Segway company owner dies riding Segway off cliff

[Turborama]

Source: Haaretz

By Haaretz Service -

The multi-millionaire owner of Segway was killed Sunday after driving one of the company's popular two-wheeled vehicles off a cliff, British newspapers reported.

Jimi Heselden was inspecting the grounds of his estate at Boston Spa in northern England when he died in a freak accident.

Heselden, 62, made millions after inventing a bullet-proof defense shield that became standard equipment for NATO, as well as for British and U.S. troops.

Segway was bought by a British company backed by Heselden.

Read more: http://www.haaretz.com/news/international/segway-company-owner-dies-riding-segway-off-cliff-1.315952

---

The BBC's report on this: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leeds-11416654">Segway boss Jimi Heselden dies in scooter cliff fall

[SpiralHawk]

1. "I totally sympathizerate. Smirk." - xCommander AWOL (R)

[99 Percent Sure]

47. LOL. "Memories light the corners of my mind...

of the Way We Were."



Dim Son was a clumsy, drunken sod who probably was the first public official to have an accident on a Segue. He even dropped Barney.

OTOH, the Bloodthirsty Beast had no problems riding the 2-wheeler, in suit and tie no less.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QRR7AN5C6xk/SZxKrA8UBoI/AAAAAAAABNQ/QoRAViVYSaM/s400/cheney+segway.jpg

[rug]

2. Odd segue from life.

[Evasporque]

34. He must of leaned forward to look over the cliff edge while on it....nt

[formercia]

3. Does this qualify for a Darwin Award?

Jus' askin'

[tavalon]

32. Only if he hadn't procreated yet

I suspect he had, possibly while riding a Sedgeway. Oh, I am so going to hell for laughing. No one's death should be this comedic.

[Doctor_J]

38. Not true. If he was planning on procreating AGAIN,

Darwin still saved us for a dilution of the gene pool.

[tavalon]

52. And potentially more creations like the Segway

[Turborama]

40. This is a complex issue. The rules state that being a parent does't necessarily disqualify him

Seriously, I looked it up...

Reproduction

The candidate must remove herself from the gene pool.

=snip=

The existence of offspring, though potentially deleterious to the gene pool, does not disqualify a nominee. Children inherit only half of each parent's genetic material and thus have their own chance to survive or snuff themselves. If, for instance, the offspring has inherited the "Play With Combustibles" gene, but also has inherited the "Use Caution When..." gene, then she is a potential innovator and asset to the human race. Therefore, each nominee is judged based on whether or not she has removed her own genes, without consideration to the number of offspring or, in the case of an elderly winner, the likelihood of producing more offspring.

More: http://www.darwinawards.com/rules/rules1.html

Advanced Discussion of Offspring: http://www.darwinawards.com/rules/rules.children.html">What if a Darwin Award nominee has reproduced?

http://www.darwinawards.com/rules/">Main Rules Page

[avaistheone1]

42. Was wondering the same thing.

[Pholus]

4. Ahhhh, some guilt to start the day.

Curse you Paul Blart for making me smile when I think of Segways, cause it really isn't that funny that this happened to the poor guy.

[grahamhgreen]

5. Should have stuck with a bicycle...

[xchrom]

6. oh. dear. nt

[zipplewrath]

7. Am I the only one?

When I saw this headline, I immediately thought "The Onion".

[HereSince1628]

8. Yes, and I'm still not sure...

[izquierdista]

12. The Onion isn't funny any more

...they have to stick to the imaginable.

[driver8]

31. I thought for sure this was The Onion!

I was surprised to read that this actually happened.

[Renew Deal]

43. I immediately thought this

[MilesColtrane]

9. Three words you don't expect to see together: fatal scooter accident.

[WingDinger]

30. Beg to differ. Scooters are deathtraps. Ricketty, and too slow to keep up.

Therefore often a danger. Those riding them go for color ensemb., instead of protection. Small tires grab potholes. Those without the skills to motorcycle, feel confident on a scooter.

[MilesColtrane]

35. OK. It's just me then.

This is what comes to my mind when I see the word "scooter".



Or, maybe this.



Usually not this.



I just thought it was funny as used in the BBC article.

[Warren Stupidity]

Ah, but not Dean Kamen, inventor of that thing.

Kamen is too bright to drive off a cliff, but not too bright to be a rightwing libertarian idiot.

[skypilot]

27. Rightwing libertarian idiot.

Ah, is THAT his problem? I've seen a couple pieces about the guy on 60 Minutes and he kinda bugged me. He's clearly brilliant but he also seemed quite clueless in a way. In the last piece I saw about him several years ago, he'd invented a water purification device. The thing was quite impressive but he kept trying to plug the Segway the entire time. At one point when demonstrating how the water purifier worked, he gets a bucket to go collect some stagnant, filthy water. Then he says something like, "And then, you just hang the bucket on your Segway and ride it back to the water purifier." I'm obviously paraphrasing but that was the gist of it. This guy actually seemed to think that people who live in an area without clean, potable water would own a damned Segway. I came away kinda not liking the guy anymore. Clean water is a hell of a lot more useful to people than a Segway.

[Warren Stupidity]

10. Ah, but not Dean Kamen, inventor of that thing.

Kamen is too bright to drive off a cliff, but not too bright to be a rightwing libertarian idiot.

[Freddie Stubbs]

11. It's like rain on your wedding day

[Canuckistanian]

13. LOL

Or a fly in your Chardonnay..... :rofl:

[AngryAmish]

24. It is funny that there is not one example of irony in that song

Just things that suck.

[unblock]

28. and THAT's the real irony of that song!

[TalkingDog]

36. No that's ironic.

[Seedersandleechers]

14. He could have easily had

a heart-attack, seizure, or gone into a diabetic coma. RIP. It sounds like he was a generous man. :cry:

[tavalon]

33. Yeah, even in death, he provided us with unexpected laughter

and the attendant guilt...........

[The Backlash Cometh]

15. Why is everyone so sure it was an accident?

[COLGATE4]

16. I think a black helicopter spooked him...

[Courtesy Flush]

46. It was no accident. It was The Segway Curse!

People fail to recognize curses until there have been multiple casualties, but mark my words, this is the fist of a string of mysterious deaths associated with Segway personalities.

[Ian David]

17. Millionaire owner of Segway firm dies in freak accident after riding 1 of his machines off cliff

Source: Mail OnLine

The multi-millionaire owner of the Segway company died in a freak accident yesterday when he rode one of the high-tech two-wheel machines off a cliff and into a river.

Former miner Jimi Heselden, 62, plunged into the River Wharfe while riding around his North Yorkshire estate in Boston Spa on a rugged country version of the Segway.

He bought the firm last December and was using one of the machines - which use gyroscopes to remain upright and are controlled by the direction in which the rider leans - to inspect the grounds of his property.

<snip>

His death comes just a week after he became one of the UK's most generous philanthropists, having given away £10million to a charity foundation he set up in 2008. He had previously given £13million to the same organisation.


Jimi Heselden, the multi-millionaire owner of the Segway company, died in a freak accident when he rode one of the high-tech two-wheel machines off a cliff and into a river

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1315518/Jimi-Heselden-killed-Segway-accident.html?ITO=1490

[Roland99]

18. Ouch

Those things are fun to ride, though.

[BrklynLiberal]

19. No good deed goes unpunished...

[SpiralHawk]

20. This thread is a dupe

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4554736

[ret5hd]

21. I wonder if just before his fall he was daydreaming, thinking...

"that stupid george bush FELL OFF one of these things".

[valerief]

22. If this were a novel, his death would be caused by greedy heirs who didn't want to

see their inheritance given away to charity. The death would be made to look like an accident. Or maybe they want to sell the Segway. Or were given an offer they couldn't refuse.

Can't help but think of the possibilities.

[hlthe2b]

23. I thought this was an ONION article...!

My heavens! Well, he certainly did "GOOD" before he went out. RIP, sir.

[Still Blue in PDX]

45. He looks like a nice man . . .

. . . and I am deeply sorry that I laughed when I read the headline earlier this morning.

:(

[skoalyman]

25. is he the first person to die using a segway?

I'm sure he wasnt trying to emulate Evel Knievel:hide: rip

[Posteritatis]

44. There've been a few. Not many because everyone kneejerk-banned them awhile back. (nt)

[reggie the dog]

26. suicide???

[IcyPeas]

37. I thought suicide also....

[daleo]

54. My first thought too

It might have been easier than jumping.

[WingDinger]

29. When it makes movie of the week, it will rival the scene in Thelma and Loise.

[Kolesar]

39. Control software by Toyota?

:hide:

[skoalyman]

41. wonder if the air bags deployed?

O8)

[Dreamer Tatum]

48. If he fell on a Segway, how could he be dead?

Their top speed is only 12.5 mph.


RIMSHOT

[KurtNYC]

49. "Freak accident" ?? Segway + cliffs = Roadrunner Cartoon

Calling this a "freak accident" is like saying:

'Bull let into china shop unexpectedly breaks lots of porcelain.'

'Drunken sailor visits whore house, displays surprising lack of chastity.'


I guess they were trying to be nice.

[Thor_MN]

50. Did any of his friends follow him?

sorry for the family, but couldn't resist, heard the question too many times.

[taught_me_patience]

51. I'm going to guess that drinking was involved... n/t

[JoeyTrib]

53. OK, this is freaking funny.

Sorry. Poor guy. But hey. :)

[cbdo2007]

55. I agree - unfortunately this is one of the funniest things I've heard in months.

It's sad, yeah...but damn, it's just so funny too.