A 75-year-old man managed to drive nine miles the wrong way on Interstate 5 on Saturday morning without causing a wreck, Oregon State Police said.

Troopers cited the Roseburg area man reckless driving, but only after deploying spike strips to stop his 1971 GMC pickup on

about 9 a.m.

Edward Ware began driving north in the southbound lanes of I-5 at exit 127 just north of Roseburg, said OSP Sgt. Dave Randall. During the next several miles, police officers tried unsuccessfully to move into position to get Ware's attention. Troopers also tried to warn oncoming drivers to move over to prevent possible crashes.

"Amazingly, no crashes were caused by the wrong way driver," Randall said.

Ware drove northbound until troopers deployed spike strips flattening two right side tires on the pickup at milepost 135 south of Sutherlin.

Ware left the freeway one mile later, where he was briefly taken into custody by State Police, Roseburg and Sutherlin police.

After receiving the reckless driving citation, he was driven to Mercy Hospital for a voluntary evaluation, Randall said.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, wrong way drivers are involved in nearly 2 percent of fatal crashes nationally. The most common wrong-way crashes are head-on or sideswipes, the OSP said.