Thread: WATCH: Hard-hitting road safety ad shows one man’s final journey

WATCH: Hard-hitting road safety ad shows one man’s final journey



A FAMILY IN the English county of Norfolk have made the extraordinary decision to share video footage of their son’s final motorbike journey, as part of a hard-hitting road safety ad.
David Holmes was killed last June when his bike collided at high speed with a car on the A47 near Honingham in Norfolk, the Independent reports.
The video below, which some may find distressing, captures the moment of the crash, which was recorded on a helmet camera Holmes happened to be wearing.
The ad, produced by Norfolk Constabulary with the support and help of the Holmes family, features his mother Brenda speaking movingly about her late son, his life, and his tragic death.




WATCH: Hard-hitting road safety ad shows one man’s final journey

RIP__

Originally Posted by The Ghost Of The Moog

Gosh. I am impressed with his Mother for making that film and allowing that 'taboo' footage to be shown.

Leaving aside whether people get killed doing reckless things ('motorists should slow down' she says....in this incident, the motorbiker was going over the speed limit), for the families* to be able to not shut away the footage - but display it, takes some very level headedness.

*Thinking here of the families of Ayrton Senna and Steve Irwin, both of whom declined to reveal the shots of the aftermath of their loved one's fatal accident.

I wanted to see that video too. Lets not pretend it would have saved any lives.

Originally Posted by alwarner

Originally Posted by The Ghost Of The Moog

Gosh. I am impressed with his Mother for making that film and allowing that 'taboo' footage to be shown.

Leaving aside whether people get killed doing reckless things ('motorists should slow down' she says....in this incident, the motorbiker was going over the speed limit), for the families* to be able to not shut away the footage - but display it, takes some very level headedness.

*Thinking here of the families of Ayrton Senna and Steve Irwin, both of whom declined to reveal the shots of the aftermath of their loved one's fatal accident.

I wanted to see that video too. Lets not pretend it would have saved any lives.

Irwin's video would have been a lesson in being wary of the dangerous creatures lurking in tropical waters.

I heard a western child was killed in Thailand last week by jellyfish stings. A friend of mine's daughter has been permanently scarred by jellyfish stings off Pattaya.

Biker death crash film watched by 3m
Last updated 4 hours ago


A video showing the moment a motorcyclist was killed in a crash with a car has been viewed online more than three million times.

David Holmes, 38, was riding at about 97mph (156 km/h) when he died on the A47 at Honingham, Norfolk, last year.

Norfolk Police posted a video of the crash, filmed by a camera on Mr Holmes' helmet, on Thursday.

Ch Insp Chris Spinks said it had generated a "truly remarkable" amount of discussion about road safety.

Mr Holmes' family allowed the film's release in a bid to try to stop more road deaths.

It shows Mr Holmes travelling from King's Lynn and overtaking several cars and motorbikes before being hit by a Renault Clio as it turned at a junction.

Mr Holmes is heard making an agonised call as he realises he cannot avoid the crash.

The driver of the car was prosecuted in April.

Mr Holmes' mother, Brenda, is shown on the video talking about the heartache of losing a child and makes a plea for people to be more careful on the roads.

She said if the video could save one life, it would be worth it.

"It has a huge shock impact and the difference is it's not a staged, mocked up advert," she said.

"It's real. It's a real life, and a real life lost."

The driver of the Renault Clio told police he had not seen the motorbike
Hundreds of comments have been left on Norfolk Police's Facebook post about the video, with many saying it was a warning to both car drivers and bike riders.

Mr Spinks said: "The fact the public has taken such an interest means they are talking about road safety, which was our aim all along."

BBC © 2014

BBC News - David Holmes: Three million hits for motorcyclist's crash film

Brave mum, kudos to her. Heart goes out to the Clio driver too, motoring along on a quietish road and a bike comes along at ~100mph when he's already half way across the lane. Nothing he could do really.

Here's another all on his own. Not closely similar but you have to feel for the guy.

Originally Posted by alwarner

Originally Posted by The Ghost Of The Moog

Originally Posted by alwarner

Originally Posted by The Ghost Of The Moog

Gosh. I am impressed with his Mother for making that film and allowing that 'taboo' footage to be shown.

Leaving aside whether people get killed doing reckless things ('motorists should slow down' she says....in this incident, the motorbiker was going over the speed limit), for the families* to be able to not shut away the footage - but display it, takes some very level headedness.

*Thinking here of the families of Ayrton Senna and Steve Irwin, both of whom declined to reveal the shots of the aftermath of their loved one's fatal accident.

I wanted to see that video too. Lets not pretend it would have saved any lives.

Irwin's video would have been a lesson in being wary of the dangerous creatures lurking in tropical waters.

I heard a western child was killed in Thailand last week by jellyfish stings. A friend of mine's daughter has been permanently scarred by jellyfish stings off Pattaya.

Yes because watching Steve Irwin die after being stabbed through the heart by a sting ray would obviously stop people getting stung by jelly fish.

Pretty flawless logic.

.

It means that - confronted by death and the consequences of risk - people would think twice and be cautious when snorkelling and scuba diving. Not touching stone fish, lion fish, being careful when sharks are around.

Not just remembering Irwin's usual routine round dangerous creatures - 'cor, blimey, what a beaut'. She's gorgeous'

Except, you could have worked that out yourself. If you'd thought for a millisecond instead of instantly writing a facetious response.

Such pain for a mum to lose her son but what strength to use this grief as a positive for others.

The lad must have been a good lad to have such a grand mum and family.

RIP.

Im astonished the motorist was prosecuted. I just hope that justice and common sense prevailed and they were acquitted.

A motorcyclist travelling in excess of the speed limit by over 30 MPH would almost certainly have been summoned rather than be dealt with by way of a fixed penalty.

My sympathies are completely with the motorist who will no doubt carry the burden of this idiot motorcyclist"s recklessness for the rest of their life, even though they should bear no responsibility for his death which was brought upon himself by his utter stupidity.

Travelling on a motorbike at nearly 100 mph on a single carriageway A road approaching a junction with oncoming traffic was a criminal act and one is only grateful he was the only fatality.

The mawkish commentary is unfortunately a fashion these days in Britain where how one feels is paramount. I skipped most of it for fear of nausea. Selfish idiot,hyped up after a track day meet, acts like an utter moron and kills himself.

I daresay there were those forlorn bunch of flowers strewn about the site of his immolation, as if his idiocy should somehow be commemorated .

It's not a matter of grumpiness. The entire sequence is a production in which the denouement is deliberately made the more poignant by all the irrelevant emotional baggage introduced beforehand. That he was a nice chap, had a future and a loving family is quite immaterial to the fact that he drove in the most appallingly reckless manner,killing himself and blighting another poor bugger's life into the bargain.

I refuse to be manipulated. The chap was an utter swine for what he did and got what he deserved. Having lived in West Sussex and Surrey for many years I know first hand what these selfish fuckers are capable of. For years the Mickleham bends and the A24 were used as de facto racetracks by bikers on any summer weekend killing innocent pedestrians and motorists every year until they finally introduced measures to stop these cvunts.

Fuck 'em. Weeping mothers don't alter a thing: a biker will always at some point push his luck and the impact upon others will similarly always be secondary to the kick he gets out of it.

I think a more effective deterrent would have been a picture of the deceased on the mortuary slab with his naked corpse exposed as a closing scene with a commentary of all the injuries he sustained read out by the pathologist.

Originally Posted by thegent

I think a more effective deterrent would have been a picture of the deceased on the mortuary slab with his naked corpse exposed as a closing scene with a commentary of all the injuries he sustained read out by the pathologist.

Doubtful, a motorcyclist would look at it and ignore it in the classic "couldn't happen to me" fashion and anyway the gore/shock tactic has been tried for years. From the numbers the guy in the vid had been riding for over 20 years, and he was dressed appropriately; it's not like he was some drunken hoon in t-shirt, shorts and flip-flops blatting about on a rent-a-rocket.

Perhaps an appeal to the emotional toll on those left behind will be more effective. It can't hurt to try for the sake of both the motorcyclists and the unfortunate car drivers they hit.

If you want to be all 'som nam na' about it while you hammer out another strongly worded letter to the editor of your local rag then fine, fortunately cooler heads are looking at the problem and wondering if less ghoulish methods might deter reckless riding and driving.

Originally Posted by thegent

I refuse to be manipulated.

You forgot the "unless it is by the Daily Mail" bit.



PS: Would it change your opinion if I told you the driver of the Clio was Welsh?

The important road safety message here is that bikers should not be using public roads as a racetrack and that in doing so the risk of suffering death/serious injury is quite inevitable as shown in the video.

Clothing and safety helmet play little part when colliding with a stationary object as such speeds. One will be propelled forward, somersaulting in the air and one's only saving grace possibly would be to land on an appropriately sited bouncy castle.

Quite incredibly this young man was riding one handed at almost 100mph on a public highway seconds before the collision. His selfishness and lack of respect for other road users brought about his demise and very fortunately no one else was physically injured as a result.

The loss of a son in such tragic and preventable circumstances will naturally take it's toll on any mother., however, I have my doubts that this vid will have the impact it deserves simply because riders unwittingly place the importance of receiving an adrenaline rush before any thought of losing their family life.

Gimpy Colon, I rather think you have missed my point entirely.

My suggestion vis a vis the mortuary slab was in specific relation to this particular youtube offering. I felt such a closing scene would have made a greater impact but I suppose it's all artistic interpretation in the end.

Although I quite agree no campaign will have any lasting impact upon the biking culture in Britain and its exponents. In fact no public awareness campaigns have any effect upon any behaviour which is only ever altered by economics and legislation.

Why you refer to the Mail is mystifying. I despise that rag with a passion. Are you mixing me up with Tax?

The Welsh, like the poor and influenza, will always be with us and there is as much chance of them declaring independence as folk in Merthyr getting a job.

Originally Posted by Roobarb

David Holmes, 38, was riding at about 97mph (156 km/h) when he died on the A47 at Honingham, Norfolk, last year.

Speed kills.

At that rate of travel you have no time to react, no safety margin.

KUDO's to the family for releasing the video.

Originally Posted by FailSafe

Regardless of the bike's speed, the driver should have seen it- there was no traffic and a direct line-of-sight for a couple hundred meters- had the bike been going the posted 60mph, the car would still have pulled out in front of him, but the rear rather than the front of the car would have been in the way. While I agree bikes need to slow down and not speed in inappropriate places, drivers need to open their fucking eyes and expand their field-of-vision to include vehicles other than cars.

True. But tired old people with not the best of vision and bad distance judgement have as much right as any to use a public road.

thespastic all angry again, I see.

"Ch Insp Spinks added: "We know from the footage that David was travelling up to 100mph. Regardless of the speed of the bike, the car manoeuvre should not have been attempted."

Spot on.


If it was a Thai in the car, thespastic would have a different opinion, of course.

Originally Posted by thegent

The Welsh, like the poor and influenza, will always be with us and there is as much chance of them declaring independence as folk in Merthyr getting a job.

I cannot ride a bike because I wasn't allowed to have one as a child. My uncle had been seriously injured when his brakes failed going downhill in Merthyr Tydfil, not far from the chocolate factory. The logic cannot be faulted - if you can't ride a bike, you cannot be injured riding one.