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Tribute to bike crash teenager
From the archive, first published Friday 2nd Sep 2005.
A TEENAGER died after the hobby he loved turned to tragedy. Max Gutmann, 19, of Potters Hill, Crockerton, was thrown over the handlebars of his mountain bike while out practising in woodland, near Westbury.
Despite wearing protective gear, his neck was broken in the accident and he was airlifted to Royal United Hospital, Bath, where he died last Wednesday without regaining consciousness.
His mum Joanna, who had been at his bedside with her husband Mike and son Toby, 15, said: "Max took so much pleasure in life and was such a happy person who lived for the moment and loved everything he did.
"He was at a peak in his life when everything was going right.
"He was a pretty good mountain biker and was bordering on the level of becoming a professional."
The former Warminster School pupil gained three A-levels last year and was just finishing his gap year.
He had a job at Virgin Mobile, Trowbridge, and spent much of his spare time mountain biking.
He had been on many biking trips to South Wales and had just returned from a mountain biking holiday in the Alps with 10 of his friends.
Mrs Gutmann said the family had felt numb and shocked after the accident on August 21 and was now trying to come to terms with the tragedy.
"Even through there were four years between Max and his brother Toby they were extremely close friends," she said.
"Toby's finding a lot of help from his brother's friends while his own friends have helped with emails and text messages. He finds it easier to write about how he is feeling than talk about it."
Max had toyed with the idea of becoming a professional mountain biker but decided to complete a media production degree after discovering a flair for filming mountain biking.
He had been accepted universities in Winchester and Bournemouth and hoped to combine his love of extreme sport with his new found love of filming.
Mrs Gutmann said: "He originally had a place to do business management but fell in love with the idea of filming,
"We never realised he had the talent in filming but a friend of ours who is a TV producer said his first film looked as though it was the work of someone who had completed their degree, not about to start it."
Max's parents were expecting about 150 people to attend the funeral, which was held yesterday at West Wiltshire Crematorium in Semington.
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