Hoon 'tried to impress mates' with Teewah Beach burnouts

'Young people who are inexperienced drivers ... showing off to mates generally and more often than not ends in tragedy.'

Trying to "impress his mates” was not enough to excuse an 18-year-old hoon from facing the music in the Gympie court. FILE PHOTO. Picture: Gavin Ricketts

TRYING to "impress his mates" was not enough to excuse an 18-year-old hoon from facing the music for reckless driving on Teewah Beach earlier this month.

The Gympie Magistrates Court heard Cleveland Hank Lade had done burnouts, donuts and spun the wheels of his Nissan wagon up and down the sand dunes and on the beach at Red Canyon at about 5:15pm on August 3.

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One witness recorded the incident and showed it to road police officers as they patrolled the beach the following day, helping officers to trace the car's registration back to Lade, the court heard.

Lade's solicitor asked Magistrate Chris Callaghan not to ban him from driving because it would likely cost him his job as an apprentice diesel mechanic.

She told the court her client had "freely admitted" his actions had been "stupid".

Mr Callaghan called the offending "serious" because of the often fatal consequences of young drivers behaving recklessly.

"Young people who are inexperienced drivers ... showing off to mates generally and more often than not ends in tragedy," Mr Callaghan said.

Lade was fined $350 and had three of the four points on his provisional licence taken off him. A conviction was not recorded.

Originally published as Hoon 'tried to impress mates' with Teewah Beach burnouts