The last moments of tragic biker Wayne
A KEEN motorcyclist died when he made a “minor error” while out on an afternoon ride in Derbyshire.
Wayne Poxon, of Chellaston, was not speeding or riding dangerously, a police expert told an inquest.
But at a junction that was hard to see, he tried to overtake a car and hit a van which was turning.
The hearing was told the van’s indicator could have been “masked” from Mr Poxon’s view, giving him no chance to see that it would turn into his path.
As a result the Kawasaki motorcycle he was riding collided with a white Citroen Relay van on the A515 5 near Biggin, a few miles north of Ashbourne.
The crash, which took place at around 10.55am on Wednesday, y, August 12, left the father and granddfather from Chellaston with serious us head injuries, killing him instantly.
Mr Poxon’s family have described d him as a “fun, warm and honest” man who loved life, with hundreds attending his funeral.
The former pub landlord and massive Derby County fan was a regular rider on the roads of Derbyy shire and a hugely popular figure in the community.
An inquest at Chesterfield Corooner’s Court was told yesterday that at Mr Poxon had been trying to overrtake traffic when he hit a delivery ry van which was turning right into a private road.
Sergeant Darren Muggleton, of Derbyshire Constabulary’s collision investigation unit, said the 51-yearold had been in a queue of traffic which had overtaken a bin lorry heading south of Newhaven.
Following this the line caught up with the delivery van which had pulled out of Banky Barn Caravan and Camping site.
“We believe Mr Poxon was riding his motorcycle in a line of traffic,” he said. “The van driver stated that he had gone into campsite by mistake – he needed the next junction on the road – so he pulled back onto the main carriageway and indicated to the right, at the entrance to the farm.
“The vehicle behind, a Volkswagen Tiguan, observed the right indicator. She slowed, anticipating that the driver of the van was going to turn right.”
Sgt Muggleton also said the weather conditions did not seem to play a factor in what happened.
“It was a lovely day, very sunny and warm, and the road surface was dry,” he said.
He added that the junction the van was pulling into “would’ve been very difficult” for Mr Poxon to notice.
Sgt Muggleton said there was no indication Mr Poxon had been speeding.
“We what we believe is the most likely explanation is Wayne had come up behind the Tiguan and as he came up behind he has moved out to overtake. What we believe he has done is he’s accelerated his motorcycle as he’s come out.
“We believe his view of the indicator of the van has been masked – the way he conducted the overtake potentially limited his chances of observing the van’s indicating.”
He added that by the time Mr Poxon saw the van turning right it would have been “too late”.
“Once the van had indicated the turn and Mr Poxon initiated the overtake we believe what would’ve happened was inevitable.
“We are not saying that he drove dangerously. A minor error of judgement unfortunately can have big consequences.
“The van driver couldn’t have avoided the collision as it all happened so quickly.”
Sgt Muggleton said the helmet Mr Poxon was wearing was split down the middle as a result of the crash and that it was likely he had died instantly.
Witnesses driving in the line of traffic gave statements describing how they saw Mr Poxon overtaking them on the road, although none said they believed he had been speeding.
The driver of the van said the first he had seen of a motorcycle was when it overtook the vehicle behind in the moments before the crash.
“As I crossed the white central line a motorcycle came from behind and the other side of the road, and collided with my driver’s door,” he said.
“This was the first time I saw the motorcycle. We both moved forwards and both ended up colliding with a tree.
“I managed to get out of the vehicle by the passenger door and made my way round. However, I soon realised that there were no signs of life.”
The driver of the VW Tiguan behind the delivery van said she noticed Mr Poxon overtake the vehicle behind hers before pulling in behind her car.
She described how when she slowed down for the indicating van in front, the motorcycle behind her began to overtake.
“I shouted out but no matter what I said or did there was nothing I or anyone else could do,” she said.
“A man came up the road, he went over to the motorcyclist and he turned round and said he had died.”
A post-mortem concluded that Mr Poxon had died of serious head injuries as a result of a road traffic collision.
Assistant coroner Matthew Kewley said it was a “momentary lapse” from the experienced biker.
“There’s no reason to doubt Wayne was anything other than a competent motorcyclist,” he said.
He added that he had died as a result of a “tragic, tragic incident”.