Bikers video 140km/h street race – police
TWO “mature age” motorcyclists will have their machines confiscated after they were allegedly caught street racing – recording their journey on a bike-mounted video camera – on the Pacific Highway at Cowan, north of Sydney.
Police say the pair, aged 47 and 49, was clocked riding side-by-side at 140km/h in an 80km/h zone about 3:45pm yesterday (Saturday).
Highway Patrol officers also seized a video camera which was found fitted and recording on one of the motorcycles.
A viewing of that vision showed the bikes travelling for more than 2km along winding roads at an average speed of 128km/h, police say.
Police arrested both drivers and charged them with street racing, dangerous driving and exceeding the speed limit by more than 45km/h.
Their licences were suspended and police will issue a notice to confiscate both bikes.
The pair is due to appear at Hornsby Local Court next month.
Traffic and Highway Patrol Operations Manager, Superintendent Stuart Smith, says the supposed “mature” age of the two men involved is of major concern to police.
“This type of idiotic behaviour is normally the domain of the young, so it’s extremely worrying to see people with years of driving experience act in this manner,” he says in a statement.
“While they felt the right to use the road as a playground, their actions placed their own lives and those of every other motorist at grave risk.”
Meanwhile, police on the Far-North Coast have charged a motorcyclist after he led them on a high-speed pursuit at Sleepy Hollow, north of Byron Bay.
The rider was clocked at speeds of up to 190km/h in a sign-posted 100km/h zone on the Pacific Highway just after 3:15pm Friday, police say.
Highway Patrol officers eventually stopped the motorcyclist near the Byron Bay exit.
The 26-year-old man allegedly told police he was “just having some fun” after buying the motorcycle in Brisbane two hours earlier.
He will appear in Byron Bay Local Court next month charged with speed/manner dangerous/not stop for police and exceed speed limit by more than 45km/h.
His licence was also suspended.
Superintendent Smith says such acts are extremely dangerous.
“This rider was not only putting himself in grave danger but posing a risk to everyone else who was on that road at the time,” he says.
“Had police not stopped the motorcycle when they did, this story could have had a very different and tragic ending.
“Those motorists who choose to flout the road rules will continue to be targeted by police to ensure the safety of all road users,” Superintendent Smith says.
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