Segway company owner dies riding Segway off cliff

[Eframepilot]

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Segway company owner dies riding two-wheeled machine off cliff
Jimi Heselden, the owner of the Segway company, has died after riding one of the two-wheeled machines off a cliff and into a river.

Thee multi-millionaire businessman, 62, fell into the River Wharfe while inspecting the grounds of his North Yorkshire estate on a rugged country version of the Segway.

The Segway is a motorised scooter which use gyroscopes to remain upright and is controlled by the direction in which the rider leans.


A passer-by found Heselden alongside his Segway in the Boston Spa area at about 11.40am on Sunday.

A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police said today: "Police were called at 11.40am yesterday to reports of a man in the River Wharfe, apparently having fallen from the cliffs above.

"A Segway-style vehicle was recovered. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

"At this time we do not believe the death to be suspicious."

Heselden was worth £166m and ranked 395th on the Sunday Times Rich List.

The former miner made his millions from defence contracts. He created a unique portable wire cage water containment system which when filled with earth and sand proved a major defence against bullets, missiles and suicide attacks.

His founded his first company HESCO Bastions with his redundancy pay when he was laid off from the mines.

The wire cage systems developed by Bastions have become standard military equipment for Nato as well as American and British forces.

The Segway operation was acquired by a UK based company backed by Heselden.

No, it's not an Onion article.

[Solauren]

Um, wow. The irony...

Wait, they have 'offroad' Segways? Now that's just LAZY.

[gizmojumpjet]

Um, wow. The irony...

Wait, they have 'offroad' Segways? Now that's just LAZY.

Why? They sound like an excellent way to enable certain disabled persons to enjoy the great outdoors in ways they might not otherwise be able to.

[tim31]

Until I actually saw it with my own eyes I thought the whole security-guard-on-a-segway thing was just done for laughs.

[General Zod]

I always figured Segways were a massive accident waiting to happen. This just makes sure I'll never touch one if I can possibly help it.

[Uraniun235]

Um, wow. The irony...

Wait, they have 'offroad' Segways? Now that's just LAZY.

Why? They sound like an excellent way to enable certain disabled persons to enjoy the great outdoors in ways they might not otherwise be able to.

Yeah, one of my friends has a heart condition where any prolonged exertion leaves him with increasingly severe chest pain; an "off-road" Segway would permit him to go up trails that might otherwise be unnavigable to him. I'm not sure he'd actually want one or use one though, as he'd probably feel very silly doing so, but someone else in that condition might be glad for the option.


That said, this article is basically the definition of irony; I also had to check the link to make sure I wasn't read an Onion piece. It's darkly humorous, if tragic for his family.

[Oskuro]

Yep, they exist. I've seen posters advertising organized hiking trips for kids using these.

As for the newsbit, the same thing could've happened with a bike. Ironic as it is, it seems like it's just an accident with little bearing on the Segway's viability and security. Or as some would put it: Turns out riding near the border of a cliff may result in you falling off it! Who knew!

[Phantasee]

I thought it was the guy who invented it, he lives on an island IIRC.

They aren't that bad, they look a little dopey but for zipping around on some paths it's fairly comfortable. The regular models are hella lame, though. If for some reason I couldn't walk, I'd rather have a motorized scooter before I rode a Segway.

As for the "invention" that made his fortune, it sounds like something used in the Napoleonic era to protect siege batteries. IIRC they were wicker and filled with earth.

[UnderAGreySky]

[urlhttp://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3158 ... nners.html]Killed by his good manners[/url]

He accidentally reversed his motorised two-wheel Segway scooter over a cliff - to MOVE out of the way of a walker.

The kind-hearted tycoon then plunged 50ft to his death.

Also

Jimi, 62, gave away more than £25million to charities - including the Sun-backed Help for Heroes - in the past two years.

If so, it's doubly sad.

[Oskuro]

Actually, the first quote is doubly ironic.