A 29-year-old woman crashed on her bike and died from the injuries sustained when she failed to put her high-heel, diamante boot back on the pedal, an inquest into her death has heard.
Monika Kunda was riding her Yamaha at about 40 mph in Bournemouth, Dorset, UK, last August when the accident happened, the hearing heard, as cited by the Daily Echo. No malfunction of the bike caused the crash, and Kunda was not driving it recklessly.
A driver traveling behind Kunda at the time she went down with her bike told the court that she noticed Kunda stretching out her leg, as if she had a cramp. Then, when she tried to place the foot back on the pedal, she couldn’t, because she was wearing fashion diamante boots with high heels. She looked down to see why she couldn’t find the pedal with her foot, and that’s when she lost control.
“Ms Kunda was wearing a black leather jacket, which appeared to be a ‘fashion item,’ black boots decorated with diamanté with a ‘two- to three-inch chunky heel’ and a ‘bright pink’ crash helmet,” the publication writes, citing court documents.
Dorset Police officers testified that Kunda wasn’t speeding at the time of the crash but was distracted briefly before it happened. The Dorset Coronor confirmed it, issuing a warning to all bikers, be they male or female: when it’s time to ride, leave the glam at home and dress accordingly.
“She was in the nearside lane, appropriately riding in the middle of the lane. She was not traveling at excess speed,” Coroner Brendan Allen told the inquest. “She was, for some reason, distracted by her footwear. She was wearing boots with a high heel.”
“It is with the utmost importance that bikers wear appropriate clothing, no matter how short the journey and no matter how familiar the person is with it,” Allen added.
A driver traveling behind Kunda at the time she went down with her bike told the court that she noticed Kunda stretching out her leg, as if she had a cramp. Then, when she tried to place the foot back on the pedal, she couldn’t, because she was wearing fashion diamante boots with high heels. She looked down to see why she couldn’t find the pedal with her foot, and that’s when she lost control.
“Ms Kunda was wearing a black leather jacket, which appeared to be a ‘fashion item,’ black boots decorated with diamanté with a ‘two- to three-inch chunky heel’ and a ‘bright pink’ crash helmet,” the publication writes, citing court documents.
Dorset Police officers testified that Kunda wasn’t speeding at the time of the crash but was distracted briefly before it happened. The Dorset Coronor confirmed it, issuing a warning to all bikers, be they male or female: when it’s time to ride, leave the glam at home and dress accordingly.
“She was in the nearside lane, appropriately riding in the middle of the lane. She was not traveling at excess speed,” Coroner Brendan Allen told the inquest. “She was, for some reason, distracted by her footwear. She was wearing boots with a high heel.”
“It is with the utmost importance that bikers wear appropriate clothing, no matter how short the journey and no matter how familiar the person is with it,” Allen added.