Posted on 11/03/2008 10:53:15 AM PST by BGHater
A motorcyclist died in a million-to-one accident after an airborne pheasant crashed into his helmet causing him to lose control, an inquest has heard.
Ian Bottomley, 52, was on a 60mph road when the bird smashed into his head, causing him to swerve into an embankment and come off his bike.
David Farraday, who was first on the scene told the inquest he found Mr Bottomley lying motionless in the road.
Ian Bottomley was killed after a flying pheasant struck his crash helmet in a million-to-one accident
He said: 'There was a bike and still a lot of dust coming up, then I saw Mr Bottomley in the road. The bike was a fair distance from Mr Bottomley.'
Mr Bottomley, a metallurgist and a father-of-two from Preston, Lancashire, crashed on the A683 near Lancaster.
The inquest heard he had been travelling between 67mph and 77mph on a road with a maximum speed of 60mph but that speed was not a factor in the accident.
PC Rachel Killinger said officers soon noticed the pheasant after its body was pointed out by a member of the public.
'There were feathers around Mr Bottomley and certainly some on his helmet,' she said.
A large pheasant, which is similar in size to this, crashed into Mr Bottomley's helmet
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
I have taken out two large owls — fortunately with a car and not a bike. It’s a sick feeling when you see it coming but cannot react fast enough to avoid it. I really thought one was going to land in my lap, but the windshield held.
I too was caught in a thunderstorm once in a tee shirt while riding my motorcycle. It was raining so hard I had to stop and get off the bike. Even stopped, the wind whipped rain was really painful. I then got back on the bike and rode the other direction. At about 40 mph the storm became just a heavy rain.
The sorm blew over in a few minutes, whereupon, I turned back around and continued to my destination.
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