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‘Hero’ biker overwhelmed by donations after avoiding cyclists

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  • August 2, 2017 at 4:10 pm #27442
    Mungecrundle

    Anyone else see this on the BBC website today?

     

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-derbyshire-40776331

     

     

    I’m a bit puzzled on how to interpret this story beyond commiserating with Mr Toon with regard to his life changing injuries and wishing him as complete a recovery as is possible.

    The events are somewhat unclear from the BBC report “..when his back wheel started to skid”, does this mean he lost traction which would indicate excessive speed for the conditions, poor motorcycle control or failure to read road hazards e.g spilled diesel, loose surface etc. Or did his motorcycle suffer a mechanical failure in that the rear wheel suddenly came loose or the tyre suffered a blowout? If the former, then being the operator of the vehicle, why should he be applauded for not wiping out other innocent road users as part of his accident? If the later then with due respect, and some experience of riding motorycles, I’m not sure just how much of a say he had in the matter of where his motorcycle ended up.

    I also resent the implication that the cyclists were an additional inconvenient hazard to the extent that Mr Toon felt he had to sacrifice himself because of their presence. You just know that there are people reading about this and winding themselves up into an indignant rage about “Bloody cyclists, all over the roads, causing a nuisance, danger to themselves and others”. Would his actions have been as heroic had it been a combine harvester coming round the corner that he decided to avoid crashing into? Perhaps I’m being overly sensitive? Then again, “Motoryclist who almost caused multiple fatality tragedy, seeks money for a wheelchair” probably wouldn’t be the best strapline for a charity fund raising exercise.

    M

     

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  • August 2, 2017 at 10:56 pm #898847
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    Anonymous
    reliablemeatloaf wrote:
    He could have just hit them, and then in the aftermath, said “oh well, I made a mistake” and others would have suffered. This happens a lot today, no?

    Instead, he chose NOT to have others suffer because of his mistakes, and took his chances.

    In the split second he had, he thought of others.

    As mentioned, it’s unlikely he was actually able to choose where he was coming off, particularly given what was described in which case he was already out of control beforehand, so giving him credit for the avoiding action (surely you would do that anyway right?) when his version of events sounds all a bit ‘salty’, is for me and others just not right.

    August 2, 2017 at 9:33 pm #898845
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    reliablemeatloaf

    He could have just hit them,

    He could have just hit them, and then in the aftermath, said “oh well, I made a mistake” and others would have suffered. This happens a lot today, no?

    Instead, he chose NOT to have others suffer because of his mistakes, and took his chances.

    In the split second he had, he thought of others.

    August 2, 2017 at 6:31 pm #898843
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    Anonymous

    As a former biker, all I can
    As a former biker, all I can say is who taught that guy to ride? Rear lock-up? The only time I ever used my rear was settling a bike in a bend (rare and usually on a track day) and stationary. The front will do all you ask of unless you really mess up.

    Sorry this happened to him but having crashed two bikes myself and knowing what people ride like I don’t think there’s any heroics involved here.

    August 2, 2017 at 5:54 pm #898841
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    srchar

    I read this story and thought

    I read this story and thought exactly the same thing.  It’s bollocks that you “look down” and “notice” that your back wheel is losing traction on a bike. It happens in milliseconds and you feel it through your arse. By the time you’re looking down, you’re in the hedge.

    To summarise:

    – Going too fast

    – Lost control

    – Narrowly avoided killing innocent bystanders (probably more by luck than skill, given said loss of control)

    Aren’t those cyclists, who nearly lost their lives, lucky that the rider was such a hero.  The story quotes Mr Toon as saying, “the cyclists all thanked him for what he did”.  Can you imagine any scenario in which you see a biker lose control of his machine, almost hit you, seriously injure himself in the process and your first reaction is to thank him for his actions?

    August 2, 2017 at 5:46 pm #898839
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    Canyon48

    From the Leicester Mercury;

    The Leicester Mercury wrote:
    The 32-year-old, who is still recovering in hospital, told the Nottingham Post: “I was heading towards Melton. I was coming up to a blind bend so I slowed down but as I slowed down my back wheel skidded and it started to fish tail. 

    So, it seems a more accurate title for this story is “Rider loses control of motorbike and nearly kills cyclists”.​

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