Motorcycle advocate killed as he rides home
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<p align="justify">Robert "Dawg" Beard spent his free time trying to prevent the very tragedy that claimed his life on a winding road Wednesday afternoon.
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<p align="justify">A motorcyclist of 20 years, Beard served as the safety and education representative for the Freedom Valley chapter of A Brotherhood Aimed Toward Education, or A.B.A.T.E., a national not-for-profit motorcycle rights organization.
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<p align="justify">"I put a lot of miles on the road with Bob Dawg. He was just a conscientious rider," Dave Krueger, vice president of the Freedom Valley A.B.A.T.E. chapter, said Thursday. "We lost a family member. A lot of us are still numb about it."
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<p align="justify">The 55-year-old East Peoria man was pronounced dead shortly before 6 p.m. Wednesday in the 2500 block of Meadows Avenue, Tazewell County Coroner Dennis Conover said, after a 16-year-old motorist veered into oncoming traffic and struck his motorcycle.
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<p align="justify">Members of A.B.A.T.E. said Beard's position was to speak with bikers and motorists alike about safe, defensive driving on the roadways. Talking to young drivers at high schools to teach motorcycle awareness, Beard would emphasize the need to pay attention to their surroundings while on the road. Friends said he was fond of telling people, "I'm not here to hurt you, I'm here to help you."
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<p align="justify">A worker for the Illinois Department of Transportation and a father, Beard was on his way home from work when the accident occurred, friends said.
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<p align="justify">"As a person, he was top-notch," A.B.A.T.E. President Steve Surratt said. "He was a character. He always had something funny to say."
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<p align="justify">The young female driver, who was not identified, was traveling east when her car crossed the center line and hit Beard, who was headed in the opposite direction, police said.
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<p align="justify">She was taken to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoira with what Conover described as non-life threatening injuries.
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<p align="justify">Beard was not wearing a helmet though Conover said his injuries were so severe it likely would not have saved him.
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<p align="justify">Illinois State Police is reconstructing the accident and it was unavailable Thursday if any tickets were issued.
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<p align="center">Frank Radosevich II can be reached at (309) 686-3142 or fradosevich@pjstar.com.
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