Airlift Northwest transported a 50-year-old man to Harborview Medical Center Wednesday afternoon with serious injuries after he crashed his bicycle on the steep downhill lanes of Lake Tapps Parkway Southeast in Auburn.

The names of the man was not disclosed.

At 2:30 p.m. a passerby called 911 after seeing a man tumble end over end off his bicycle. Witnesses said the man was traveling at a high rate of speed and wasn’t wearing a helmet. The crash happened halfway down the length of the hill at the 1000 block of Lake Tapps Parkway Southeast.

Valley Regional Fire Authority firefighters and King County Medic One paramedics stabilized the man and transported him to Sunset Park in Lakeland Hills, where Airlift Northwest landed a chopper and flew the injured man to Harborview for further treatment.

By law in the city of Auburn, all bicycle riders must wear a helmet. Custom-fit helmets are available at the VRFA headquarters station at 1101 D St. N.E.