ALED Jenkins, who has died at the age of 52 in a motorcycle accident, was a popular dentist and a keen biker with a big heart.

Dozens of tributes have been left on a Facebook page for Gloucestershire Bikers Nite, which Aled, from Bath Road, Stonehouse, often used to arrange days out with fellow motorcyclists.

Aled, who died in an accident on Sunday, October 2 near Pershore, Worcestershire while riding his prized Harley-Davidson motorcycle - formerly owned by US daredevil Evel Knievel - was known as a friendly, lively character.

The father of one was involved in a collision with an Audi A4.

Earlier in the day he had met friends for lunch at The Anchor Inn at Fladbury near Evesham before they went their separate ways.

Steve Bowden, from Cheltenham, who was present at the lunch, described what had happened as a tragic loss and said Aled was a cautious rider.

"That was the last time we saw him," said Steve, who portrayed Aled as a happy man who never had a bad word to say about anybody.

Aled, who had a daughter called Ayra Deighton, was passionate about bikes and owned around 75 motorcycles which he kept at various locations. His favourite was a Honda Valkyrie which he bought at the Brighton Burn Up, an annual biker reunion.

"You never knew which bike he would turn up on, it was always a surprise," said Cathy Ford, from Pershore, who often joined Aled on rides.

Writing on Facebook, Adam Gardner, son of Aled’s partner Sarah Ely, said: "Aled was a larger than life character and a significant part of my life as he bought me my first motorbike.

"He was a great man, great biker and an absolutely fantastic dentist. He was so skilled and made times under the drill a comfortable experience for us all."

Aled worked at the Dental Care Centre in Grafton Road, Gloucester and one of his patients, Sharon Smith, also paid tribute on Facebook, saying: "Aled was a brilliant dentist who put us at ease with his sense of humour and endless topics of conversation.

"He was a fantastic man and we never felt like we were 'just his patients', we felt like friends."

On Sunday, friends and family members gathered at the scene of the accident to hold a minute’s silence and lay flowers.