The 23-year-old Alberni Valley man who died when his all-terrain vehicle flipped over a cliff was an experienced rider who always wore his safety gear, his family and friends said yesterday.
Tyler Jacobsen was camping with friends at Sproat Lake Friday, spending the day riding around on his ATV, his best friend Lance Kujala said.
Jacobsen split up with Kujala around 1 p.m. to find other friends near Nahmint Lake. He ended up on a logging road and took a corner too wide, sending him crashing down a three-metre bank where he died. Kujala didn't realize his friend was missing until 9:30 p.m., thinking he was with the other group. Jacobsen's body was found shortly after 10 p.m.
At the time of the crash Friday, Jacobsen was not wearing a helmet or his riding gear.
"He always wore his gear, his boots and his pants and his helmet," said his mother Valerie yesterday. She said her son had been riding ATVs since he was eight years old. "This is the first time he wasn't wearing them. I think they were being goofy and having fun.
"He was partying and living life to the fullest," Valerie said. "At least I know he was doing what he loved."
