James Gallagher took the witness stand Monday in Superior Court to describe how a drive with his family along Foothill Road in Santa Barbara early this month turned into a tragedy that claimed the life of a local motorcyclist.

Testifying in Santa Barbara Superior Court, the Montecito resident recounted how his wife and daughter were with him on the afternoon of March 2 as he was westbound in his Lexus SUV near the Santa Barbara Tennis Club.

A lone motorcyclist raced past him in the opposite direction “at a high rate of speed,” Gallagher testified.

“I would assume he was doing over 80 miles per hour,” Gallagher said, adding that he himself was driving about 35 mph at the time.

Every family member commented about the rider’s speed before Gallagher headed into the hard right, blind turn that’s around the 2300 block of Foothill Road.

That’s when he saw two motorcyclists coming directly toward him, he testified, about 40 feet apart from each other and in his lane.

“This is not good,” he thought at the time.

“I saw him, there was a loud bang and the car filled with smoke,” he said.

The car was skidding on three wheels — the left front one came off in the crash — but Gallagher guided it to the side of the road and got out of it with his family.

His wife had a splint on her arm and they were all traumatized by the event, but were otherwise uninjured, he said.

Authorities say subsequent investigation revealed that Francisco Rodriguez, 23, and Jonathan Leon, 24, allegedly were riding motorcycles along with Raul Ibarra, 24, on Foothill Road at the time of the crash.

Leon and Ibarra collided with Gallagher’s car, which sent both men to the hospital, the Santa Barbara Police Department said.

Ibarra died from his injuries and Leon was released after being treated for serious injuries, according to authorities.

Rodriguez and Leon have been charged with felony vehicular manslaughter, participating in a vehicle speed contest causing injury to Ibarra and reckless driving causing great bodily injury. Rodriguez has also been charged with leaving the scene of an accident.

Monday’s court hearing was the beginning of their preliminary hearing, to determine if there is enough evidence to merit a trial.

Prosecutor Sanford Horowitz called three witnesses to the stand Monday, including Gallagher.

Rodriguez is being represented by attorney Ron Bamieh and Leon is being represented by deputy public defender Christine Voss.

After the collision, Gallagher told his family to call 9-1-1 and went along the road “following the debris field” to find the riders.

One man was mid-way down an embankment near the tennis club on his chest, and the other had his helmet and jacket off. Gallagher identified the second man as Leon.

Leon “seemed to be in shock. He was pacing, and I told him to sit down,” Gallagher said.

Leon was “uncommunicative” and “agitated,” however, and “never really responded to me,” he added.

Gallagher directed ambulances and fire trucks to the scene when they arrived, and was administered a breathalyzer test by Santa Barbara police Officer Aaron Tudor.

Tudor testified that there was no alcohol detected in the test, and Gallagher was “very” cooperative at the scene. Gallagher also agreed to give a blood sample at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital.

Tudor, who spent two years working full-time as a driving-under-the -influence enforcement officer, also conducted sobriety tests on Leon, whom he interviewed on the scene for a statement.

Leon knew the deceased — Ibarra — and said another friend — Rodriguez — was far ahead of them, had come back and then left, Tudor testified.

On the scene, Tudor also interviewed a witness who was parked at 2360 Foothill Road at the time of the accident, he testified. That witness had seen three motorcycle riders go by in single file, all in a “tucked” position, and then heard a crunch, Tudor said.

Another witness, Michael Merryll, was eating lunch at the tennis club, and said he had heard the sound of engines, looked up to see three bikes go by, then heard the impact of the collision.

He heard “metal on metal; it sounded like a large crash, followed by a horn,” Merryll said.

He himself did not call 9-1-1 or go to render aid, but other people at the club did, he testified. The motorcyclists were going “fast” but he couldn’t estimate their speed, he said.

Bamieh and Voss challenged Merryll’s references to the vehicles as “racing bikes” and constantly objected as Horowitz tried to ask whether Merryll thought the riders were driving “appropriate” or “unsafe” speeds.

The preliminary hearing is scheduled to continue Tuesday morning in the courtroom of Santa Barbara County Superior Court Judge George Eskin.

— Noozhawk staff writer Giana Magnoli can be reached at gmagnoli@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.