NEARLY one hundred bikers formed a guard of honour escorting a Bracknell biker who died in a crash in Oxford on his final journey.

The cortege made its way from the Easthampstead shops through Bracknell to the Easthampstead Park crematorium.

A large screen broadcast the service to a crowd so large it couldn't fit into the crematorium and the service was streamed across the internet.

Christiaan Cloete, from Wildridings, spent the morning of Monday, May 2, at H Cafe, a favourite haunt for motorcyclists off Oxford Road, but died in a tragic collision after coming off his Suzuki motorbike on the ride home.

On Saturday, May 21, hundreds of mourners gathered to pay their respects to the 26-year-old with the service being broadcast on the web to his native South Africa.

Chris' brother Gustav thanked the crowds for their support, singling out the Berkshire Bikers, for helping their former member's family cope with his loss.

"The Berkshire Bikers have made us part of their family and I can't thank them enough for that," he said.

"I kept putting off writing this because it doesn't feel real.

"Chris was a great person. He was kind, he was caring. He was always the first to do something and I always looked up to him and followed him.

"I played cricket because he played it, I did martial arts because he did them, but I never beat him in a fight.

"I would like to thank Nick Bird, he was with my brother on the day. He's a nurse and tried to save his life."

Bracknell News:

The family moved to England in 2007 and Chris started working at Blue Mountain Golf Club and getting involved with the Berkshire Bikers. 

Nick, who was riding with Chris on the day of his death said: "On the day he left we all went up together. It was a nice day and we didn't know it would go that wrong.

"After I heard he crashed I went up and I knew he was gone but I had to try and save him. It was one of the hardest things to do.

"It's always a tough job but having to do it on a friend is completely different. Just wanting to save him so much it's just hard to put it into words.

"He was such a lovely person it's hard to imagine he's not going to be there."
The service, which included poetry recital and slide shows with pictures of Chris set to some of his favourite songs.

At the end of the service his family, including his father Thomas and mother Gwen, went out to thank the crowd of 200 people gathered outside. Bracknell Town Council cut the grass of a nearby field and removed goal posts to accommodate the 200-strong crowd.

The following day Good Egg Tattoos in Egham hosted a charity tattoo day, donating the £640 profit to a just giving page set up to pay for Chris' funeral. Bracknell Cricket club also raised £300 for the cause. 

So far the appeal has raised more than £200 beyond the £4,500 target with extra funds going to Cancer Research UK.

Visit crowdfunding.justgiving.com/gustav-cloete-1 to make a donation