Partner clips chase speedster's wings

A man who reached speeds of 170km/h on his motorbike while escaping police was made to sell it by his partner after the incident.

Police clocked Haydn Martin Griffiths going 124km/h on State Highway 3 on June 14 and tried to pull him over.

The Whanganui District Court heard this week that Griffiths, 50, sped away at about 150km/h and crossed solid yellow lines as he led police on a chase.

Police abandoned pursuit when he reached 170km/h, police prosecutor Sergeant Drew Morrison said.

A second patrol picked up the chase and Griffiths pulled over.

He told police he thought if he accelerated away they would back off.

Defence lawyer Raukawa Simon said Griffiths' partner had made him sell his motorbike.

"He's deeply ashamed of what happened," Ms Simon said, describing her client's actions as "a mid-life crisis".

"He just did it, made the wrong choice, endangering himself and the driving public."

Judge Stephanie Edwards said it was surprising Griffiths was not charged with more than failing to stop.

"When you're riding the motorbike, the person you put in danger driving that way is yourself," she said. "You're fortunate that you didn't have a serious accident."

She fined him $750, with court costs of $130, and disqualified him from driving for three months.