A 28-year-old Sarasota County man died early Friday after losing control of a motorcycle while traveling on a sidewalk along U.S. 41, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
The Venice man was traveling north on the east sidewalk of U.S. 41, also known as Tamiami Trail, north of East Baffin Drive on a 2008 Honda CRF motorcycle when he lost control and fell to the ground, according to FHP.
The crash occurred about 1:40 a.m. Aug. 14, according to FHP.
The man was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. FHP did not release his name.
As previously reported by the Herald-Tribune, the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office announced shortly after 3 a.m. that deputies were assisting FHP at the scene of a fatal crash at U.S. 41 and Baffin Drive.
All northbound lanes of U.S. 41 at Baffin Drive were initially closed while authorities responded to the crash. The Sheriff's Office announced shortly after 5 a.m. that all northbound lanes had reopened.
The Florida Highway Patrol Traffic Homicide Unit continues to investigate the crash.
Florida’s 2026 crash statistics
The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles reports there were 207,675 crashes in Florida through Aug. 6, 2026, including 1,511 fatalities.
The department’s Florida Crash Dashboard also reported 133,929 injuries, 1,401 fatal crashes and 89,253 injury crashes statewide during the same period.
Wade Tatangelo is the executive editor of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune and Florida dining and entertainment editor for the USA TODAY Network. Follow him on Facebook, Instagram, and X. He can be reached by email at wade.tatangelo@heraldtribune.com. Support local journalism by subscribing.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: 28-year-old Sarasota County man dies in motorcycle crash on U.S. 41
