Kelley Knockel was just 34 years old when she died on a Saturday night in Clayton County Iowa. She was riding as a passenger on a motorcycle with her group when a white-tailed deer stepped into the road. The crash happened around 9:17 p.m. on Garber Road west of Kennedy Road.
Three motorcycles were heading east. The lead bike a red 2013 Harley-Davidson driven by Joshua Knockel 42 of Colesburg hit the deer. Kelley was on the back of that bike. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Joshua Knockel got hurt bad. He was flown to a hospital in La Crosse Wisconsin for treatment. The second rider Mathew Witham 58 of Guttenberg tried to swerve out of the way. He lost control of his black 2014 Harley-Davidson and ended up with serious injuries. Crews took him to a local hospital.
The third motorcycle carried Nicklas Rosenberger 33 of Dubuque and his passenger Selena Courtney-Puccio 39 also of Dubuque. They managed to miss the whole mess and walked away fine.
Sheriff Brent Ostrander and his team are still looking into what happened. Local crews from around the area helped at the scene that night. The road was quiet until that deer showed up.
Kelley lived in Colesburg Iowa. Her death hit hard for the people who knew her. A night ride with friends turned into something no one saw coming. The other riders are dealing with their own recovery now.
Life can change in a second out on those rural roads. A deer in the dark is something every rider knows can happen. This time it took Kelley.





