38 replies to this topic

[eldougo]

They have just said on TEN news here in Sydney that they have switched off his life support.
i only caught the end of the report maybe not the full story yet??????

[Vicuna]

Things don't sound good.

I heard the news as I arived home tonight. I poured a large glass of Scotch then went for a long walk to contemplate the world.

i'm not even a rally guy but Possum was just such an engaging, infectious sort of guy.

[Vitesse2]

http://foxsports.lyc...ntentId=1236864

DUNEDIN, New Zealand (AP)—

Critically injured world rally driver Possum Bourne had his life support decreased Monday and the head of Bourne's racing team said the driver's chances of survival were "virtually nil."

Friends and family of Bourne, injured in a car crash on April 18, were keeping a 24-hour vigil after it was decided to gradually decrease the use of machines that were assisting his breathing and other life support.

Bourne, 47, is New Zealand's only professional rally driver and in 20 years of racing has won the Asia-Pacific title three times. He is the reigning Australian Rally champion, having won the title a record seven times.

A statement issued by the family said the brain injury Bourne suffered in the car smash was severe and continuing "full life support is no longer in Possum's best interests."

Possum Bourne Motor Sport general manager Murray Brown said the life support would decrease gradually.

"His chance of survival is virtually nil," Brown said, adding that he did not know how long Bourne would be able to "hold on."

"That's something no one knows, it's anybody's guess," Brown said.

Bourne has been in an induced coma in Dunedin Hospital's intensive care unit since the smash during preparations for the Race to the Sky hillclimb.

The release said the extent and severity of the injury was not fully apparent until last weekend, when ventilation support was decreased.

A brain scan on Monday confirmed the severity of the injury, Brown said.

"It was a very difficult decision for everyone, but in the end it is in the interest of Possum," Brown said.

Mike Barltrop, the driver of the other vehicle involved in the car crash was discharged from hospital last week after undergoing surgery on his left leg.

[Ferrari_Boy]

my thoughts go out to him and his family

[Gary Davies]

Terribly sad news.

[Bruce Moxon]

[Bernd]

This is a great loss to Rallying. Possum Bourne is a genuine champion in the finest sense of the word.

[Bruce Moxon]

Unconfirmed news is that Possum has passed away.

****.


Bruce Moxon

[cm50]

Never met him but knowing his exploits and seeing him take the Mineshaft in the Rally of Canberra (thankfully his team won yesterday) the guy was great.

Honestly on hearing the news tonight I cried!!!!!!! and

[William Dale Jr]

This really has been an awful year.

[Geza Sury]

A couple of years ago Bourne and his long-time co-driver Rodger Freeth suffered a big accident during the Australian Rally IIRC, when Freeth was killed. And now Possum also passes away

[ensign14]

I first heard of him when Grand Prix International started doing rally reports, circa 1985. There was always something quixotic about an independent having a tilt at the works chaps, more so when he was called Possum, and even more so when he was in the top 5. So I always kept an eye out for him in the results pages. Godspeed Champ.

[dmj]

[skinnylizard]

unfortunate days these with Kato and now this....
show must go on....
xxx
www.pi-media.com
www.eranstudio.com

[Jack-the-Lad]

Very very sad.

Jack

[Pine]

RIP Possum.

[Mac Lark]

It's 7.13 am in NZ as I write this.

For a start the 7 o'clock news has not mentioned that he has slipped away however the prospects are very grave.

When the news broke on Good Friday he was described as 'New Zealand rally icon'. He transcended the sport.

People without the slightest interest in motorsport knew the name 'Possum Bourne'. Perhaps the 'nickname' had something to do with it but in reality it was 'him'. He is such an absolutely loveable guy.

I interviewed him on radio some years ago and made the arrangements earlier in the day. We'd never met before -

Me: Would you mind having a chat on the radio tonight?
PB: No problem, what time do you want me?

He was a sponsors dream yet he it wasn't in that forced way - he just bloody loved it.

Clear proof that nice guys can succeed at the top level.

[Richard Jenkins]

Dreadful, dreadful news. I hadn't heard of Kato pre-accident & Elisabeth Schumacher was only a minor person in the back of my mind but there is something tremendously sad about all three slipping away - there really seemed hope at one point.
I'm not a big rally fan, but every time I came across Possum Bourne on the telly or other media, I always took an instant shine to the man. I remember Jim Bamber's affectionate Subaru 555 decal cartoon from 1995 & what a good sport Possum was. (It was about his waist size).
Truly lovely guy, he will be very much missed by more than just the rallying fratenity,

[FERRARI WEAPON]

R.I.P

[Catalina Park]

[eldougo]

POSSUM has just passed away very SAD.news .

[Amaroo]

The world is now another rally driver short, truly a sad day for Motorsport. Our thoughts and prays are with his wife and children.

R.I.P
Possum

[Baby Satan]

Thread in RC

[Milan Fistonic]

Even when it was announced they were turning Possum's life support off I kept hoping for a miracle. But it wasn't to be and Possum died at 12.58am this morning.

R.I.P.

[Vicuna]

Originally posted by Milan Fistonic
Even when it was announced they were turning Possum's life support off I kept hoping for a miracle. But it wasn't to be and Possum died at 12.58am this morning.

R.I.P.

Me too Milan, me too.

Amazing how off shore news bulletins can report someones death even before they pass away.

Possum comes from Pukekohe - the small country town south of Auckland where the NZ Grand Prix was run for many years.

In Pukekohe, locals are very fond of 'nick names' - virtually everyone has one, even if it's just their initials. If a nickname like 'Possum' was ever going to stick, Pukekohe is just the sort of place where it could happen.

He badly damaged his mothers car on the back rural roads of Pukekohe as a teenager - he claimed to be avoiding an opossum - or possum as we call them.

The story spread and Peter Bourne became Possum Bourne.

Charming, infectiously enthusiastic but totally laid back in a Bruce McLaren kind of way.

And good! Very, very good!

[fines]

[Ray Bell]

Originally posted by Vicuna
Me too Milan, me too.

.....He badly damaged his mothers car on the back rural roads of Pukekohe as a teenager - he claimed to be avoiding an opossum - or possum as we call them.

The story spread and Peter Bourne became Possum Bourne.

Charming, infectiously enthusiastic but totally laid back in a Bruce McLaren kind of way.

And good! Very, very good!

What a lovely thing to say... I never met the man, nor have I followed his career, but obviously I've heard the name over and over and knew he just must have been more than just good.

But only in the Nostalgia Forum have I ever heard how he got his name, or what his real name was...

Likewise, I had hoped for that miracle when I heard he was in a coma. We must do this, mustn't we? But in life we don't always get what we want, so maybe we can take some solace in a passage from King Solomon... "A good reputation is more valuable than the most expensive perfume. The day a man dies is better than the day he is born."

It is only at the end of life's road that our reputation can be assessed. If we have only good reports about us, then our final day is indeed better than our first, when our book was yet to be written.

As for Solomon's subsequent words, a little harder to reconcile:

"It is better to spend your time at funerals than at festivals, for you are going to die and it is a good thing to think about it while there is still time. Sorrow is better than laughter, for sadness has a refining influence on us."

No doubt they are true, but one hopes the funerals are few and far between...

[Rainer Nyberg]

A salute to a brave and spectacular rally driver from me.

[Mac Lark]

Possum was the sort of bloke that made you feel proud to be a Kiwi.

He always had time for the fans, to talk to kids - who just idolised him, and spread the word about rallying - he was the face of the sport in NZ, and to a large extent in Australia.

I live not far from Pukekohe. Vicuna is quite right - they just love nicknames there. Apparantly he rolled his Mums car on the way back from a mechanics course in Auckland - but either way, an opossum was allegedly involved.

It should be made quite clear that his accident did NOT occur in the midst of competition. He collided with another car while on a 'recce' before the 'Race to the Sky' - a Kiwi version of Pikes Peak, an event that he loved.

He was a HUGE influence on the Subaru brand in NZ - I'm on my second one and I guess I kinda got attracted to them because of Possum.

Tough day.

[amiga1]

Here's another story about Possum told by another NZ rally driver.

Years ago before Possum was a full time rally driver he drove Milk Tankers - he would go from farm to farm collecting milk from the dairy farmers.

The story goes that farmers knew when possum was driveing by the clouds of dust and high speed of the approaching tanker.

[WGD706]

Peter ‘Possum' Bourne - multiple Asia-Pacific, Australian and New Zealand Rally Champion - has died, aged 47. In a statement his family said: "It is with deep sadness that we announce Possum Bourne passed away peacefully at 12.58am on Wednesday, April 30, at Dunedin Hospital."

Bourne's family took the decision to switch off the life support that had kept him in an induced coma since he was badly injured in an accident at the Race to the Sky hillclimb in New Zealand two weeks ago. Tests had shown that it was not in Bourne's interests to maintain life support any longer.

In a career that spanned more than 20 years ‘Possum' (christened Peter but nicknamed after he crashed his mother's car avoiding a possum) developed a huge following, nurtured by prodigious pace and a refreshing, down-to-earth personality. His demeanour was so cheerful and full of energy and enthusiasm that conversation could leave you drained.

He was fast enough to be successful, too, racking up seven Australian titles and winning the Asia-Pacific crown three times. When the WRC went down under, ‘Possum' was a thorn in the side of works crews - at his home event he had six top-six finishes to his name.

A family man with two sons and a daughter, Bourne had waited a long time for his chance on the world stage, and was determined to grab it this season.

His family and friends have lost a truly special person; the world of rallying will sorely miss one of its friendliest faces.

[Milan Fistonic]

Subaru New Zealand have provided a public message board for those who would like to post a tribute to Possum.


www.possumtribute.co.nz

[stuartbrs]

I saw Possum drive for the first time last year. In fact, it was actually the first rally meeting Id ever been too, and I loved it.

Though I never met him, he always came across in interviews as being a thoroughly good bloke, a great ambassador for Rallying.

So, so , sad.

This is what I truly hate about cars.

[Bruce Moxon]

He was a good bloke. Fun, friendly, rarely not smiling. A teriffic ambassador for the sport.

And a top driver. Only knew how to go flat out. Blisteringly quick - smooth, aggressive, precise. Held his own against the best in the world.

I'll miss him.

It's my bad luck I have to research a couple of stories this week that will involve me talking to his competitors over the next few days.

It's never fair that anyone dies. It's worse when it's someone everyone agrees about.

Dammit.


Bruce Moxon

[WGD706]

The other driver involved in the crash that led to the death of rally driver Possum Bourne has broken his silence.

It's nearly four and a half months since the crash near Wanaka in Central Otago.

Rally driver Mike Barltrop was behind the wheel of the other car during the fatal practice run for the Race To The Sky hill climb on Mount Cardrona.

Barltrop is still nursing a severely injured leg.

He told ONE News that Bourne was speeding when the accident happened.

"I just saw this car coming out of nowhere braking heavily and I took evasive action," Barltrop said.

"Sure as hell didn't expect something to come flying over the corner, over the brow at full speed."

Barltrop says he was near the middle of the road when Bourne was heading straight for him.

On his left was a drop of more than 600 metres.

"So we weren't going to go that way and unfortunately his evasive action was into the same direction and we just hit each other and we hit each other very hard."

Barltrop had been following 10 other rally drivers up the hill in two reconnaissance trips, to give drivers and their navigators the chance to know the course before they race.

They had been warned to expect two-way traffic, but not other rally cars.

Barltrop said the reconnaissance trip was on "extra caution", as there were film crews setting up down the road.

"We were going quite slowly you know and um we just came to a blind brow on the road it was quite dusty."

He says Bourne and and another rally driver, Marty Roestenburg, were coming down the hill.

Barltrop says the other drivers have estimated Bourne's speed at around 140 kilometres an hour.

Baltrop says he felt he had to speak up.

"A lot of people have said, both friends and people I've met, they've never heard the other side of the story and thought that I may have something to hide staying quiet -which wasn't true."

His next dream was to get married - he and his fiancee were to have wed a month after the accident.

"It was really disappointing to have to call the wedding off but it was just the way that it went and the timing wasn't going to to be right with Mike unable to really enjoy the day," Barltrop's fiancee Rebecca Greer told ONE News.

Now the couple are waiting on the crash report outcome before getting married.

Wanaka police say that's another week away, while any decision on blame will take longer.

Barltrop says if he is blamed that he will fight it in court.
http://onenews.nzoom...343-1-7,00.html

[dbw]

very tragic...but it should be a wake-up call for the rest of us[no matter our age] to assemble advanced directives,do not ressitate orders, heroic measure statement and assign power of attorney for medical decisions to a friend that will exersise your wishes as you want them.....otherwise it could get ugly and emotionally conflicted for all involved...

[rmhorton]

Update from SMH:

The man who fiercely denied being responsible for the death of rally legend Possum Bourne today admitted his part in the crash that killed him.

Michael Barltrop, 39, pleaded guilty when he appeared in Invercargill District Court today to an amended charge of aggravated careless driving causing death on April 18, 2003, at Cardrona.

Barltrop, also a rally driver, had faced a charge of dangerous driving causing death, but pleaded guilty to the amended charge on what was scheduled to be the first day of his trial.

Crown solicitor Alistair Garland said Barltrop was on the wrong side of the road showing his co-driver which way he would attack a corner during the Race to the Sky hill climb when the two vehicles collided during the second reconnaissance run of the day.

Bourne, 47, was the most successful Australian and New Zealand rally driver, having won a record seven Australian rally titles and three Asia Pacific titles.

He was in a drug-induced coma for two weeks after the crash near Queenstown before his family consented to switching off the life support system. He was survived by his wife Peggy and three young children.

Barltrop had substituted his original co-driver for a friend who had no experience, Garland said.

The co-driver had lost his way on the map during the first reconnaissance run and had also not attended the briefing given by the chief clerk of the course.

Bourne did not take part in the course reconnaissance because he was doing media interviews and looking after matters in the pit area, Garland said.

During the second run Barltrop and his co-driver decided to write down their own notes of the course.

"As Barltrop approached a blind brow he told his co-driver that on race day he wanted to position his vehicle on the right hand side of the road so he could negotiate the next left-hand bend," Garland said.

"With this, Barltrop drove his Jeep Cherokee on the right hand to the extent the passenger side of the vehicle was positioned on or slightly to the right of the centre of the road."

Bourne was coming down the hill at the time and the two vehicles collided.

Crash experts had estimated Barltrop and Bourne would have had 4.5 seconds to react to what was happening.

Both pulled to the same side. Barltop hit Bourne's vehicle on the driver's side, Garland said, "where Bourne was seated, trapping him in the vehicle".

Bourne died later as a result of serious head injuries he received in the crash.

Barltrop maintained his innocence after the crash, telling police and media Bourne was travelling at speeds of 100kph to 140kph on the wrong side of the road, Garland said.

Judge Stephen O'Driscoll remanded Barltrop on bail until November 12 for sentence.

He ordered that pre-sentence victim impact and reparation reports be prepared before sentence.

NZPA

[Mac Lark]

Thanks RMH

This all makes sense

[eldougo]

Thanks for that update rmhorton . The truth always comesout in the longrun.Very SAD indeed.