Bradley John Spark officially admits to beating and killing cyclist David Thomson

Ann Bridgewater starts each of her days the same way – kissing a photo of her dead husband and wishing she could kiss him in person.

Beloved grandfather David Thomson, 60, died on October 21 last year after a car hit his bike on La Trobe Street in Delacombe, near Ballarat.

The driver, 40-year-old Bradley John Spark, went on the wrong side of the road, leaving Thomson for dead, sped back to his home and later agreed to hide his damaged vehicle in a paddock.

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On Friday, Spark, who initially denied any involvement in the crash, officially admitted to hitting Thomson and fleeing the scene.

He pleaded guilty to dangerous driving resulting in death, failing to stop at the scene of the accident and failing to provide assistance to Thomson.

Thomson’s family spoke about their heartache and anger on Friday, and his wife said she and her husband did it all together, side by side.

They had plans to travel overseas and many dreams for their retirement. She felt “robbed” after waiting 45 years to find the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.

Bridgewater cried herself to sleep most nights, she said.

“Death changes everything. It’s just not fun like it used to be. I hate it,” she told Victoria District Court in a victim impact statement.

“I wish I had the chance to hold him so he’s not alone.”

Bridgewater said she might have forgiven Spark one day if he stopped helping her husband, but she couldn’t because that never happened.

Thomson’s son, Dylan Thomson, condemned Spark as a “spineless” perpetrator who committed an unforgivable crime. His father was the most important and influential person in his life, he said.

“He was taken from us in a way you wouldn’t wish on anyone,” he said.

Thomson was thrown about 21 meters when Spark’s limousine hit him. His friends recalled driving past the scene of the accident without knowing it was their buddy.

His daughter, Sophie Thomson, is a police officer and recalled being at her father’s crime scene. She said she would never forget seeing him on the street under a white sheet.

She encouraged the court to consider how often the word “dad” appears on the radio, for example. “I get reminded almost every hour that I don’t have a father anymore,” she said.

For Sophie, that meant no one would walk her down the aisle at her wedding or chase her future children around.

Spark accepted he would serve a sizable prison sentence, his attorney Christopher Carr said.

He was paroled a few months before the crash and found the enforced stability and abstinence was best for him, but he reconnected with people he’d left behind after a friend took his own life.

Carr said Spark felt remorse for his actions and was heartbroken by statements about the impact of the victims.

Spark was disqualified from driving at the time of the accident and the Mitsubishi he was driving was not registered.

He is awaiting sentencing in November this year.