Off-Road Driver Dies After Crash Off Cliff

A 29-year-old Ventura man died early Sunday after crashing his convertible Jeep during an off-road driving event at Hungry Valley State Vehicular Recreation Area near Gorman, authorities said.

The crash occurred about 3 a.m. off a curvy dirt road about 20 miles from the park’s entrance, which is just inside Ventura County.

Bryan Price was ejected after he drove too close to the edge on a straight portion of the road, and the vehicle rolled off a 30-foot cliff on Alamo Loop, authorities said. The site is about two miles west of Gold Hill Road in the southern reaches of the park.

Price, an employee at SECOR International Inc., an environmental engineering and consulting firm in Thousand Oaks, was driving back to camp with a friend after participating in what authorities called a “Fright Night Run,” an annual off-roading event held every October.

During the event, which attracted about 200 drivers, Price apparently had mechanical problems and lost use of the headlights on his 1971 Toyota Land Cruiser, said James Baroni, a Ventura County senior deputy coroner.

“They were coming back down the mountain and using flashlights to see the road and following another vehicle,” Baroni said. “The vehicle got too close to an edge and rolled.”

Price was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash, and the California Highway Patrol is also investigating whether alcohol was a factor, authorities said. Price’s passenger, Steven Charbonneau of Corona Del Mar, was wearing a seat belt and was not injured, Baroni said.

Price was trapped underneath the vehicle for a short time, but Charbonneau, along with other drivers, pulled him from the wreckage and administered CPR. He died a few minutes later at the crash site, Baroni said.

Price is survived by his wife. Funeral arrangements were pending.