A MOTORIST has been convicted of careless driving at Selkirk Sheriff Court after admitting giving a cyclist a tow at 30-miles-per-hour.

Adam Hurst, who is 22, allowed his brother to hold onto the front nearside window while he was riding his bike.

He gave him a tow at 30mph on the A72 road at the Glentress mountain bike centre near Peebles on September 24.

Hurst of Abbey Drive, Huddersfield, was originally charged with dangerous driving but pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of careless driving.

Procurator fiscal Graham Fraser told Selkirk Sheriff Court how two people travelling along the A72 noticed Hurst driving a Volkswagen Polo with the hazard lights on and towing a cyclist.

They estimated he would have been travelling at 30mph at the time.

Mr Fraser said: "The cyclist was hanging onto the window and pulled in at Glentress. "The matter was then reported to the police."

Hurst's lawyer said the brothers did not realise they were committing an offence when they decided to give the bike a tow from Peebles Hotel Hydro to Glentress.

The court was told Hurst currently works as a buyer for an engineering company and is training to become a pilot.

Sheriff Euan Edment said: "Things could have gone completely wrong. "It was a dangerous thing to have undertaken."

The first offender was fined £375 and had his licence endorsed with five penalty points.