Lost Off-Road Biker, Murray Carver, Lytle Creek, CA

Coroner case 700903045 VN: On Wednesday, May 6, 2009, at about 10:00 AM, 49 year Rancho Cucamonga resident Murray E. Carver left his home ride his motorcycle in the hills north of town. When he did not return that afternoon searches were initiated along the trails he was known to ride. The following day (Thursday, May 7th) at about 11:00 AM, Sheriff Aviation located Carver’s body along a winding trail approximately 3.5 miles north of Chaffey College. An examination will be conducted early next week to attempt to determine the cause of Carver’s death. [05/07/09 1915 VN]

Wednesday started out like any other work day - up at 0500 hours to shower, feed and put the dogs out, grab breakfast, and hit the road for the office. Likewise, the end of my day seemed just like many others - off work at 1600 hours, home to pack up my search dog for a training, and back home about 2045 hours. By then, though, the pager and cell phone were calling me! Deputy Falce was on the phone asking if I was available to join others on the team for a search in the Lytle Creek area. Of course I said “yes”!

From Carver Search

I was packed up and off to the Shack in no time to meet up with the team and pick up the vehicles. Eight of us deployed to the Valero Gas Station at Nealey’s Corner, Lytle Creek, just off the 15 Freeway and Sierra Avenue. P. Burns, M. Biloki, M. Ward, T. Webb, A. Ortega, F. Becerra, Dep. Falce, and myself from the SB Mountain Team were briefed by personnel on scene. A Rancho Cucamonga resident had not returned home from an off-road motorcycle ride. We were also told he had health issues - specifically his heart. He had told family members he was going to check out two old campgrounds in the area. L. Falce, M. Ward, and T. Webb set up our command post, and interviewed with the family members who were present at the time. The rest of us eventually divided into two vehicles to work the roads. The missing man’s truck had already been located where he originally parked it on 1N34, and tracks were observed where he had unloaded his bike from the bed of the truck and rode off. His two cell phones and bottles of water had been left behind.

Under an almost full moon, we traveled the winding dirt road, some of us walking in front of the vehicles using the headlights and spot light to help illuminate any possible tracks. We were pretty confident as to which way he had left from his truck, and kept following the trail of nubby-treaded bike tires. It seems that every bike that had gone through the area also used that type of tire! As we slowly searched the road, we checked all along the edges for signs of the rider and bike going over the side. Eventually arriving at a spot that our trucks could not maneuver through, we all continued on foot tracking the bike.

One of the two teams headed back to the vehicles to take one truck back down the road to loop around the area to continue to search by coming in from another angle, and to pick up the team still on foot. We were directed by the CP to continue along 1N34 and turn back by 0500 hours or when the road became too dangerous to travel, whichever came first. Our goal was to hopefully reach and search at both Cow Camp and Joe Elliot Camp - the camps that we felt he had referenced when letting his family know of his plans. We had spent all night traveling the route we thought was our best chance of locating him. Coming up onto the 0500-hour time limit, the old, un-maintained dirt road did, indeed, become scarily impassable in the truck.

After we gingerly got the truck turned around, my cell phone alarm clock went off, and I suddenly realized that, on a normal day, I would normally be getting up to get ready to go to work. It also reminded me that I was hungry. The one tamale from the hood of a deputy’s vehicle hours ago was just not cutting it now! We made our way back, picked up vehicles, and returned to the CP. The sun was up, and it was going to be another hot day. I reminded myself that working through the night we had gotten the best of the weather for searching. Thursday morning, three members from the West Valley Posse and a member from West Valley arrived, along with J. Shawver, another of our SB Mt. teammates. Also arriving was 40-King, which had also been searching with us through the night with the FLIR system, with no luck.

I was released from the deployment along with others at 0810 hours. We returned our vehicles to the Shack and headed home. I could have taken my option to not go off to work and get some sleep, but instead I chose to “freshen up” and get to the office - bad idea! I was OK while at the office, listening to my scanner at my desk while I worked. I could hear the scanner broadcast that a fire had started in the Devore area, and then I heard T. Webb on my HT advising the teams to report back to the CP. The subject had been located, unfortunately deceased, much further out along the 1N34 dirt road.