Maine motorcyclist dies Friday in collision in Sandwich

SANDWICH — A recently-licensed motorcyclist from Maine died Friday after an afternoon crash, according to police.

Deputies from the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office responded to calls for service around 3:20 p.m. on July 19, after a motorcycle rider apparently collided with a utility trailer pulled behind a pickup truck in the area of the intersection of Route 113 and Route 113A, Sheriff Domenic Richardi wrote in a statement.

Officers who first responded to the scene discovered Phillip Bolz, 28, of Sanford, Maine, was unconscious and not breathing. Bystanders attempted to administer CPR until first responders continued that effort. Despite resuscitation efforts and because of extensive trauma suffered by Bolz in the collision, he was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. 

Bolz was wearing a helmet at the time of the collision but suffered traumatic injuries to other areas of his body which led to his death.

An investigation into the scene of the collision discovered Bolz was riding a 2012 Kawasaki Vulcan motorcycle and traveling southbound on Route 113, when at its intersection with 113A he attempted to brake hard, locking the rear tire and skidding down to his right side.

The motorcycle continued to slide across the pavement and crossed into the oncoming lane of traffic, striking a small utility trailer towed by a 1995 Ford Ranger driven by Kyle Norcross, 40, of Sandwich. 

Officers closed the roadway for several hours while conducting the investigation into the collision, according to a media the release. Investigators do not suspect that excessive speed or any other motor vehicle violations were contributing factors in the collision, but learned Bolz was a recently-licensed motorcycle rider not familiar with the area of the crash, which may have been contributing factors. 

Sandwich Fire/EMS, Stewart’s Ambulance, Tamworth Fire/EMS, the Moultonborough Police Department, and New Hampshire State Police assisted at the scene. 

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to contact the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office at 603-539-2284.