A 'fun-loving' motorcyclist died in a horrific crash just days before he was due to head to Cornwall for an 'exciting' work opportunity, a court has heard.
Marc Antony Waterworth had been travelling down the A6 Wellington Road South in Stockport at around twice the speed limit when he hit a car turning right onto Longshut Lane on the evening of December 31, 2019.
The 36-year-old was rushed to Stepping Hill Hospital but sadly died from chest and abdominal injuries, South Manchester Coroners Court heard on Thursday.
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Julie Wilson, the driver of the car, admitted having 'three or four drags' of a cannabis joint 10 minutes before getting behind the wheel of a BMW 2 Series people carrier with six passengers.
She pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of cannabis before magistrates but was not charged with any further offence - and police told the court she would have been able to complete the turn had Mr Waterworth travelled within the speed limit.
Lesley Joos, Mr Waterworth's mum, described her son as 'full of sunshine' and said he was 'adored' by his friends and family.
She last spoke to him the day before the crash, when he told her about an 'exciting opportunity' for the start of the new year.
Ms Joos said: "He was quite happy. He had heard about a job in Cornwall and he was talking about maybe going down there for some time.
"It was in two or three days' time and I was thinking - as a mum - about having to pack and get everything ready for him."
Ms Joos said that Mr Waterworth, who was born in Manchester, had not had his Suzuki motorbike for long but that he usually enjoyed taking it out in dry and sunny weather.
Ms Wilson told the inquest that she was taking herself and six passengers to the Corner Cupboard pub, on Hillgate, for New Year's Eve on the night of the crash.
She said she had dropped her son off at his dad's before going to her sister's house to prepare for the big night, and on to her niece's to have her hair and make-up done.
Asked if she had consumed anything before driving to the pub, Ms Wilson told the court she had just over half a bottle of Budweiser - as well as 'about three or four drags' of a cannabis joint 10 minutes before getting into the car.
Describing the moments before the crash, the BMW driver said she slowed down on the A6 at the junction with Longshut Lane to turn right.
Ms Wilson said the traffic lights were on green, although the filter light was not on, and she didn't come to a complete stop as she prepared to turn in a gap of oncoming traffic.
She said: "I went into the right-hand lane to turn right. I must have been doing 20 to 30mph - normal.
"I approached the junction to turn right, a car passed. I looked at the road and there were a couple of cars coming from the opposite direction.
"I noticed a bike coming down the road. My brother-in-law was sat beside me, I said 'does that look like it's speeding?'.
"I took the corner and the next minute that's when it happened."
Ms Wilson told court she was unable to tell what speed Mr Waterworth was doing and couldn't hear the bike as there was chatter in the back of the car, but she did see his headlight approaching.
Mr Waterworth's bike hit the passenger side of the BMW, and PC Martin Davies, forensic collision reconstruction officer, said both vehicles were damaged but not beyond repair.
He told court police had been alerted to the crash at 7.50pm and when he arrived, the vehicles were still at the junction.
Officers examined CCTV footage from the area and were able to calculate that Mr Waterworth was travelling at an estimated 58mph in a 30mph zone.
However, PC Davies said that the actual maximum speed would have been higher, as this figure included a short period where Mr Waterworth was braking before hitting the BMW.
He told court that Ms Wilson would have struggled to tell the bike was travelling so fast - and questioned whether she thought she asked her brother-in-law about it when reconstructing the events in her head.
He added: "From the point that the BMW made the turn, there would have been time to go through the junction if the motorbike had been travelling at 30."
A toxicology report also found traces of alcohol and cocaine in Mr Waterworth's system.
Sgt Philip Shaw told the court that Ms Wilson had been impaired by cannabis use, and failed a number of tests following the crash.
The court heard that the CPS was handed a file of evidence to consider a charge of death by driving without due care or attention while under influence of cannabis, but prosecutors ruled that no further action should take place.
Ms Wilson, 53, of Somers Road, North Reddish, pleaded guilty to drug driving at Stockport Magistrates' Court on October 5 last year.
She was banned from driving for 12 months, fined £150, and ordered to pay £85 costs and a £32 victim surcharge.
Giving his verdict, coroner Chris Morris told Mr Waterworth's family there were 'no winners at all in this tragic situation'.
He said: "Mr Waterworth was a kind, caring, fun-loving man who was highly regarded. He had everything to live for and some very exciting opportunities ahead of him.
"Tragically, he was killed as a result of injuries sustained in a road traffic collision on the evening of December 31, 2019."
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