Providing an example of irony for textbooks forevermore, the owner of the Segway company died in a strange accident. Jimi Heselden, the 62-year-old chairman of the company that purchased Segway in 2013, was testing a “rugged version” of the much-mocked personal transportation device when he encountered a dog walker near his home in West Yorkshire, England. Dog walker Sean Christie said he spotted Heselden at the top of a steep incline and saw the businessman move a short distance backwards in a reversing move he assumed was to make room for him to pass. He said Heselden appeared to wobble and then went out of view. He found him lying face down and lifeless in the river below. He notified police and Heselden was pronounced dead at the scene. Coroner David Hinchliff explained, "I think it's probable, I think typical of Jimi and the type of man he was, he held back and waited as an act of courtesy to allow Mr. Christie more room. In so doing, he attempted to reverse the Segway back. As a result of that he got into difficulty.” Hinchcliff recorded a verdict of accidental death. A post-mortem examination found that Heselden died from "multiple blunt force injuries to the chest and spine consistent with a fall while riding a Segway.”
