Bob Butt fails breathalyzer – suspended and fined

Harness racing driver Bob Butt has been stood down from driving today at the Reefton meeting after failing to pass an alcohol breathalyzer test.

He was fined $1,000 and stood down until the 10th of April 2016 by the Judicial Control Authority.

This means he will be unable to take the drive on Conan Bridge in the New Zealand Trotting Derby at Addington at the Easter meeting on April 8th.

Bob was significantly over the threshold of 100mg when tested before todays meeting.

Bob told Harnesslink earlier today when we were speaking to him at Reefton that he was stunned by the reading as he hadn't had a late night and had eaten a big tea and breakfast and felt in great shape leading into today's meeting and certainly did not consider that he was affected by the alcohol he had drunk the previous night.

Harnesslink interviewed Bob immediately after his positive test and can state emphatically that he certainly did not show any signs of being under the influence of Alcohol when we spoke to him.

However the machine said otherwise and hence the suspension and penalty.

However the fact that the suspension covers the period where Bob Butt would have driven in a Group 1 which is not something Bob has done very often seems intended to send a message to the wider industry about drinking and would seem in our view a touch excessive because of that.

Bob Butt accepts that a fine and suspension are appropriate in this case but feels that the length of the suspension is longer than justified and is in discussions with his representatives within the industry to see if he may appeal the length of that suspension.

Harnesslink Media