‘Speed competition’ ends with teen driver dead and his competitor charged, NC cops say

A teen killed in a motorcycle crash last week in High Point was engaged in a “speed competition” before his death, police say.

It happened shortly after 5 p.m. on Nov. 9 and Andrew Shea died at the scene, officials said. High Point is just southeast of Greensboro.

The crash happened when the 18-year-old “lost control” of a 2008 Yamaha as the motorcycle entered a curve on “W. Market Center Street, near the Prospect Street overpass,” police said.

Shea was thrown from the vehicle as it bounced over a concrete median into opposing traffic. The riderless bike then ran into a 1993 Nissan pickup truck headed in the opposite direction, officials said.

The 41-year-old driver of the pickup was not hurt, officials said.

“It was discovered through video evidence that Mr. Shea was engaging in a willful speed competition with another driver just prior to the crash,” High Point police said in a Nov. 16 update. “The driver of the other vehicle involved in the speed competition was identified during the investigation and was located by the investigating officer on Monday (Nov. 15).”

Investigators identified the other driver as Kyle Self, 33, of nearby Franklinville, N.C. He has been “charged by citation with spontaneous speed competition and speeding 75 mph in a 45 mph zone,” officials said. Self is cooperating with the investigation, officials said.

“There was no evidence to suggest that Mr. Self’s vehicle made any contact with Mr. Shea’s vehicle prior to the collision or contributed to Mr. Shea losing control of his vehicle,” police said. “Speed and rider inexperience are still considered to be the contributing factors for this crash.”

This story was originally published November 16, 2021 at 4:51 PM with the headline "‘Speed competition’ ends with teen driver dead and his competitor charged, NC cops say."