SPRINGFIELD - It was a clear day in September 2006 when Kendal Jones was cruising along Illinois 16, just west of the Coles County line.

Astride his 1995 Honda Goldwing, the 56-year-old Olney resident was in the area to make some sales calls for the machine shop where he was employed.

"Riding was the love of his life," said his wife, Janet Jones. "I almost called in sick that day just to go with him. He always said riding took all the worries and cares away."

Kendal Jones was near the edge of the small town of Gays when the driver of an oncoming car suddenly swerved into his lane. He edged as far to the side of the roadway as he could, but the vehicle nonetheless collided with his bike.

Kendal Jones, who'd ridden motorcycles since he was a teenager and was wearing a helmet that day, was killed.

"He was doing everything right that day," Janet Jones said.

Kendal Jones fits in the statistical model of a growing trend of motorcycle fatalities. He was in an age group that has seen a quadrupling in the number of motorcycle fatalities that have occurred in Illinois in the past decade.

Experts say more and more people older than 45 are taking up motorcycle riding for the first time, but unlike them, Kendal Jones wasn't new to his bike.

His widow said it is a case of automobile drivers needing to be more aware of motorcycles. That also is the message of state officials, who attempt to educate car drivers to keep an eye out and keep their distance from their two-wheeled brethren.

Janet Jones said, as a young teenage driver, she herself pulled out in front of a motorcycle, forcing the rider to lay down the bike to avoid a collision.

She knows it can be dangerous when car and truck drivers aren't paying attention because of any number of factors.

In her husband's case, she thinks the driver, who was ticketed, had taken his eyes off the road when he reached down to get a drink or change the radio station.

"Ken always said, 'It's the other drivers you have to watch out for,' " she said.

"We're still dealing with it," Janet Jones said. "My message is that people need to watch out for motorcycles. They are more vulnerable."

Kurt Erickson can be reached at kurt.erickson@lee.net or 789-0865.