburg with life-threatening injuries.   FHP reports that Whitener was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash.

FHP continues the investigation and reports that alcohol did not appear to have been involved.  Units from Clearwater, Palm Harbor, and Safety Harbor Fire Departments along with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office assisted on-scene.

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1 COMMENT

  2. And I am sure the motorcyclist followed the rules of the road within the past 5 minutes before the crash. Most sportbike motorcyclist are habitual traffic violators and THEY should be more heavily charged so they start following the rules of the road. They should start going to jail for and maybe they will learn.

    FYI I am not saying in this case it wasn’t the cars fault but I think you’ll agree rarely do you see a sport bike pass you without violating some law or driving recklessly.

    • Tom Jones, my name is Keegan and I am a close friend and coworker of Stone the rider involved. He is not a rule breaker and your sarcasm in your comments are not appreciated by friends and family. He is in a bad spot because someone forgot to look or didn’t see him. What your doing is profiling which isn’t any different from sexism or racism. What would your think of he was your friend or family member?

      • Keegan,

        Hi I witnessed and reported this accident the other day. I was 2 cars behind the driver that failed to yield and saw every detail of the crash.
        First off, let me send my prayers your way to you, your, friend, family members, etc… The crash has weighed heavily on me for the last couple days. It was quite traumatizing and a terrible accident.
        I do not wish to publicly give my opinion of any driver that was as fault but I WILL however fault those responsible for the traffic lights at that intersection. There should NEVER be a flashing yellow yield light there on Curlew Rd. to turn left. Drivers are completely blind to oncoming traffic and it’s nearly impossible to see when it’s safe to make the turn. Something should be done about that and I swore after witnessing the accident I would write to (whomever) and file a formal complaint about that yielding yellow arrow. However, I am not sure who to contact exactly? Any help here would be greatly appreciated.
        The reason I’m even on this site is that I’ve been searching for the last couple days to find out if the driver of the motorcycle is okay. So Keegan please send love and prayers his way and my thoughts are with you and him and his family and friends. Thank you -Joseph

    • Tom, with all due respect, keep your opinion to yourself. My friends husband is fighting for his life. Obviously the driver was at fault. Please have some respect for a family that’s in the hospital as we speak hoping and paying their son, brother, friend and husband pulls through. That’d be great. Thanks.

    • We’re bikers. …goldwing trike riders and we are very cautious and are constantly watching the moves of 4 wheelers. …however we cant say that for the sports biker or ninja idiots who believe they are above all road laws and continue to ride as idiots. If theres an accident involving them, id bet to say its their fault for weaving in and out, flying between cars, running up turn lanes, emergency lanes and just going way too fast

      • I ride a full dress bike and have seen a lot of fools on sports bikes but you can’t make a blanket statement like if one was involved in an accident they were at fault.
        Stone was doing everything right and wearing all his safety equipment, none of this was his fault so he shouldn’t be blamed for any of it.

    • I’ll have you know that Stone is not only a very experienced rider but a responsible rider as well. Don’t make judgments or generalizations when you a. don’t know all of the facts and b. don’t know the people involved. Stone is still fighting for his life. Had he been riding a bicycle in cyclist gear, would your comments be any different? Please think about what you say. Put some thought into choosing words to convey your thoughts and opinions.

  3. Keegan – I believe Tom is addressing the comment from TP referring to ‘idiots on 4 wheels’.
    No one is perfect while they are driving on the roads, 4 wheeled & 2 wheeled drive just as bad as each other but it is more difficult to see the 2 wheeled drivers.
    People drive too fast, people drive too slow. No matter what, something is going to happen.

    The location & attitude of Smith seemed a bit off. Hopefully the investigation will handle that aspect & the justice system will do it’s part.

    I hope that Stone pulls thru this. He was fully geared in apparel that likely saved his life. I will keep him in my thoughts & prayers.

  4. Having to live with the truth that you did this to someone when you didn’t mean to is the worst punishment. People just need to be educated! It’s proven that they’re not mentally looking for motorcycles. That’s what needs to change. When the DMV’s giving people their license, awareness of motorcycles should be in the test! My prayers go out to him and his family!

  5. As a motorcycle rider myself, I see too many times drivers not paying attention. I cant even tell you the amount of times that someone has crossed the line and they are face down in their phones text messaging. I also stand strong on having elderly people take mandatory YEARLY eye test when driving….Wake up people!! I did not know Stone, but my prayers go out to him and his loved ones during this most difficult time.

  7. I happen to live in the condo that Bayflight landed right in front of I can tell you that this intersection is constantly having accidents. The problem is the turn lane Smith was in is lower than the other side of the intersection and you cannot see beyond the cars in the turn lane coming from the eastbound direction. The problem with that is you get the yellow flashing turn signal, The DOT needs to get out there and change it to a green arrow and a red stop no flashing yellow. So whoever you are on here if this is your friend and I’m sorry for your difficult time please contact someone and get them out there to fix that light. I sit behind people all the time who are creeping out there trying to see around and making that dangerous turn when they can’t see and just cover my eyes sometimes for fear that they’re going to get hit and then smashed into me. People blow at me all the time and I refuse to make that turn and less I am absolutely certain the ones coming.

    • Stephanie,

      Wow I’m so glad to see someone else here agrees with me. I was 2 cars behind the driver that was involved in the accident. Saw everything at close range. And I 100% agree with you. It’s the light. They need to do away with the yellow arrow yield it’s a HUGE hazard. From where I was watching, which was very very close, this was just an accident. The traffic was horrible (rush hour 5:15pm), too many people were speeding an in a rush. Too many people just gunning it thru the yield without a clear view of oncoming traffic. It’s a nightmare. I’d encourage other citizens reading or aware of this to contact city officials about this. I am going to. Thanks again and prayers and blessings to those involved in the accident and their family and friends. -joseph

  8. I also work with Stone and ride motorcycles as well. I never see him ride without the proper gear (gloves, jacket, helmet, etc) and know he loves to ride! We all need to pay extra attention when we ride or drive, and take the extra couple of seconds to look twice and make sure the coast is clear before you change lanes, turn, or pull out so we can avoid these types of situations. When I ride I try to anticipate any and every car to pull out, come over in my lane, turn in front of me, or open a door in front of me…. And when I see someone texting, they get an ear full of air horn to alert them I’m near. My thoughts and prayers go out to Stone and his family and friends. Everybody please stay alert to your surroundings whether on 2 wheels or 4!

    • Hi Ryan. Again as a witness, I can say that Stone did nothing wrong. He maybe have been driving a bit too fast but so was the rest of traffic so he was just keeping speed. I saw he had on all protective gear and was perfectly obeying the traffic laws. It’s just a terrible intersection with badly operated lights, bad time of day, etc.. Once again my thoughts are with you. I believe I’ve spoken my peace here 🙂

  10. I hope the driver of that piece of shit Kia gets a heavy fine or goes to jail, period. I don’t care of its a flashing friggin yellow light or not, you need to pay attention to your surrounds, especially if your a 76 year old that has no business on the damn road. Both Stone and his wife have been a long time friend of mines and Stone ALWAYS follows the rules of the road and ALWAYS is wearing his protective wear. He’s still in critical condition and my prayers are with his wife, Courtney, his family, her family, and friends. It’s going to be a long process, but Stones a fighter.

  13. To all of you who have made negative comments on this accident… Remember that KARMA is a bitch with your name on it! This family are great friends if mine! Stone didn’t make it and and we are all grieving tremendously! You are insensitive and self absorbed not to mention uneducated with the facts! I work trauma at a local hospital and see plenty of this kind of accidents.. Let me tell you that most of the time it’s not the motorcycle at fault! It’s usually some idiot in a rush that needs to be somewhere yesterday with disregard for life and others on the road! Watch what you say because it will come back to bite you in the ass! I am devasted for what has happened to Stone and your remarks regarding a tragic situation will ring when you are faced with a similar situation. Do not judge what you don’t know!