Economy with the truth

I just read this on a cycling fanatics website.

When it says "took to the capital's streets" - I think it means "took to the
capital's pavements" in his particular case :-)


Still - why tell the truth when a lie will do.



================================================== ==============
The Big Ride 28 APR 12

A video of a trip to London where I was one of the several thousands of people
who took to the capital's streets to request that cycle safety be at the
forefront of the new Mayor's road policy.

================================================== =============



--
Simon Mason used to post from BP Chemicals where he works.
He repeatedly said that he was wasting BP's time; and not his own
time - like other posters were.
After the BP AGM in April 2012 Mason suddenly stopped posting from
a BP IP address. People have asked why - but he won't say :-)

QUOTE:
The wife of a cyclist killed on the A1 in 2009 has accepted a £200,000
out of court compensation settlement but says she still hasn't
received what she really wanted - an apology from the lorry driver who
killed her husband.
65 year old Basil Clarke, known as Bas, died from his injuries in
September 2009 two days after being hit while riding on the A1 at
Tickencote in Rutland by lorry driver Karel Sedivy from the Czech
Republic. The incident happened as Bas returned home from his regular
Saturday morning ride around the lanes near his home.

In a statement released by her solicitors, Mr Clarke's widow, Jane
said:

“This settlement won’t even come close to making up for losing Bas, he
was such a big character and a friend to so many people – we miss him
every single day. Cycling was his passion. He had been a member of
various cycling clubs for fifty years and was incredibly fit for a man
of 65 years old.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that Bas had excellent road sense, he
cycled on the A1 every week for years. All I ever really wanted was an
apology from the driver of the HGV but, despite being given the
opportunity to say sorry, he never has.

As reported at the time, Sedivy was convicted and sentenced to 16
months in jail on a charge of causing death by dangerous driving.
Evidence presented at his trial showed that Sedivy had neither slowed
down nor attempted to alter the direction of his 7.5 tonne lorry
during the course of the incident that claimed Mr Clarke's life - he
served six months of his 16 month jail sentence.

At the time of his death Mr Clarke was one month in to his retirement
from his job as a stonemason, he was a well known and highly respected
breeder of ornamental water-fowl. Mr Clarke had been a cyclist all his
life joining the Rockingham Forest Wheelers at the age 14 and winning
many trophies for the club and for VC Slough the club he rode for in
the 80s and 90s. He was a renowned time triallist in his prime
reckoned to be amongst the fastest men in the country.

Commenting on the settlement Mrs Clarke's solicitor, Jonathan Reid of
Russell Jones & Walker, said: “The settlement finally draws to a close
what has undoubtedly been a devastating time for Bas’s family.

“We work with many families whose loved ones have been killed or
seriously injured and many find the prospect of reliving the tragedy
in court almost too much to bear. When a family feels like this, we
always try our best to keep cases out of the courts, while also
ensuring those left behind receive a full and realistic settlement.

“Of course, no amount of money will ever bring Bas back, or go any way
to filling the void that he has left, but hopefully it will provide
his family with some financial security for the future.”

http://road.cc/content/news/57822-cy...ed-was-apology

--
Simon Mason

On Mon, 7 May 2012 23:45:03 -0700 (PDT), Simon Mason
wrote:

snip


There’s no doubt in my mind that Bas had excellent road sense, he
cycled on the A1 every week for years.


ffs - he had been a knob for years - was she surprised that the grim reaper
caught up with him.

The A1 is probably one of the busiest and fastest non-motorway roads in the UK.

"He was a renowned time triallist in his prime
reckoned to be amongst the fastest men in the country."

Oh - I hadn't realised that time-trials were races.

On May 8, 7:45*am, Simon Mason wrote:
QUOTE:
The wife of a cyclist killed on the A1 in 2009 has accepted a £200,000
out of court compensation settlement but says she still hasn't
received what she really wanted - an apology from the lorry driver who
killed her husband.
65 year old Basil Clarke, known as Bas, died from his injuries in
September 2009 *two days after being hit while riding *on the A1 at
Tickencote in Rutland by lorry driver Karel Sedivy from the Czech
Republic. The incident happened as Bas returned home from his regular
Saturday morning ride around the lanes near his home.

In a statement released by her solicitors, Mr Clarke's widow, Jane
said:

“This settlement won’t even come close to making up for losing Bas, he
was such a big character and a friend to so many people – we miss him
every single day. Cycling was his passion. He had been a member of
various cycling clubs for fifty years and was incredibly fit for a man
of 65 years old.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that Bas had excellent road sense, he
cycled on the A1 every week for years. All I ever really wanted was an
apology from the driver of the HGV but, despite being given the
opportunity to say sorry, he never has.

As reported at the time, Sedivy was convicted and sentenced to 16
months in jail on a charge of causing death by dangerous driving.
Evidence presented at his trial showed that Sedivy had neither slowed
down nor attempted to alter the direction of his 7.5 tonne lorry
during the course of the incident that claimed Mr Clarke's life - he
served six months of his 16 month jail sentence.

At the time of his death Mr Clarke was one month in to his retirement
from his job as a stonemason, he was a well known and highly respected
breeder of ornamental water-fowl. Mr Clarke had been a cyclist all his
life joining the Rockingham Forest Wheelers at the age 14 and winning
many trophies for the club and for VC Slough the club he rode for in
the 80s and 90s. He was a renowned time triallist *in his prime
reckoned to be amongst the fastest men in the country.

Commenting on the settlement Mrs Clarke's solicitor, Jonathan Reid of
Russell Jones & Walker, said: “The settlement finally draws to a close
what has undoubtedly been a devastating time for Bas’s family.

“We work with many families whose loved ones have been killed or
seriously injured and many find the prospect of reliving the tragedy
in court almost too much to bear. *When a family feels like this, we
always try our best to keep cases out of the courts, while also
ensuring those left behind receive a full and realistic settlement.

“Of course, no amount of money will ever bring Bas back, or go any way
to filling the void that he has left, but hopefully it will provide
his family with some financial security for the future.”

http://road.cc/content/news/57822-cy...d-%C2%A3200000...

A comment from road.cc

QUOTE:
headfirst wrote:
I've got to say, there's lots of good stories on road.cc, but recently
I visit the site with a heavy heart as stories like this seem to be a
daily feature, and they make me sad and angry! How many more cases
like this will there be until we see a change for the better, in terms
of law makers taking cyclists seriously and drivers showing us respect
and consideration?
Agree, seems to be a regular thing these days. The road culture of
this country has become incredibly aggressive over the years. Almost
better off being a pheasant, people often slow down for those.

--
Simon Mason

On 08/05/2012 07:45, Simon Mason wrote:
QUOTE:
The wife of a cyclist killed on the A1 in 2009 has accepted a £200,000
out of court compensation settlement but says she still hasn't
received what she really wanted - an apology from the lorry driver who
killed her husband.
65 year old Basil Clarke, known as Bas, died from his injuries in
September 2009 two days after being hit while riding on the A1 at
Tickencote in Rutland by lorry driver Karel Sedivy from the Czech
Republic. The incident happened as Bas returned home from his regular
Saturday morning ride around the lanes near his home.

In a statement released by her solicitors, Mr Clarke's widow, Jane
said:

“This settlement won’t even come close to making up for losing Bas, he
was such a big character and a friend to so many people – we miss him
every single day. Cycling was his passion. He had been a member of
various cycling clubs for fifty years and was incredibly fit for a man
of 65 years old.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that Bas had excellent road sense, he
cycled on the A1 every week for years. All I ever really wanted was an
apology from the driver of the HGV but, despite being given the
opportunity to say sorry, he never has.

As reported at the time, Sedivy was convicted and sentenced to 16
months in jail on a charge of causing death by dangerous driving.
Evidence presented at his trial showed that Sedivy had neither slowed
down nor attempted to alter the direction of his 7.5 tonne lorry
during the course of the incident that claimed Mr Clarke's life - he
served six months of his 16 month jail sentence.

At the time of his death Mr Clarke was one month in to his retirement
from his job as a stonemason, he was a well known and highly respected
breeder of ornamental water-fowl. Mr Clarke had been a cyclist all his
life joining the Rockingham Forest Wheelers at the age 14 and winning
many trophies for the club and for VC Slough the club he rode for in
the 80s and 90s. He was a renowned time triallist in his prime
reckoned to be amongst the fastest men in the country.

Commenting on the settlement Mrs Clarke's solicitor, Jonathan Reid of
Russell Jones& Walker, said: “The settlement finally draws to a close
what has undoubtedly been a devastating time for Bas’s family.

“We work with many families whose loved ones have been killed or
seriously injured and many find the prospect of reliving the tragedy
in court almost too much to bear. When a family feels like this, we
always try our best to keep cases out of the courts, while also
ensuring those left behind receive a full and realistic settlement.

“Of course, no amount of money will ever bring Bas back, or go any way
to filling the void that he has left, but hopefully it will provide
his family with some financial security for the future.”

http://road.cc/content/news/57822-cy...ed-was-apology

--
Simon Mason


--
Dave - Cyclists VOR. "Many people barely recognise the bicycle as a
legitimate mode of transport; it is either a toy for children or a
vehicle fit only for the poor and/or strange," Dave Horton - Lancaster
University

QUOTE:
A successful business networking professional from Edinburgh is
gearing up to cycle 400 miles from Edinburgh to London to raise
awareness of mental health issues as well as money for the charity
Mind, and has used his work expertise to help spread the word on
Twitter.

Stuart Potter’s three-day ride, called The Biggest Journey, starts on
June 19 and will see him stop four times en route from the Scottish
capital to the English one to give presentations to members of
business group 4Networking to help raise at least £4,000 for Mind.

Edinburgh-based Potter, who works for Veecom Systems, has set up a
website that sets out full details of his trip, and his preparations
can also be followed on Twitter at @biggestjourney.

Besides those stops en route, however, what sets the 35-year-old’s
journey apart from many other charity rides is the fact that it’s less
than a year since he took the important first step of himself visiting
a doctor to confront his own depression.

Married with a daughter and another child on the way, Potter says that
it was his family that inspired him to confront his mental health
issues, and wants to use his journey to raise awareness of mental
health problems, which according to Mind affect one in four British
adults in any given year.

“I have been passionate about cycling all my life,” said Potter.
“Evidence continually proves that time outdoors and physical exercise
can help reduce depression, and as my coping mechanism, seemed a
fitting way to support Mind.

“I felt strongly that I wanted to embark on this journey to raise
awareness as well as money.

“Then I realised I couldn’t try to combat stigma, if I was still
treating my own depression as taboo by keeping it secret.

“It was important to me to say out loud and publicly ‘I am one of
those one in four’, and believe me, it is scary and very emotional.

“However, the reaction has been overwhelming. This has been an
incredible year for me, with very difficult challenges in facing up to
depression. But it has also been uplifting and life affirming, because
of all the support and understanding I have encountered.

“Being involved in 4Networking has been brilliant, both for business
referrals but also for friendship and support, which can be vital
particularly in today’s tough climate, so I’m delighted to be
involving them in my journey,” he continued.

“I’m also thrilled and grateful for the support of Veecom Systems,
which as well as being a great place to work, has donated £400 and
given me the week off to complete the challenge.

“It is really important to me to raise awareness of mental health and
work to reduce stigma, because I know first hand that secrecy and
taboo surrounding depression can exacerbate the problem and discourage
sufferers from seeking vital help.”

Potter is now undergoing treatment for his depression, which has given
him a more positive outlook for the future.

“Really it is my love for my family, and my desire to conquer
depression to be a better husband and father, which prompted my first
step and now Biggest Journey. We are very excited about the arrival of
our second child in August. It’s going to be an incredible summer,” he
added.

When talking about cycling and depression, thoughts inevitably turn to
Graeme Obree, who is now back in the spotlight with a world human
powered vehicle record attempt later this year, and whose battles with
illness, including attempting suicide, were captured in his
autobiography The Flying Scotsman, later turned into a film.

Obree’s thoughts last year on Gary Speed, the Wales national football
team manager who took his own life, certainly struck a chord among
road.cc users, judging by the comments to that article, and we’re sure
you’ll join us in wishing Stuart Potter all the best not only for his
journey from London to Edinburgh, but also the ongoing one he will
continue to undertake beyond that.

http://road.cc/content/news/57916-ed...-health-issues

--
Simon Mason