25°Bike crash victim remembered as selfless
Aug 18
2010
Nicholas Darr was the kind of friend who’d call in a duck or turkey, then let his hunting buddy take the shot.
He’d entertain friends with jokes and stories, and he enjoyed a hearty laugh.
And he loved his 2005 Harley Davidson Screaming Eagle Sportster.
He was driving the motorcycle Tuesday night when he was suddenly hit by an oncoming car.
Darr, 24, of Clyde, was headed south on Ohio 101, returning home from a bike night at Margaritaville in Sandusky.
Just before 10:15 p.m., less than a mile from his house south of Clyde, he collided with an Oldsmobile Eighty-Eight driven by 16-year-old Lana C. Adams of Clyde.
The teen, traveling north on Ohio 101, veered across the center line and hit Darr head-on, according to troopers at the Ohio State Highway Patrol’s Sandusky post.
Darr flew from the motorcycle and was later pronounced dead at the scene, troopers said. Troopers early Thursday said Darr was wearing a helmet.
Adams was not injured in the crash.
While charges are pending, the Highway Patrol is investigating the crash.
Alcohol did not appear to be a factor in the crash.
Friends who had gathered at Darr’s house Wednesday afternoon said they’ll dearly miss their friend.
“He was a strong family man,” said Kyle Szymanowski. “He liked his friends and he liked hunting and the outdoors.”
Darr graduated from St. Joseph’s Catholic High School in Fremont in 2004. He did not have a wife or children, friends said, but he was deeply connected to his family and friends.
Matt Byers said he and Darr had been pals since freshman year of high school.
“He was always the center of attention,” Byers said. “He always had a good story. He would always do something to make us laugh.”
That laughter is probably what Byers will miss the most.
“I’m the one he’d always go hunting with,” Byers said. “He’d sit back and call the turkeys and ducks and let you take the shot. If he had a shot and I had a shot, he’d let me take it.”
Darr worked at American Welding and Tank in Fremont, but his true love was the outdoors. He went to Hocking College in Nelsonville, Ohio, to study wildlife management. Byers said Darr was a skilled and avid hunter.
“He was always entertaining,” he said. “He’d always help out if he could.”
Darr’s family has planned a funeral for Saturday at St. Mary Catholic Church. He’ll be buried at St. Mary’s Cemetery in Clyde. Memorials can be made to St. Mary’s Catholic School, St. Joseph Catholic School or any organization promoting outdoor activity.
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09:38 PM
Mrs. Jones says
Well sorry honey poo. Aren't you just so special and let me guess you think your so damn smart now don't you...Where is it you work in a factory and if thats so, then why don't you go work somewhere to you your brains since you seem to be so smart. Or if you work elsewhere ask for a raise...lol....O and yes you can see the incoming and outgoing message even after they were cleared from the phone...However my point was that you can't retreive the actual message......................
03:10 PM
are you really ... says
Interesting info you claim to know...MrsJones; I have just pulled my own records, and it has ALL incoming and outgoing TXT times and to which number and NO Detective credentials here--just asked for them. So no matter what your credentials, if I can see my records.....so can you, and the judge, and the attorney and .....IN any case...the chickie poo has a witnessed history of poor driving skills or lack there of, 16, 1 month on the road, killing a young man that has barely begun his life and all you have to bicker about is what can and cant be retrived.. How about this, the sweet innocent 16 year old who has now killed a man, who supposedly admitted to reaching for her phone, can run and play and shop, attend soccer, give her parents a hug and kiss and say see ya later.......so glad she learned a valuable lesson, or has she? What has she done to reflect on this innocent life. Although I am so lucky to not be in her parents shoes, maybe we should use our detective skills to discover how to avoid this in the furture and teach to rules of the road, responsibility of having the right to drive and the accountability we must have for our actions. FYI....I just retrieved my husbands phone records too, after he deleted ALL incoming and outgoing..interesting so all you detectives out there.....she was on a cell phone, not carrying the cordless from home
04:42 PM
Mrs. Jones says
Thats nice your husbands a detective because I myself am a detective as well. However phone record do in fact show everything except for text messaging.. your phone will show the message but there is NO way to see or know if a text has been sent or received once its deleted from the phone it was active on............Thank you
09:22 PM
Willow84 says
Mrs Jones, the phone company can see EVERYTHING you do on your phone, and they will know if someone was texting or not. My husband is a detective. They often get people's phone records and can see everything one does on their phone.
Regardless if she was texting or not, this is a tremendously sad loss of such a wonderful young man. I am sure that young girl is going to be in remorse for the rest of her life, with good reason.
10:49 AM
Mrs. Jones says
First of all you can’t subpoena a phone record without having a warrant. And in order to have a warrant you must have PC about the user using that and not just on hear say. And second of all the phone records won’t show anything to do with texting. Texting can’t be followed on paper. However I saw that female driving that same car that she was involved in with the accident on Monday night. Wow I must say she drove right up on my rear swerved over to pass me then around she went with a 3 other teenagers in the vehicle. Then she wiped it in front of me to do what pull into the gas station to by a pop and talk to some other kids. Karma will now follow her and no matter the punishment you still can’t replace a life that was taken because of what reason we don’t know yet. God Bless Both Families
10:35 PM
coolj66 says
Give me a break.... If you are old enough to drive a car and use a cell phone you are old enough to have your name made public. I hope that it wasnt texting but i do know that people these days pull out infront of people and almost hit things all while talking to someone on a cell phone or texting . Nick was a great person nothing he wouldnt do for someone . I only know him for a couple years but in the few minute he would stop in the store every week, he made everyone smile . He had a way of making everyone around him feel good no matter how bad a day you had .I hope for her sake she wasnt texting or trying to talk on the phone when this happened .but if it is true she should try to talk to as many people as possible about the dangers of being distracted while driving.Nick is gone forever but we can try to make him the last to die this way.
09:15 PM
bobaluey says
The teen girl has only had her license for one month, apparently she told the cops she was reaching for her cell phone when she killed the man. per fremont newsmessenger. sad, and tragic.
05:14 AM
Dr. Seuss says
I heard it was not texting. All the police have to do is subpeona the phone records. That will tell if she was texting or not. Everyone is all too anxious to blame texting now, it's the new BUZZ for automobile accidents especially for teens. Not every accident involves a teen texting.
06:04 PM
My Name says
to dr. seuss not saying she was texting or anything but how do you know that she wasn't. was you in her car when it happened? my prayers are with nicks family and friends.
06:22 PM
Dr. Seuss says
no she was not texting
11:47 AM
thinktwice says
I remember in drivers ed class the instructor VIVIDLY telling us of an accident he was a first responder to where the driver was distracted while eating a hamburger. He knew that because it was smeared across the victims face. I know that sounds disgusting, but it was training like this that kept me alert while driving when I was younger and has followed me all these years later. I can still hear him yelling "I know how it is out there because I've personally zipped up those body bags!" Thank you Mr. Mackey. I'm sorry if I misspelled his name. It will be interesting to hear the details behind the accident once the investigation is concluded. My Prayers are with BOTH families.
11:13 AM
althenaruby says
i could not imagine being responsible for someone else death..... if shes 16 why did they print her name?
08:45 AM
columbus avenue says
"Texting"...