‘Daylight’ advice for bikers - Stunt rider set to share riding lessons islandwide with young motorcyclists

Alarmed by the increasing number of motorcycle accident fatalities on the nation's streets, Barrington 'Daylight' Heslop, owner of Daylight Motor Sports, said that he and his team will be hosting a country tour to give lessons to young riders on how to safely manoeuvre the roads.

Slated to begin at April's month end, Daylight, who is also a professional stunt rider, said he and his team will travel to the 14 parishes to offer expert advice.

"I will be having the country tour to teach some of these young men how to properly ride a bike because a lot of times the bike is not the issue but the rider is. We want to teach them how to handle the road professionally. It will be about 100 of us and we are working to get the police on board," he said.

"We are also welcoming sponsors as well," he continued. "It really hurt mi to see all the youth dem a lose dem life like this, man, and a lot of the accidents have to do with the small bikes."

According to data from the National Road Safety Council, motorcycle crashes is the leading cause of death on Jamaican roads over the years. Some 141 persons, or 29 per cent of the 477 people who died from 416 crashes last year, were motorbike related.

On Sunday night, five youngsters, all family members with promising futures, perished in a horrific vehicular crash along the Temple Hall main road in St Andrew. The drivers of the three motorcycles reportedly lost control of the vehicles and collided into a Toyota Hiace that was travelling in the opposite direction, causing it to overturn.

Daylight said that he is full of sympathy and offered condolence to the loved ones of the deceased. He admitted not knowing details of the collision and made it clear that he is not pointing fingers at anyone, while imploring bike riders to follow the road code.

"You just cannot exceed the speed limit in built up area and you have to cut your speed or stop at all intersections. When the stop light says amber it nuh mean say yuh must go, it mean say yuh must stop. Do not try to beat the stop light at all. We have to remember that in all of this our lives are everything. I am really saddened about all these deaths," he said.

"All of these accidents don't look good on all bike companies who sell small bikes. The yeng yeng is not the problem enuh, once it is purchased from a reputable company where everything on the motorcycle is checked and in good condition," he noted. "The rider is the problem if they can't ride."

Under the new Road Traffic Act, an applicant must do a road test to be granted a provisional driver's licence to operate a motorcycle. Additionally, the licensee cannot carry a pillion and must have someone with a motorcycle driver's licence within six metres.

Daylight, 25 is adept at performing all kinds of manoeuvres, including wheelies, stoppies and burnouts. These stunts, he said, are definitely not for apprentices and should not be practised on the road. In fact, the stunt rider and businessman said he will not allow anyone who cannot ride a motorcycle to leave his Waltham Park compound without giving them a lesson.

"Of course we are doing a business, but honestly, if a man can't ride I am not going to allow him to leave the compound on the motorcycle. When a man come fi buy a bike from mi and if him can't ride mi give him a lesson on how to do it enuh. Memba mi a take him money enuh and mi don't want him go road go dead," Daylight stated. "And as a matter of fact, if yuh can't ride a bicycle you can't buy a bike from mi, suh yuh have to make a man who can ride come and buy it or be there to ride it out."