Riding with someone else is great, but there's a special kind of feeling you can only get riding by yourself. Just you and your bike; maybe with your thoughts, maybe with some music, or maybe with nothing but the sweet sounds of your machine. The most important point is, it's your call, and no one else's.
That is, of course, until your heart leaps into your throat as you suddenly encounter a surprise animal out on the road. If you're lucky, you can swerve to avoid it. If you're not so lucky, you can die, or else be seriously injured.
As for me, I have very vivid memories of a deer staring me down in the overnight hours during one 3am ride to work in the dark. It felt like his eyes were boring holes into my back as I waited for the light to turn green, but at least he was behind me and not in front of me.
In any case, scenarios like this are one of many recurring nightmares for riders. Here in 2024, though, one cattle breeder is currently on trial for involuntary manslaughter in France after a motorcyclist's death in 2022.
One of the man's cattle was reportedly out on a road in Clarbec, France (which is located in the department of Calvados, in the region of Normandy) at around 10:15 p.m. when he encountered the unexpected animal. He was on his way back from coaching a local football team when he and the creature both met an unfortunate end.
The noise was loud, and the breeder's son heard it and came running. At first, all he saw was the cattle lying in the road. Only after alerting his father to help him move the body did they see the motorcycle, and then the unconscious rider shortly thereafter. As it turned out, he was in cardiac arrest, and was declared dead just an hour and a half after the crash occurred.
Now The Breeder Is On Trial For Manslaughter, But How?
There are currently two arguments in play on either side of this sad story. The legal team for the family of the rider who died in the crash alleges that the cow's whereabouts were the breeder's responsibility. If fences weren't maintained to keep the animal properly corralled, they argue, that's negligence.
Investigation of the fence found that it wasn't out of shape, so the next argument is that fireworks were set off in the area that night. When truly frightened, the defendant's lawyer said, a bovine animal could have been so startled that they jumped the approximately five-foot-high fence.
It's not clear what type of cattle was involved in this case, and we don't have a handy chart for you of how high different types of cattle can jump. However, what we can tell you is that some British cattle have been known to jump five or even six feet high under various circumstances. So while cows jumping over the moon may be the stuff of children's rhymes, cattle jumping at all is a very real possibility.
The Argument Against The Rider
On the other side, the lawyer for the defense claims that it was (of course) the rider's fault. His speed at the time of the crash was estimated to be between 100 to 110 kilometers per hour (about 62 to 68 miles per hour) in a 90 km/h (approximately 56 mph) zone, which wasn't unduly fast.
While he was wearing a helmet, the chin strap was found unfastened on the lid as it lay near the site of the crash. And that's the argument the defense makes. The rider's son, naturally, says that his father was a very careful man who always wore his gloves and securely fastened his helmet.
Nothing Can Bring Them Back
Both the rider and the cow died that night, and there's no bringing either of them back. One other argument posed by the plaintiff's attorney here suggests that a motorist had reported a wandering cow on the road prior to the crash, and that clearly no one brought the errant cow back where it belonged in time.
It's a strange and sad case, and one for which the court is due to return its decision on March 5, 2024. We'll update this story with the outcome of the case once it's available. In the meantime, ride safe.
