THEY seem to be everywhere these days and it is easy to simply drive by and barely notice those poignant little roadside shrines to a much-missed crash victim.

Often erected by a mourning family at the scene of the accident itself, they are usually a well-kept, flower-filled splash of colour along an otherwise nondescript verge.

But as we pass on by, our minds filled with our own issues, it is worth remembering that to someone, somewhere, those memorials are a real part of their lives.

For many they are part of the grieving process after a searing loss and it could be even argued they are a road safety reminder for each and every motorist that passes by.

So Spectator’s heart goes out to the family of Darlington motorcyclist Mark Chadfield, who set up a planter to his memory on the A684 in Wensleydale after he died there at the age of 34 in 2010.

Brainless vandals attacked the little shrine, dumping the planter behind a wall and leaving the still-mourning family devastated.

The small memorial has now been restored but the damage has still been done.

On a lighter note, it may seem bizarre that a group of Brazilian Olympian bobsleighers are training on relatively flat ground near Bedale while the rest of the world’s athletes are fighting it out for medals in a particularly hilly part of Brazil.

But Spectator understands there’s a lot of common sense in going to Sir Bruce Ropner’s track at Camp Hill, which may not look much, but has proved to be among the best summer training facilities, according to former world champion Nicola Minichiello.

Best of luck to the Brazilians.