I don’t think Deane ever used this forum, but I know a lot of people who knew him well do… Certainly pretty much ANYONE who rides MTB or is into personal fitness in the Greater Wyre Forest/Bewdley/Kidderminster area, watched Gladiators religiously in the 1990s, or spent time in the Army back then will have known Deane or at least known who he was… I have never known anyone whose reputation preceded them so greatly!
Sadly Deane passed away this Monday 10th May after choosing to take his own life. As you can imagine, all of his friends and family are gutted, and I don’t think he ever truly appreciated just how popular or well liked he was, otherwise he’d still be here with us now.
To those who knew him, Deane was always the life and soul of the party. He had a razor sharp sense of humour, yet was always incredibly humble. Almost as skilful as he was supremely fit, you only ever kept up with Deano on a bike when he let you! If he put the hammer down, he was gone…
I didn’t know Dean but had a FFWD through that Gladiators episode and he seemed like a right decent bloke. Hope you find an assault course to smash wherever you end up Dean. Peace.
