A Tayside businessman clocked at 133mph in a high-powered Aston Martin near Forfar has been fined £1500 and banned from the road for two years.
Sports company boss Anthony Hoddle had only recently got the 4.7 litre car back after repairs to damage caused by a pheasant strike when he was seen by traffic officers speeding down the A90 dual carriageway a few miles south of the town.
Hoddle (42), of Castle View, Lintrathen, admitted driving dangerously and at excessive speed, and overtaking a number of vehicles on the A90 near Gateside on March 20.
Depute fiscal Hannah Kennedy said officers were in a lay-by when they saw Hoddle’s sports car and a laser device gave the 133mph reading. They pursued the car and caught up with Hoddle around 2 miles along the road.
The court was told the traffic officers had their blue lights flashing, but the accused did not seem to be aware that he was being followed.
“The accused had caught up with slower traffic but he also appeared to have seen the officers behind him. He co-operated fully with police.”
She said the police had reached around 120mph in the pursuit.
Despite the capabilites of the Aston Martin, the speed at which Hoddle was travelling could have had catastrophic consequences in the event of something going wrong.
“This speed is almost twice the speed limit. Notwithstanding whether a vehicle is high performance or not, it can go out of control like any other vehicle,” she said. “If any vehicle had pulled into the offside lane the potential for a fatality could have occurred.”
Hoddle’s solicitor Graham Harding said his client had been driving a much smaller and less powerful vehicle while the Aston Martin was being repaired but he realised the seriousness of the high speed and the implications for his driving licence.
On the morning of the offence his client had been travelling from his home to Dundee. Hoddle had been behind a lorry and waited for it to pass other traffic before he then overtook it, the court heard.
“He accepts fully that he should not have been travelling at that speed and has pled guilty to the more serious charge (of dangerous driving),” said Mr Harding. “It was a high-performance vehicle capable of accelerating and decelerating very quickly but he accepts it was dangerous.”
Mr Harding added, “He accepts he has to lose his licence and that will have a serious impact on both his business and personal life.
“He lives in a rural location. His business in based in Perth manufacturing sports equipment sold in the UK and internationally. His job involves him travelling which will also have a difficulty for him not being able to drive when he is abroad on business.
“He employs 14 people who are potentially going to have some difficulty with the fact he is not going to be there as regularly as he would like to be,” the solicitor added.
Sentencing Hoddle, Sheriff Veal commented “This was a very high speed and driving at this level has to be appropriately marked.”