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Dead motorcyclist's sister stresses helmet use

By CANDACE RONDEAUX
Published January 27, 2005

PALM HARBOR - If there's one lesson Michael Showalter's sister wants the world to learn from his fatal motorcycle accident last week it's this:

"Wear your helmet. Wear your helmet. Wear your helmet," said Showalter's sister, Carrie Houck.

Showalter, 41, was not wearing his helmet when a 2000 Mazda sedan ran into his Yamaha motorcycle in Dunedin Saturday afternoon.

And that, his sister said, may be one reason the Palm Harbor resident did not survive the accident.

An avid motorcyclist, Showalter was a member of ABATE Florida, a motorcycle advocacy group that successfully lobbied in 2000 to repeal a Florida law requiring motorcycle riders to wear helmets.

"He didn't like helmets," Houck said of her brother. "He didn't like to to have one blocking his peripheral vision."

ABATE's strong stance against helmets was one reason the group appealed to Showalter, she said.

Showalter, a Florida resident since 1992, worked as an assistant superintendent for Telesource Group. His parents live in Palm Harbor.

The crash occurred about 1 p.m. Saturday after the Mazda's driver, Jose G. Patino, hit Showalter's motorcycle as he was riding north on County Road 1 near Countryshire Lane.

Patino, 71, was driving east on McNair Drive when he attempted to cross County Road 1 and struck the motorcycle, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

Showalter was taken by helicopter to Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg, where he died Monday.

ABATE Florida's president James "Doc" Reichenbach II said he did not know Showalter, but said bad driving was just as likely to be responsible for his death. The state needs stiffer penalties against car drivers who run into motorcyclists, he added.

"You can't blame the man for not wearing a helmet because the accident wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for the car hitting him," Reichenbach said Wednesday.

FHP officials said Wednesday charges could be filed against Patino, but declined to release further details pending the outcome of their investigation.

Patino, of 4308 Wheatland Way in Palm Harbor, was taken to Mease Countryside Hospital in Safety Harbor with minor injuries Saturday and released the same day.

Times researchers Cathy Wos and Kitty Bennett contributed to this report. Candace Rondeaux can be reached at 727 771-4307 or rondeaux@sptimes.com

[Last modified January 27, 2005, 00:40:21]