A MARRIED dad-of-four was killed minutes after he borrowed his workmate’s powerful motorbike without permission.

Mark Hanson, 46, rode off on the Yamaha XJ 600 after making a spur-of-the-moment decision but lost control and was thrown off into a brick wall, an inquest in Bradford heard yesterday.

Coroner Martin Fleming said there were lessons to be learned from the tragedy which left a wife without a husband and four children without a father.

The hearing was told that pub delivery driver Mr Hanson, of Osprey Court, Lower Grange, was more used to riding his stepson’s 125cc offroad bike.

But on April 13 this year he decided to have a go on a friend’s new Yamaha and had refused the offer of a bigger crash helmet before taking the motorbike out of the warehouse yard where he worked on the Lowfields Industrial Estate in Elland and rode off wearing a helmet too small to fasten the straps.

Mr Fleming said: “In making a spur-of-the-moment decision it’s clear he was not putting his personal safety as a priority.

“This tragedy has left a wife without a husband and four children without a father.

“It sends out a clear message to all that you should not be riding a motorbike that is beyond your full competency or without a proper fitting helmet.”

Two lorry drivers saw Mr Hanson moments before he crashed, with one described his riding as “madness” and another said he could tell he was struggling to keep in control.

CCTV from nearby businesses captured the crash which happened just round the corner from Beer Gas Express as Mr Hanson rode up and down.

The crash helmet he had been wearing came off in the impact as he was separated from the bike and it slid sideways into a lamppost.

If the helmet had fitted properly it would have stayed on, said accident investigator PC Dale Anderson.

The inquest heard how the bike had been roadworthy, the weather was fine and the road was fault free which left only rider error to blame, although PC Anderson said he did not believe it was down to speed.

He thought Mr Hanson had accelerated to try to correct the bike at the bend rather than brake and he mounted the pavement, brushing hedges and crossing rocky ground which threw him off.

Mr Hanson’s colleague Mark Sainsbury had only bought the £600 bike a few days earlier.

He said he had not given Mr Hanson permission to take it out of the yard and that he and other colleagues were surprised when he went out of the gates.

Another workmate, Mark Perry, later told police Mr Hanson had told him his wife would not let him get a motorbike of his own.

David Herbertson, who had also had an earlier go on the bike, told officers Mr Hanson had left the yard “quicker than he should have”.

Toxicology tests later showed Mr Hanson had drunk the equivalent of two pints at some point before the crash but was not over the drink-drive limit.

However, Mr Fleming noted: “Any amount of alcohol can impair reaction and judgement.”

The Coroner added: “He should not have been on the road.

“His driving licence would not allow him to ride a bike with an engine the size of 600cc and his insurance would not have covered him.

“You should not be in the business of getting on a bike you have not been on before, especially a powerful one.”

Concluding Mr Hanson died as a result of the crash, he said: “Mr Hanson made an impromptu request to have a go on a bike he was not experienced with and left the yard.

“He refused the offer of a colleague’s helmet in favour of another one that was too small for purpose. He was seen by HGV drivers.

“One said he was struggling to negotiate an extended right hand bend and appeared to be out-of-control.

“Another described his riding as madness and that it did not like look safe and did not look good which seems to he in keeping with CCTV but the collision investigator is able to exclude conditions of the bike, the road and speed before the collision.

“We are sadly left with it being driver error.”

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