A STUNT on his BMX bicycle went tragically wrong for a 13-year-old boy when he came down on his head, an inquest in Torquay heard on Wednesday. Aiden Taylor, of Little Close, Kingsteignton, was not wearing a helmet because he had given it to his younger brother after visiting a shop. He was riding the bike in Rydon Road, not far from his home, when he jumped a kerb at a traffic-calming island and came down on the concrete at around 8.30pm on August 22, suffering a severe head injury. After being treated by a doctor and paramedic, Aiden was taken to Torbay Hospital, was later transferred to Frenchay Hospital, Bristol, and then to the intensive care unit of the Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, where he died on August 28. In a statement, DC Simon Sherwood, who was off duty at the time, said he was in Little Close when two children, clearly upset, came running through a walkway leading from Rydon Road. Another followed. He went to investigate and saw a small group of people in the road opposite the Old Rydon Inn, with Aiden lying on the ground between the kerb and a concrete traffic bollard. He could see he was in a bad way and had taken hold of his hand in an attempt to reassure him. One of Aiden's friends, whom the Torbay and South Devon coroner Ian Arrow asked the media not to name, said in a video recorded interview that Aiden jumped over the kerb for the crossing. 'I saw him come off and he landed straight on his nose. I shouted to a friend to get his parents,' he said. Dr Mark Clarvis, together with a paramedic, found he was bleeding from a head wound and they put a collar on his neck. Aiden's mother, Joanne Marie Taylor, said that at the age of 18 months he had learned to ride a bike. When the family had moved to Kingsteignton he had built his own bike from parts he found at the tip. She said in a statement that with his friends he often practised stunts and jumps on a hill on their bikes. 'He normally wore a helmet but on this occasion he had lent it to his brother, who was with him,' she added. A vehicle examiner, MPC Brian Nelson, said the cycle was in near perfect condition, well built and well maintained. MPC Ian Harvey said other children who were there at the time were eight and nine-years-old and rather than distress them further the friend's evidence was taken. 'That account accorded with the findings at the scene. 'There was nothing wrong with the road and nothing wrong with the bike. This was probably a rider error,' he said. Mr Arrow told MPC Harvey that, sadly, they had heard from witnesses that Aiden was not wearing a helmet. MPC Harvey replied: 'At the shop nearby he had lent his helmet to his younger brother. We believe he felt it necessary that his younger brother should wear it.' A post mortem showed the cause of death to be a head injury, which included a fractured skull. Recording a verdict of accidental death, Mr Arrow said it was an extremely sad case. He said Aiden was riding a bicycle with which he was familiar and which he was experienced at riding. 'I am satisfied that he was riding along Rydon Road when he attempted a stunt. In attempting it he came off his bicycle. 'I am satisfied he went forward and landed on his head suffering a severe head injury,' he said. Offering his condolences to the family, Mr Arrow said he could understand entirely why they could not come to the inquest. 'It is extremely sad circumstances, though I can see that riding a bicycle gave Aiden a great deal of pleasure,' he said.
