Update, 2 p.m. Saturday: Police have identified the motorcyclist as 42-year-old Robert Dale Sealey. His family has been told of his death, police say.
A motorcyclist died Friday afternoon in Spenard after a shopping bag slid off the handle of his motorcycle and he veered off the road and crashed into a tree, according to the Anchorage Police Department.
Around 2:40 p.m., police were called to the crash in a neighborhood off Spenard Road. A witness told police that the man was driving northwest on Breezewood Drive when a shopping bag slid off his motorcycle's handle and hit the ground, said a statement from Renee Oistad, police spokeswoman.
The man looked over his shoulder at the bag and veered off the road. He tried to brake but ran out of room and crashed into a large tree near the intersection of Breezewood Drive and Klamath Drive. He was wearing a helmet, Oistad said.
The man was taken to a hospital, where he was declared dead, Oistad said. Police are not releasing the man's name until his family is notified, she said.
"Distracted driving appears to be the only contributing factor in this collision," she said.