A life-long biker who was robbed of his retirement by a cruel illness has ridden his final journey in style.
With his willow coffin carried in the sidecar of a motorcycle hearse and his wife Ros close by as pillion, Mark Causey travelled his last roads to the accompaniment of the roar of motorbike engines.
More than 100 bikers from all over west and south Wales escorted Mark, 61, from Cresswell Quay to Parc Gwyn Crematorium on Saturday, October 19.
His wife Ros, 63, put out an appeal on social media for bikers to join in the tribute to her husband of 37 years, and she was overwhelmed by the remarkable turnout.
“When I came down the hill towards Cresswell Quay and saw all the bikes lined up on both sides of the road, I just burst into tears of joy,” said Ros, who wore one of Mark’s helmets and her old biking boots for the poignant ride on the seat of the Suzuki Hasabusa motorcycle hearse.
Elder daughter Rhiannon donned her mum's old red leather motorbike trousers to ride pillion on a Suzuki which followed the hearse with younger daughter Eir, 30, driving behind.
“My absolutely heartfelt thanks goes to this huge and amazing and respectful convoy of bikers, they took us on a route through a lot of our favourite places and their presence gave the whole family such happiness," said Ros.
Ros and Mark met in London 42 years ago while they were studying for their degrees.
Ros trained as a nurse, specialising in health visiting and public health and latterly in clinical IT. Mark was a chartered building services engineer in the construction industry.
Despite enjoying his summer motorcycle commutes from their home in East Anglia to London, he decided to take early retirement and move to Wales where they had family connections as Ros is from Kenfig Hill, near Bridgend.
“We found our dream home in Cresselly and moved in in August 2023,” said Ros.
The couple made friends at the regular bikers’ nights outside the Cresselly Arms and Mark worked on his bikes in his workshop,
Tragically, last May, just two weeks after the bikes were ready for the road, he was diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer and given between eight and 12 weeks to live.
“Nobody could believe it,” said Ros. “Mark was a fit, strong man who had run 23 marathons over the years.
“He’d owned motorbikes since he was 16 and they were a huge part of his life.
“To Mark, worse then the cancer diagnosis was that he was not allowed to ride his bikes.
"So we just lived moment by moment, focusing on what we had and making the most of it. He had always been our rock and now it was our turn to be his.
“We cannot thank Paul Sartori Hospice at Home enough for their care, also the local district nurses and the palliative care team.
“Mark wanted to stay at home until the very end, and they made that possible.”
Mark died peacefully at home on September 17 with his family at his side.
Donations in memory of Mark to Paul Sartori Hospice at Home can be made via the funeral directors, W. and M,J. Rossiter and Sons, The Old Rectory, The Norton, Tenby.
Daughter Rhiannon and a friend are running a half marathon next month in aid of The Brain Tumour Charity and donations can be made via JustGiving.
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