Bend, Oregon- A Bend man who went missing after a Sunday motorcycle ride was found dead Monday morning in the Horse Ridge area, about 19 miles east of Bend, authorities said.
According to the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, 41-year-old Eric Blayney went riding on off-highway vehicle trails Sunday afternoon but never returned home. His friends and wife became concerned and reported him missing to the Bend Police Department around 3 a.m. Monday.
Blayney’s phone was connected to the Life360 app, which helped determine his last known location. Friends began searching the Horse Ridge area around 7 a.m. Monday, and Forest Patrol deputies from the sheriff’s office joined the effort.
At 10:41 a.m., Blayney’s friends discovered him unresponsive on a private road running alongside an OHV trail. Deputies and friends immediately began CPR and used an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) in an attempt to revive him. When medics arrived, Blayney was pronounced dead at the scene.
While the investigation remains ongoing, deputies believe Blayney may have accidentally turned off the designated trail onto a private road that was blocked by a gate made of two metal poles and a chain. His motorcycle was found still in fourth gear, leading investigators to suspect he may have struck the chain at a high rate of speed.
Blayney was riding alone at the time of the crash. His wife was notified of his death by friends and Bend Police.
“The crash appears to be a tragic accident,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement, adding that it “extends its deepest sympathies to Eric Blayney’s family and friends.”
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