A Glasgow biker left a French tourist unable to walk properly after causing a major motorbike crash when he sped round a blind bend near Loch Lomond.
Usman Rashid crashed into Hubert Hardie near the village of Tarbet, Argyll and Bute. Hardie spent more than a month in hospital in Scotland with a broken spine, also requiring emergency surgery to his right leg.
Eventually, he had to be discharged to a hospital in France due to the length of time his recovery would take, the Daily Record reports. He now has to walk to with the aid of crutches and receive help from people to look after his home due to the longterm effects of his injuries following the crash four years ago.
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Rashid, 32, of Drumchapel, pled guilty to the August 5, 2018 smash, admitting 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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