Rip - Bryan Wyness

[ERC]

Former Mini racer and Jaguar enthusiast and also keen touring motorcyclist was killed near Rangiriri whilst out riding his motorcycle. He accompanied Gareth Morgan on the "Silk Road" adventure across some very tough terrain, so it makes it so sad that he died on state highway 1, not too far from his Pukekohe home.

Bryan was one of the nicest racers you could ever wish to meet, on and off the track and was the deserving winner of our sportsmanship trophy (our top award) in the 1998/1999 season. He drove that Mini Cooper S very hard but was a fair competitor.

He loved his Jaguars and had an E Type as well as an historic XK120 with a great NZ racing history (ex-Archibald) and featured on the front cover of NZCC a few years ago with it. (Volume 14 number 12)

A top Air NZ pilot he later graduated to "Flying a Desk" as he put it, but loved flying and I believe was one of the oldest if not, the oldest, active pilot when they scrapped compulsory grounding on the basis of age.

As an opera fan, he will forever remain in my memory when he explained to me that I should just listen to an opera singer as just another instrument and not worry about the words.

To Marion, our deepest sympathies and we will always remember him as a true gentleman racer and enthusiast.

Rip Bryan

[Steve Holmes]

Really sorry to hear that Ray. Thanks for posting. RIP.

[jamie]

RIP Bryan Jamie A

[bob homewood]

Yes Rip "The Captain " and thanks for the memories

[jim short]

Yes I have a great shot of him flipping his mini at pos. the worst corner anywhere,, at Levels upside down for over 2min.. Strange he didnt wish to see it!!

[AMCO72]

I see the Coroners report on Bryans death has come out. I find it VERY hard to believe his 'findings'!!!!!!

According to him the tube in the front tyre was old, had chaffed against the tyre wall causing it to loose pressure which lead to Bryan loosing control on the Rangiriri corner.

Anybody else I might have believed such a story but NOT Bryan with his mechanical nouse and integrity.
The word at the time was that he had had a 'medical incident', a theory that the Coroner dismissed...........mmmmmmmmmmmm

The full report is in the Waikato times today....11/2/14

[ERC]

Thanks AMCO. I tend to agree with you. I would have thought that unless he had a blowout actually on the corner, sorry, bend, then he would probably have felt it and held it anyway.

I have never heard of an inflated tube chafing on a tyre wall either, have you? But there again, I don't have the expertise or experience of others. I am amazed that a coroner came up with that, so was it from a police report?

[Bryan]

https://www.stuff.co.nz/motoring/news/9705169/Motorcyclists-death-highlights-tubed-tyres-safety-issue

Although it's not stated explicitly, it sounds like the Coroner's comments are based on the Serious Crash Unit's investigation, and blames an old tube in a new tyre.

[ERC]

Thanks for that. That report probably explains it a bit better - particularly the witness statement from the following motorist. Its certainly a valid comment that it should be new tyre = new inner tube. So Sad.

[AMCO72]

Not convinced. The following motorist was amazingly observant to what was going on. Was he/she some expert on motor-cycle riders?

I'm sure Bryan wasn't experiencing a 'tank-slapper' going round that gentle curve!!!!!!!

The paragraph in the report that says.....'tubes expanded over time through ordinary use'.......well pardon me, but expanded to where?They are encased inside the tyre which makes them rather difficult to expand!

Then a bit further on.......the slow leak caused the SUDDEN deflation of the tyre!!!!!!!!!!!!

Something else. If the front tyre had been deflating, the bike would have been under-steering not over-steering. He would therefore have been drifting out to the left, on this right hand curve NOT to the right towards the wire-rope barrier, which is what the 'witness' said was going on as they were attempting to overtake.

Think someone has been reading the Bible a little too thoroughly........'new wine in old wine skins'

You dont ride the Silk Road across Russia then come to grief on the most gradual curve on SH1 without some good reason.

Anyway, I am sticking to my theories of what happened, and all the speculation in the world is not going to bring back this true motoring enthusiast.

[CUSTAXIE50]

I was going to put up two pages on what to do and not do when it comes to fitting a tube to a tyre,but i will only ask how old was the bike he was riding on that day.

[AMCO72]

OK, Custaxie50. The bike was a BMW 650GS touring , but I don't know the year. He rode it across the Silk road in 2005.
He died in July 2012, so the bike was at least 7 years old at that time.

Maybe the tube was one he picked up during that ride, and had 'Made in China' printed on it.

[CUSTAXIE50]

OK, Custaxie50. The bike was a BMW 650GS touring , but I don't know the year. He rode it across the Silk road in 2005.
He died in July 2012, so the bike was at least 7 years old at that time.

Maybe the tube was one he picked up during that ride, and had 'Made in China' printed on it.Thanks for that,so that bike would have a tube-less wheel fitted to it when it came out,is that what it was fitted with on that day

[AMCO72]

Dont know, but it didn't have wire-spoked wheels, so would presume it had tubless tyres. The tubes may have been fitted for extra protection on the rough Silk road run.

[CUSTAXIE50]

Dont know, but it didn't have wire-spoked wheels, so would presume it had tubless tyres. The tubes may have been fitted for extra protection on the rough Silk road run. They may have fitted tubes to their bikes so they could let them down for the sand that they may have had to ride through,my thinking is a tube-less tyre if they did that would come away from the wheel and let all the air out,maybe Gareth Morgan may know if they fitted tubes.

[Oldfart]

Isn't it supposed to be a "bad thing" to fit tubes in tubeless tyres? I thought tubeless tyres have cases which are not smooth inside and you get chafe on the tube?

[CUSTAXIE50]

Isn't it supposed to be a "bad thing" to fit tubes in tubeless tyres? I thought tubeless tyres have cases which are not smooth inside and you get chafe on the tube? 100% right in what you said,you dont.

[GeebeeNZ]

I am just an accountant but have also been told that fitting tubes in a tubeless tyre caused problems from overheating. There are a number of us who believed our good friend Bryan had a heart attack. After all he was a very accomplished rider and should have coped with a deflating tyre. But then I am not a Coroner and don't have all the facts. Graeme

[CUSTAXIE50]

I am just an accountant but have also been told that fitting tubes in a tubeless tyre caused problems from overheating. There are a number of us who believed our good friend Bryan had a heart attack. After all he was a very accomplished rider and should have coped with a deflating tyre. But then I am not a Coroner and don't have all the facts. Graeme Yes,they can overheat,i had a look at some tubeless bike tyres today and they all had ribs on the side of the tyre,i have fitted tubes to tubeless car tyres and have failed because of the ribs.See the thing is with a tube tyre if a nail or if the tube fails it goes down very quickly,with a tubeless tyre it seals around the wheel so the only place the air can get out is around the nail, and may take some time to go down,Maybe a law should be put in place when a bike goes in for a wof,the bike should be failed if there is a tube in a tubeless tyre if may save a life.