Richard Wanstall, 54, of Marblehead died Saturday after colliding with a truck during a bike race in Burke, Vermont.
According to a statement from Vermont State Police, authorities were notified of a collision between a pick-up truck and a bicyclist at approximately 9:20 a.m. Saturday near the intersection of Brook Road and Carter Road. Police determined that Wanstall was traveling south on Brook Road during the race before entering the northbound side of the road.
During that time, Alex Gross, 27, of East Haven, Vt., was traveling north on Brook Road in a 2007 Dodge truck when Wanstall hit the front of the truck, according to the statement. Both the truck and bicyclist came to rest at the shoulder of the road near the intersection. Wanstall was transported from the scene by ambulance to a nearby hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Rasputitsa Dirt, the organization that held the dirt-bike race, released a statement about the incident on its Facebook page Saturday night.
“We are deeply saddened by the news that one of our community members died today, after colliding with a vehicle while on course,” the post read. “We do not have any information at this time other than what the state police have publicly released so far, but we will reach out to our community with updates as we learn more.”
Police said in the statement they did not believe that speed or impairment were contributing factors at the time. The incident is still under investigation, and anyone who may have witnessed the collision or have information regarding it are asked to contact the Vermont State Police.