Segway company owner killed in Segway accident
 

Segway owner dies after falling off river cliff *| ajc.com

LONDON — A wealthy British businessman who owns the company that makes the two-wheeled Segway has been found dead in a river in northern England after apparently falling off a cliff on one of the vehicles, police said Monday.

The body of 62-year-old James Heselden and a Segway personal transporter were found in the River Wharfe and he was prounced dead at the scene, West Yorkshire Police said.

Police said a witness had reported seeing a man fall Sunday over a 30-foot (9-meter) drop into the river near Boston Spa, 140 miles (225 kilometers) north of London.

"The incident is not believed to be suspicious," police said, indicating that they do not believe anyone else was involved.

Heselden, who bought control of the New Hampshire-based Segway company in December, made his fortune through his firm Hesco Bastion Ltd., which developed a system to replace sand bags to protect troops.

Hesco Bastion is based in Leeds, near the tough Halton Moor area where Heselden grew up. He left school at 15 and first worked as a coal miner before becoming a businessman and philanthropist. Hesco Bastion said Heselden recently gave 10 million pounds ($15.9 million) to the Leeds Community Foundation, raising his total charitable giving to 23 million pounds.

"Jimi was an amazing man who, apart from being a wonderful success story for Leeds due to his business acumen, was also remarkably selfless and generous, giving millions to local charities to help people in his home city," said Tom Riordan, the chief executive of Leeds City Council.

The battery-powered Segway, which is stabilized by gyroscopes, was invented by Dean Kamen, who founded the company in 1999.

Isn't it ironic...

This line seemed inappropriate to me.

Worst marketing death since Dr. Atkins.

condolences to Mr. Heselden's family and friends

Jim Fixx disagrees.

I was going to post that.. I didn't know how many people would remember him though.

Mrs Tyke & I were on Segways once - taking a Segway Tour of Chicago. It was one of the most enjoyable & informative tours we ever had.

What a shame...

Seemed like a good guy too.

I thought at first Dean Kamen had died. Hadn't realized someone else was producing them now.

Jim Fixx died 20+ years before Atkins, so my statement is correct.

But didn't Atkins fall and hit his head on a sheet of ice?

Yes, this was my point. Fixx wrote a book on running and died while running. Atkins fell and had brain swelling.

It wasn't the manner of death, it was his weight and condition at the time of death, as I recall. That's what got all the publicity.

The point is his death brought bad publicity to the company he spent his life building.

That seals it. I'm never buying a Segway scooter.

The counterpoint is the publicity wasn't bad.

It wasn't? It was a running joke for months that the guy who urged people to eat fatty foods was overweight with heart problems at his death. So much so that his family had to actively fight all of the rumors and such out there about how/why he died.

I've seen other lines that talk about it being somewhat suspicious. It just seems odd

SI

Even for a "public death" thread, this one is just jam-packed with failure.