Dairy farmer, 24, inspired by Jeremy Clarkson’s Diddly Squat farm is caught drunk at the wheel of his BMW after downing lager to celebrate launch of his new milkshake business
- Jack Allwood, 24, was celebrating the launch of his business ‘Mootrition’
- But he was caught drunk at the wheel of his BMW at 2am
A university graduate who was inspired to start dairy farming by Jeremy Clarkson was caught drunk at the wheel of his BMW at 2am when he was out celebrating the launch of his new business.
Jack Allwood was stopped by the police when they saw him ‘driving all over he road’ in his BMW.
The 24 year old had downed four pints of lager that night in celebration of launching his new ‘healthy’ milkshake business, Mootrition, the next day.
He was planning to supply different flavoured milkshakes made fresh from his cows at his family’s farm in Huntington village, near the cathedral city of Chester.
But after he was caught drink driving at one and a half times the alcohol limit in his 320i – which has a price range of £39,605 to £58,925 – he delayed the launch.
Jack Allwood had downed four pints of lager to celebrate the launch of his new business Mootrition when he was caught drunk at the wheel
Allwood, whose family have farmed at Huntington Hall Farm for four generations and for over 100 years, had just gone public about his new business
Allwood was fined £400 at Chester magistrates court after he pleaded guilty to driving with excess alcohol.
READ MORE – Motorist drives down pavement to skip traffic
He will pay a victim surcharge of £280 and has been banned from driving for 14 months.
Allwood, whose family have farmed at Huntington Hall Farm for four generations and for over 100 years, had just gone public about his new business.
Inspired by watching Jeremy Clarkson’s Farm on TV, the graduate wanted to follow in his footsteps and improve the marketing of the industry.
He told Cheshire Live: ‘I personally think that milk is looked upon poorly and the health benefits haven’t been marketed well since I’ve been alive.
‘The only positive image I have seen in terms of marketing of farmers and farming in my life is Clarkson’s Farm on TV and he’s not even a farmer.
‘I just want to see if I can build a brand and a successful business and educate people as to how milk is produced.’
After studying agriculture at university, Allwood planned to follow in his family’s footsteps and begin dairy farming
But at 2.20am on August 31, officers in an unmarked vehicle caught up with Allwood in his BMW on Sandy Lane in Chester, three miles from the farm.
Prosecutor Laura Davig said: ‘They received information of a black BMW series 3 which was described as driving all over the road.
‘Officers requested the defendant to pull over which he did. Officers spoke with the defendant and noticed that he smelt of intoxicants.
‘He was asked if he had been drinking, he said that he had consumed around four pints earlier in the evening.
‘Due to this, a roadside breath test was requested which the defendant failed.
‘He was arrested and conveyed to the custody suite where an evidential breath test was taken. The defendant has no previous convictions.’
READ MORE – Parents of boy who died when a truck landed on their car sue driver
Tests showed Allwood had 48 micrograms of alcohol in 100 milliliters of breath, the legal limit being 35mg.
In mitigation, defence lawyer Michael Gray said: ‘This is the first time that Mr Allwood has been before the court, or ever been in trouble in his life.. He comes from a farming background.
‘You can see that he has studied agriculture at university. He has just started up a business in agriculture now.
‘Which means that as he tried to get it off the ground he has set himself back.
‘He is going to be off the road. Much of what he does involves driving around the farms and the locality.
‘In relation to this incident itself, on the day he had some drinks, he had something to eat, and that was it.
‘He had not intended to drive anywhere. He got a call from a friend in Chester who was in distress, so he decided to go and help.
‘He didn’t think at all about how much he had in terms of drink and he felt fine driving. He does not accept driving around all over the road.
‘He was looking for his friend and trying to get the attention of his friend who he had come to help.
‘He knows that he is going to be disqualified. There are going to be repercussions for his business but these are issues that he will have to overcome.
‘He apologises for what has taken place. He thought he was OK to drive, he clearly was not.’
Allwood was offered a place on a drink drive awareness course which will reduce his ban by a quarter.
JP Francis Geekie warned him not to risk driving while disqualified and added: ‘I know how tempting that must be working on a farm, do not get on the road.
‘If you get caught, even for a very short distance, particularly if you have an accident, it’s highly likely that you will go to prison.’
Source: Read Full Article