THE PROUD daughters of a Bradford fire chief killed in a motorbike crash last Sunday have told of their hero father and his very special life.

Giovanni Richetta, 52, died on notorious bends on the A65 near Austwick in the Dales just five months after retiring from 30 years with West Yorkshire Fire Service.

And now his daughters have spoken of his exceptional zest for life and how his strong spirit will remain with them forever.

Daniella and Sofia Richetta both rode pillion on their father's many motorbikes from when they were little girls and Sofia, now 22, was on the back of his beloved Moto Guzzi Mille GT classic tourer shortly before Christmas.

"Dad said we could ride on the pillion as soon as we could touch the pedals, so we both cheated and put our walking boots on. We'd have been about seven or eight when we started riding on his bikes," said Daniella, 26.

"We never had any worries, just total confidence in him and everything he did.

"He was meticulous and methodical about everything, always studying every angle and constantly risk assessing.

"And he was never reckless on the bike, he stuck to speed limits and just loved going out for what he called 'a bimble.'

"As children we knew he did a very dangerous job, but we also grew up with the idea he was an invincible hero and we never worried about him coming to any harm."

Sofia recalled how the former watch commander at Fairweather Green gave fire safety talks at their primary school, Low Ash in Wrose.

"We were very proud of him even then.

"When he was working late, he'd always ring to say goodnight when we were little, just to let us know he was safe and he carried on doing that as we grew up.

"But it never worried us that he was in any danger because he was so careful and planned every detail of what he did," said nursery school practitioner Sofia.

She and fiance Matt Stainsby were at their father's house in Wrose on the Friday night before his fateful last ride.

"He was a fantastic cook, we even said his bin smelled delicious," she said.

"Everything he did was extra special, he didn't just play guitar, he also wrote his own songs - and that evening he'd made a huge lasagne for us and was talking about how he couldn't wait to get out on his bike.

"He had lots of plans for the years ahead, going on rallies with the North Pennine Moto Guzzi club and riding across Europe to his Italian home town of Castellino del Biferno, where he'd been thinking of buying a house."

Mr Richetta arrived in Bradford aged three when his parents came to work in the textiles industry.

Daniella, an international sales executive at Carnaud Metalbox in Shipley, said their father, who divorced from their mother Karen Sunderland six years ago, was a constant happy figure in their lives.

"He was always so cheerful, helpful and would brighten any situation.

She and fiancee James Hanson have a 17-month-old son Enzo and she told how her father doted on his first grandchild.

"Dad would babysit for us every Monday night and spend the whole time playing with Enzo on the carpet. It brought him so much joy and I can see his spirit in our son already.

"Dad believed that a person's spirit continues after death and I'm certain that his will always with us and around us.

"We never really talked about death, but he always said he wanted it to be instant and with no suffering, which is a bitter sweet comfort to us.

"He was a very brave man who was always there for us and everyone."

Mr Richetta's funeral will be held at Nab Wood Crematorium at 10.10am on Thursday, February 25.

"We are asking everyone not to wear black and to wear silly socks - like Dad always did," Daniella said.

"One piece of music will be Bob Dylan's Forever Young, which he said contained everything about life he agreed with and wanted us to know."

"He sang it with his guitar to me and Sofia and he also sang it to his grandson," she said.