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 BBC Scotland's Isabel Fraser"It was the second highest speed recorded on Scotland's roads"   real 28k  |
Motorway speeder hit 142mph
A sports car from the BMW M Roadster series |
A businessman who drove his £45,000 BMW sports car at 142mph has escaped a jail sentence and a fine, despite previously having been banned three times.
Mark Kerslake was driving so fast that a police traffic car was unable to keep up with him. The speed is believed to be the second highest ever clocked by a car on Scotland's roads.
 It is so smooth and quiet you don't notice what speed you are doing  |
| Mark Kerslake |
He admitted driving dangerously in the M series convertible between Edinburgh and Perth.
Kerslake, 31, was ordered to do 240 hours community service.
Police road block
He had left Edinburgh on at 8pm on 2 May in an attempt to reach Pitlochry, 80 miles away, an hour later.
Fiscal depute Iain Smith said the BMW - which has a limiter to prevent it going over 155 mph - was spotted by a patrol on the M90 on 2 May.
Mark Kerslake: Escaped jail |
He was going so fast a road block had to be set up outside Perth to stop him.
The officers pursued him for more than 13 miles with their lights flashing until Kerslake finally slowed down and stopped.
During the chase he overtook 15 cars on the busy motorway and passed several junctions in his N-reg car.
Police vehicle lagged behind
Solicitor Peter Winning said: "The police followed the accused's vehicle, but their vehicle was not fast enough. The police car was in sight, but some distance behind.
"As soon as he was made aware of the police, with the vehicles ahead of him, he pulled off the road."
Kerslake said: "The police told me that I was going 10 miles an hour faster than the top speed their car could do.
You displayed a complete and selfish disregard for other road users who had the misfortune to be near you |
| Sheriff Fiona Reith |
"I knew I was speeding, but I was really anxious to get there for 9pm and I knew I was going to be late."
Kerslake, who employees 33 people in three pubs in Edinburgh, said: "It is so smooth and quiet you don't notice what speed you are doing. The police told me they were going to use a Stinger to stop me."
Inside the Roadster |
She said: "You have a bad record in relation to driving offences. It concerns me that when you were driving on this occasion it was indicating a determination to continue with bad driving and that's an aggravating factor.
"You displayed a complete and selfish disregard for other road users who had the misfortune to be near you.
"You don't appear to have learned from your previous convictions. Public roads are not private racing tracks for speeding selfish drivers."
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See also: |
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26 Nov 99Â |Â UK Politics |
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Fury at speeding climbdown |
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19 Oct 99Â |Â UK |
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Flash device ignites speed debate |
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30 Sep 99Â |Â UK |
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Speeding zero tolerance 'unworkable' |
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13 Oct 99Â |Â UK |
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Peugeot rapped over 'speeding' ads |
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Internet links: |
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The Scottish Court Service |
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BMW |
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Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents - road safety |
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