Well it’s been all over the news about the guy from Banbury who put footage of himself performing wheelies and travelling at high speed on the country roads near his home on You Tube.

Whilst I can see why the strong arm of the law came down on him like a ton of bricks I can’t help questioning why this guy deserved a prison sentence.

Yes the boy done wrong, he broke the speed limit and he did stunts on the road that could have (I say could have) hurt or killed someone had they gone wrong. But he didn’t hurt or kill anyone so again I think the prison sentence is a bit harsh.

As usual bikers are the fall guys, they make good press and all the do-gooders and health and safety freaks can tut tut away at how irresponsible bikers are and we all bathe in the negative reflecting glow. I even heard someone on the radio talking about banning motorcycles altogether, give me strength!

What really gets my goat is that you can watch an episode of Traffic Cops and similar fly on the wall programmes on the TV and time and again you can see criminals (mostly teenagers) who are persistent offenders and known to the police, steeling vehicles and driving recklessly in town and city centres, well in excess of the speed limit, crashing the cars and having near misses with other cars and motorcycles, and what do they get for it? Community service and a driving ban – both of which are guaranteed to stop them committing similar crimes again – NOT.

It really makes my blood boil.

A couple of years back there was a similar programme on the TV, might have even been Traffic Cops, it showed footage of what is known as the Cat and Fiddle run, a renowned biker road. The obvious point of it was to catch bikers doing something they shouldn’t be.

Anyhow they pull over a guy driving a sports car because he goes around a blind bend on the wrong side of the road (i.e. no consideration for anyone travelling in the opposite direction, like a motorcycle – hmmm). A bit of finger-wagging from the cops follows and a ‘don’t do it again sonny’ type attitude, no fine, no court appearance, nothing, zilch.

I’m sure you can probably guess what happened next…..

A biker gets pulled over because he overtakes a car and in the process crosses double-white central lines. The footage clearly showed that whilst he was breaking the letter of the law the road ahead was clear and no one was in danger from his actions.

Sound familiar?

The biker gets a fine, call that justice?

So, it’s OK to speed on the public highway if you are:

• Under 16
• A copper
• A footballer
• An MP
• Jeremy Clarkson

It’s not OK if you are:

• A motorcyclist

In case you’re interested here’s the video that all the fuss is about.

Let me know what you think by leaving a comment below.