The tempting straightaways and generally open traffic lanes of River Watch Parkway are more dangerous than they look, traffic officers say, and recent fatalities underscore their message to take things slow.

Three motorcyclists have died on the road since Aug. 8, 2004, with the latest fatal wreck occurring Sept. 23 when Evans resident Max Tall lost control of his Harley-Davidson and crashed near the Augusta Canal.

Authorities say speed is a factor in most fatal wrecks, but one local traffic expert said River Watch Parkway's twists and turns can make navigating the road especially difficult.

The curves make it "a little bit more treacherous than people realize," said Maj. Richard Weaver, the head of the Richmond County Sheriff's Office road patrol.

Authorities said speeding was most likely involved in two of the three fatal wrecks on River Watch Parkway.

On Aug. 8, 2004, Pvt. Blake Edward Carsten, 20, a Fort Gordon soldier from Mesa, Ariz., lost control of his 2004 GSXR-600 Suzuki motorcycle while traveling west.

He was the only person to die in a motorcycle-related traffic wreck in Richmond County in 2004, according to data provided by Augusta-Richmond County's Department of Traffic Engineering.

At 5:47 p.m., witnesses saw Pvt. Carsten leave the road and strike a concrete center divider and a guardrail near the canal. He had attempted to pass traffic at high speed, said Richmond County Chief Deputy Coroner Mark Bowen.

Speed was probably a factor in the April 10 death of Duane White as well, Mr. Bowen said. The Fort Gordon soldier lost control of his Yamaha 600 motorcycle while riding with friends on River Watch between 15th Street and Alexander Drive.

Mr. White, 33, died at the scene of massive injuries suffered in the late afternoon wreck.

Richmond County Deputy Coroner Charlena Graham did not know how the latest victim, Mr. Tall, lost control of his motorcycle, but she said he was traveling with friends at the time of the wreck.

Mr. Tall veered into a side guardrail near the canal at about 7:24 p.m. His motorcycle slid 1,000 feet down the parkway, Ms. Graham said.

Mr. Tall is the 13th person to die in a traffic crash in Richmond County and the second person to die on River Watch this year, according to traffic records.

In 2003, four people died in motorcycle-related traffic crashes in Richmond County, but none was traveling on River Watch. There have been 371 nonfatal accidents involving all types of vehicles on River Watch Parkway since 2003, according to data provided by the Department of Traffic Engineering.

But River Watch, like other roads in Richmond County, is not designed to be dangerous, said Vonda Everett, a spokeswoman for the Department of Transportation's District 2 office.

It's the people speeding and weaving in and out of traffic who increase the likelihood of a wreck, she said.

"The road in itself is not dangerous," Ms. Everett said. "The circumstances surrounding the road make it dangerous."

Reach Kate Lewis at (706) 823-3215 or kate.lewis@augustachronicle.com.