"Shakey" took Taylor Rose, 10, and Ashley Hook for a lap of the circuit at Brands Hatch

by Hayley Robinson

Superbike champion Shane "Shakey" Byrne has taken steps to resolve a boot saga.

The Sittingbourne motorcyclist caused a scramble between fans when he hurled his footwear into the Brands Hatch crowd after securing the British title on October 14.

Footage of the moment showed a youngster near to where the boot had landed holding his face, visibly upset.

It resulted in an internet appeal to identify the lad following incorrect claims a man had stolen the boot from him.

Shane said he had spoken to British Superbikes and agreed he would meet up with the boy and take him for a lap around Brands Hatch.

As a result, the father of the boy - Taylor Rose - came forward as did the man wrongly accused of taking the trophy, Ashley Hook. He denied any wrongdoing and claimed he had received death threats following the incident.

To show there was no hard feelings, Shane invited both Taylor and Ashley to Brands Hatch today to ride around the circuit in one of the official championship Nissan GT-R safety cars.

Taylor, 10, from Horley, said: "Shakey is my favourite rider and I watch his races so this was really cool. I've taken photos to show my friends. We went really fast it was so cool and I am really happy."

Ashley said: "I would never have taken the boot from a child, so it has been good for us today to all meet. Together we have had a good day with Shakey and we can now put it behind us."

Shane said: "After the final race it seemed to be a bit of a pickle. I saw on Twitter that an alleged incident happened.

"As it turns out it was blown out of proportion and poor Ashley was wrongly accused but it has been great to meet both Taylor and Ashley and for us all to have a good day at Brands Hatch. We all feel that ‘boot gate’ is boxed off now. I feel happy that we have been able to have a happy ending."