A BIKER has been banned from the roads for six months after North Yorkshire Police clocked him doing 144 mph on the A63 near South Milford early on Sunday August 4.

Joiner Gary Dobson now faces the loss of his income, his business and his home because he can no longer transport his tools to his place of work and he would be unable to drive to help his wife, who has health problems, his solicitor Priscilla Addo-Quage told Selby magistrates.

Dobson’s apprentice could also lose his job. Senior magistrate Ian Franks told Dobson: “You need to know all these things are your fault for what you did.”

He and his colleagues then passed a six-month driving ban, plus a £500 fine, plus a £50 victim surcharge, plus £45 prosecution costs.

It was the highest speed recorded by North Yorkshire Police’s new mobile safety camera unit.

Dobson, 40, of Old Lee Bank, Halifax, pleaded guilty to speeding. Ms Addo-Quage said it was only Dobson’s second time on the motorcycle. He chose a straight empty stretch of road to see how fast it could go. 

Inspector Dave Brown of North Yorkshire Police’s Strategic Roads Policing Group, said: “Mr Dobson has shown shocking disregard for his own safety and that of other road users.

“He should consider himself lucky to be only facing a driving ban and a hole in his bank balance and not something much more serious.

“Hopefully the ban will give him time to reflect on his actions and also send a clear warning to others of what faces them if they believe the law does not apply to them.

“The safety camera has proved to be a very successful tool in influencing driver behaviour and it will continue to be deployed on roads where we know speeding is an issue. The simple answer is if you don’t speed, you won’t be caught.”