CENTER TWP — A motorcyclist apparently lay injured for hours after crashing on South Benbrook Road late Thursday night.

The injured man was not discovered until shortly before 7 a.m. today when a passing motorist spotted the wreckage in a grassy field, authorities said.

A short time later, a medical helicopter flew the unidentified victim to a Pittsburgh hospital.

State police are investigating the crash, but an accident report was not immediately available.

The man and his wrecked cycle ended up in Isaiah Stevenson's yard at 142 S. Benbrook Road. "I didn't hear a thing last night," Stevenson said. "I didn't know anything happened until I saw a policeman in my yard this morning."

He said the victim was found near the motorcycle about 30 feet off the road. It appeared the cycle narrowly missed several trees before it crashed onto the ground — apparently sometime between 11 and 11:30 p.m.

"Someone driving along the road saw the guy laying in a field or grassy area on the side of the road," said Dennis Bacher, an owner of the Butler Ambulance Service Inc.

The Butler County Communications Center was called at 6:58 a.m. An ambulance crew was immediately dispatched.

Paramedics treated the man while Unionville volunteer firefighters set up a landing area at the fire station at Route 8 and Mahood Road for the LifeFlight helicopter.

The injured man was taken to Allegheny General Hospital. The extent of his injuries was not known.