Re: Missing biker drove off cliff by Fort Ross

what an unusual way to commit suicide, esp. for a woman...could she be
certain she would die...could she not foresee the horrible pain...poor
thing...

<earthage2002@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:1128012586.372277.100880@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> http://www1.pressdemocrat.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050929/NEWS/509290320/1033/NEWS01
> Missing biker drove off cliff by Fort Ross
> Police say Santa Rosa woman's death an apparent suicide
> Thursday, September 29, 2005
> By DEREK J. MOORE
> THE Santa Rosa PRESS DEMOCRAT
>
> The search for a missing Santa Rosa motorcyclist came to a sad
> conclusion Wednesday with the discovery of Melinda Moore's body in a
> crevice on an 800-foot cliff near Fort Ross.
>
> Authorities said the 40-year-old Moore had placed her helmet and riding
> gloves on a rock as a marker before gunning her red Aprilia Tuono
> motorcycle over the cliff's edge.
>
> Halfway down, her body caught on a bushy outcropping. The motorcycle
> sailed on, smashing on the rocky beach.
>
> "We're looking at this as an apparent suicide," Santa Rosa Police Sgt.
> Steve Bair said.
>
> The discovery brought an abrupt end to a weeklong search that included
> hundreds of motorcyclists from across the Bay Area, private pilots,
> off-duty search and rescue personnel and a private investigator.
>
> "Melinda's body and bike have been found. Our hearts and thoughts are
> with Melinda's family and friends," read the message on
> www.findbigred.com, a Web site created by her friends to share
> information and organize searchers.
>
> Late Wednesday afternoon, a Santa Rosa police detective, a patrol
> officer and a chaplain arrived at Moore's Saddlehorn Court home to
> deliver the grim news to her fiance and about a dozen friends.
>
> Mark Hindman, a motorcycle parts entrepreneur, had offered a $5,000
> reward for information leading to Moore's whereabouts. He sobbed loudly
> when told his fiancee's body had been found.
>
> Adam Wade, a friend from San Mateo, said, "To some extent it's a relief
> to know what happened. But it's obviously not the news anybody wanted
> to hear."
>
> Moore, who had worked as a saleswoman at a Santa Rosa BMW dealership
> and was taking marketing classes at Santa Rosa Junior College, left the
> house last Monday, ostensibly bound for class.
>
> Friends said she was depressed for a variety of reasons, including
> health issues and struggles at school. She also was absorbed in a
> lawsuit stemming from a motorcycle crash that broke both of her arms.
>
> But that sadness seemed to be offset by a rich sense of humor. Moore
> was a member of the Bay Area Menstrual Cycle Club, an all-female riding
> group. A photo in her living room shows her wearing a T-shirt that
> reads, "Does my bike make my *** look fast?"
>
> "Melinda was this huge Amazon woman, a bundle of energy," Wade said of
> the 5-foot-10 Moore, who was known as "Big Red" for her vibrant red
> locks.
>
> Friends said Moore was there for other people in need and had counseled
> others out of taking their own lives. Nobody saw her final act coming.
>
> Bair said an abalone diver stopped to pick up Moore's helmet and gloves
> after spotting them on a turnout of Highway 1 on Sept. 19, the same day
> she rode away from her home in Santa Rosa.
>
> The Sebastopol man contacted authorities Wednesday after reading news
> reports of her disappearance. He led detectives to the site later in
> the day.
>
> Bair said the spot where Moore died is known as "High Point" because
> the cliffs there are among the highest on the Sonoma County coast.
>
> The area is about three miles south of Fort Ross on the twisty and
> scenic road, just the kind Moore liked to ride to clear her head. Bair
> said the cliff where she went over is on a turnout about 50 feet from
> the highway.
>
> He said detectives spotted the body and motorcycle, which couldn't be
> seen from the road, after they hiked down a steep trail to the beach
> and looked back at the cliff.
>
> The sheriff's helicopter was used to remove Moore's body using a long
> line and a litter. She was taken by van to the coroner's office in
> Santa Rosa.
>
> She was still clad in her leather riding gear, Bair said.
>


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