Boy racers hit man on anniversary of Johnathan Lim's death in car crash last year

The boy racers who sent a man flying over their bonnet at the beach on Sunday were in the midst of a memorial to a loved one who died in a car crash last year.

Last year 18-year-old Johnathan Lim was killed in a Waiuku crash when his car allegedly crossed the centre line and hit another vehicle. The people in the other vehicle are angry to see Lim's family and friends continue to remember him with "dangerous behaviour".

In dramatic footage posted to Facebook - since taken down - a man with a pole can be seen approaching a white car, one of two doing burnouts and skids on Karioitahi Beach at about 2pm on Sunday.

However, instead of stopping, the cars ploughs into the man, sending him toppling over the bonnet and onto the windshield. He is carried a few metres down the beach before the car stops.

The man in the blue shirt is able to stand up, and appears to confront the driver. But the driver picks up the pole, before getting back into this car and taking off - pursued by the man in the four-wheel drive.

Emma Thornton had to take seven weeks off work last year after she was knocked out for 10 minutes, suffered a broken thumb and brain injury in the crash that killed Lim on Awhitu Rd. She was one of the two people with serious injuries, the passenger in the other car had critical injuries and Lim, who was driving, died at the scene.

Thornton, 19, said Lim's family were big into cars and they had done burnouts on the road they crashed on after the Lim's funeral last year.

This Sunday was the anniversary of the crash.

"I think it was their way of paying respect to him. I think that's probably what they are getting at because they did it after the funeral and I think they've done it again because there are fresh marks around the road we crashed," Thornton told the Herald.

"We don't understand if they lost their friend or brother to the same thing [dangerous driving] why do they keep doing it?

"It could have easily ended a lot worse. We could have had a death in my car. It's frustrating for us three to see it happening again."

Thornton was in another crash as a passenger three months later and lost her best friend. She now keeps an eagle eye on any driver to ensure they don't cross the centre line.

Thornton was worried that after the unruly behaviour police might ban all vehicles from Karioitahi Beach, which would "ruin it for everyone".