A biker left a holidaymaker unable to walk properly after causing a head-on motorbike smash by speeding round a blind bend. Usman Rashid smashed into Hubert Hardie as the pair rode near the village of Tarbet, Argyll and Bute, near Loch Lomond.
The French tourist, who suffered a broken spine, spent more than a month in hospital in Scotland after emergency surgery to save his right leg. He had to be discharged to another hospital in his homeland due to the length of time it took him to recover from his injuries.
And he now has to walk with the aid of crutches and has had to get people to help look after his home due to the effects of the crash. The details emerged when Rashid, 32, of Drumchapel, Glasgow, admitted his guilt over the August 5, 2018 smash, pleading guilty to a charge of culpable and reckless driving.
Prosecutor David McDonald told Dumbarton Sheriff Court: "A driver observed Mr Rashid overtaking him just as Mr Rashid approached a sign for a sharp right bend. Thereafter, Mr Rashid was seen overtaking the vehicle in front. He observed Mr Rashid filtering through traffic and overtaking their vehicle.
"The witnesses saw Mr Rashid overtaking a final vehicle. Mr Rashid carried out a manoeuvre whereby he overtook this vehicle and completely ignored clear warning signs, by way of a red warning triangle, set out on both sides of the carriageway.
"He continued to overtake the final vehicle before the blind bend by driving in the middle of the opposing carriageway. Mr Hardie was riding his motorcycle in the opposing carriageway at this bend. As a result, Mr Rashid collided with Mr Hardie resulting in both Mr Rashid and Mr Hardie being thrown from their respective motorcycles and causing severe injury to Mr Hardie’s right leg and spine."
The crash was spotted by another biker who saw police officers nearby and told them, and they raced to the scene. Mr McDonald added: "On arrival they noted a large tail back of traffic and no inbound traffic indicating that the road was blocked. The police control room had alerted them that ambulance crews would be arriving shortly.
"Police witnesses thereafter proceeded through the traffic to the locus and observed two motorcycles still on the carriageway and Mr Rashid to be crying out in pain. Officers noted that Mr Rashid had no visible injuries but was taken to the hospital. Officers also noted that Mr Hardie had an open wound to his right leg that appeared to be extremely deep and he was clearly in a lot of pain and discomfort.
"Mr Hardie is a French national who was visiting Scotland. He was transported to Royal Alexandra Hospital, Paisley, and then the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, before being transported to the Glasgow Royal Infirmary for further treatment and operations in order to save his right leg. Mr Hardie had a severe injury to his tibia and fibula of his right leg with extensive soft tissue damage.
"The injury sustained by Mr Hardie was a limb threatening injury and due to the risk of nonunion of bone and infection it could result in limb amputation. He also had a fractured spine." Sheriff Maxwell Hendry called for background reports to be prepared and adjourned sentencing until next month for that to be done.
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