A CIVIL engineer died after he lost control of his motorbike and crashed on the side of a busy road near Wallingford.

Oxfordshire Coroner’s Court heard on Thursday that Steven Wicks, 65, of Hardwell Close, Grove, died after his BMW RT 1200 motorbike came off the A329, between Warborough and Newington, as he travelled towards Newington with two friends.

The inquest was told that Mr Wicks’ motorbike left the road shortly after 3pm on May 1 after approaching a right-hand bend in a 50mph zone.

The motorbike ended up on the grass verge and overturned, coming to rest on top of Mr Wicks, the court was told.

Attempts were made to revive him but they were not successful and he was declared dead at 3.55pm.

The cause of death was described as severe head injuries.

Coroner Darren Salter said Mr Wicks had suffered hypertensive heart disease, but there was no evidence of a medical episode before the crash, although it could not be ruled out.

Forensic collision investigator Terry Anderson told the hearing that there were no mechanical defects on the motorbike and no indication that Mr Wicks had been exceeding the speed limit.

Verdict: Accidental death.

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