Dirt biker hurt in failed stunt
A motocross rider from Los Angeles was seriously injured Sunday after attempting a risky stunt over train tracks, police said.
Andrew Flores, 22, of Canoga Park is the second rider in recent months to unsuccessfully attempt to clear the expanse between two cliffs on either side of the train tracks, according to the Simi Valley Police Department.
The incident occurred about 5 p.m. near the 500 block of West Los Angeles Avenue in Simi Valley, where Flores had a friend with a video camera to record the stunt, said Simi Valley Police Cmdr. Alan Thompson.
Flores jumped across but failed to land safely, police said.
He was taken to the hospital with serious injuries and is expected to survive, police said. He was issued a misdemeanor citation for off-road driving and is expected to appear in court, Thompson said.
Located near the western boundary of Simi Valley and just north of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, the site where Flores was injured has drawn motocross riders in increasing numbers.
Another unsuccessful attempt to jump the expanse occurred April 2, when 24year-old Kyle Katsandris from San Clemente was critically injured when he overshot his landing and crashed.
“Now with two unsuccessful attempts, it is certainly concerning,” Thompson said Sunday night.
Katsandris had consulted with another rider, Colin Morrison, who successfully performed the stunt years earlier.
In a YouTube video chronicling Morrison’s feat, he is seen shooting off a dirt hillside and soaring over a moving train. Morrison safely lands on a hillside on the other side of the tracks as a crowd of onlookers cheers.
Morrison told KTLA-TV that the stunt requires the biker to jump about 160 to 180 feet above the train.
“Pretty much if anything goes wrong, the consequences are really big,” he said.