MONTEREY -- An experienced mountain biker died after crashing during a Saturday afternoon bike race in unincorporated Monterey County, officials said.

San Jose resident Mark Reynolds, 48, was a competition mountain biker who was riding in the Sea Otter Classic at the Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, according to the Monterey County Sheriff's Office.

Reynolds was riding downhill when he apparently failed to negotiate a small wooden bridge, sending the bike off the side of the bridge and crashing into a dirt embankment, the sheriff's office reported.

Reynolds, suffering apparent head and neck injuries, was flown to Natividad Medical Center where he died at about 12:30 p.m., the sheriff's office reported. An autopsy has been scheduled today to determine the cause of Reynolds' death, officials said.