.... I lost a very good friend in a motorbike crash near Windermere.
He was a very experienced and competent rider, capable of a good turn of speed but also quite content to bimble along when conditions required.
I wasn't with him at the time of the crash but the guy who was travelling behind him says they weren't going fast and the left-hander was "unremarkable".
Nevertheless he evidently drifted wide and hit an on-coming car head-on.
It would appear that a momentary lapse in concentration cost him dearly.
I guess the huge degree of shock felt by myself, and the group of mates he was riding to meet, is heightened by the suddenness and finality of it - no warning, no prolonged recovery, no second chances.
I don't think it too arrogant to assume that most who read this will want to express sympathy to his family / friends / the guy who witnessed the crash / even me - and thank you, but that isn't the point of writing this.
The point is that whilst we all know and accept the risks involved, and we all have to meet our end sometime, PLEASE take care out there and remember that the world can change in the blink of an eye, and in that change, a huge number of people are affected.
I'm sure I'm preaching to the converted but it helps the grief to get it off my chest
Roger
He was a very experienced and competent rider, capable of a good turn of speed but also quite content to bimble along when conditions required.
I wasn't with him at the time of the crash but the guy who was travelling behind him says they weren't going fast and the left-hander was "unremarkable".
Nevertheless he evidently drifted wide and hit an on-coming car head-on.
It would appear that a momentary lapse in concentration cost him dearly.
I guess the huge degree of shock felt by myself, and the group of mates he was riding to meet, is heightened by the suddenness and finality of it - no warning, no prolonged recovery, no second chances.
I don't think it too arrogant to assume that most who read this will want to express sympathy to his family / friends / the guy who witnessed the crash / even me - and thank you, but that isn't the point of writing this.
The point is that whilst we all know and accept the risks involved, and we all have to meet our end sometime, PLEASE take care out there and remember that the world can change in the blink of an eye, and in that change, a huge number of people are affected.
I'm sure I'm preaching to the converted but it helps the grief to get it off my chest
Roger
