Turn of which century, mate?
Posted on 09/21/2004 9:43:55 AM PDT by Lijahsbubbe
WABASHA (AP) - With a State Patrol airplane overhead, a Stillwater motorcyclist hit the throttle and possibly set the informal record for the fastest speeding ticket in Minnesota history: 205 mph.
On Saturday afternoon, State Patrol pilot Al Loney was flying near Wabasha, in southeastern Minnesota on the Wisconsin border, watching two motorcyclists racing along U.S. Highway 61.
When one of the riders shot forward, Loney was ready with his stopwatch. He clicked it once when the motorcycle reached a white marker on the road and again a quarter-mile later. The watch read 4.39 seconds, which Loney calculated to be 205 mph.
"I was in total disbelief," Loney told the St. Paul Pioneer Press for Tuesday's editions. "I had to double-check my watch because in 27 years I'd never seen anything move that fast."
Several law enforcement sources told the newspaper that, although no official records are kept, it was probably the fastest ticket ever written in the state.
After about three-quarters of a mile, the biker slowed to about 100 mph and let the other cycle catch up. By then Loney had radioed ahead to another state trooper, who pulled the two over soon afterward.
The State Patrol officer arrested the faster rider, 20-year-old Stillwater resident Samuel Armstrong Tilley, for reckless driving, driving without a motorcycle license - and driving 140 miles per hour over the posted speed limit of 65 mph.
A search of speeding tickets written by state troopers, who patrol most of the state's highways, between 1990 and February 2004 shows the next fastest ticket was for 150 mph in 1994 in Lake of the Woods County.
Tilley did not return calls from the newspaper to his home Monday. A working number for him could not immediately be found by The Associated Press on Tuesday.
Only a handful of exotic sports cars can reach 200 mph, but many high-performance motorcycles can top 175 mph. With minor modifications, they can hit 200 mph. Tilley was riding a Honda 1000, Loney said.
Kathy Swanson of the state Office of Traffic Safety said unless Tilley was wearing the kind of protective gear professional motorcycle racers wear, he was courting death at 200 mph.
"I'm not entirely sure what would happen if you crashed at 200 miles per hour," Swanson said. "But it wouldn't be pretty, that's for sure."
_
This is true. The Sportster engine was a hand grenade. In 1985, S&S cycle upped the single engine record to 276.5mph using a single big twin. Rice powered speed record holders always have to use multiple engines. Harley's can pull their own weight.
P.S. Apologies for the fightin' words.
Buck
I had similar feelings as an enlisted tank crewman in Germany in the 1960s, knowing that if the Warsaw Pact came rolling over the hill, we'd be facing them at odds of about 30 of them to each of ours.
But I was in good company, and it did not come to that.
General Patton advises that we should not take counsel of our fears. Works for me.
....actually...my preference is for "pasta burners".....hehehee
Ducati ... hmmmmm
Turn of which century, mate?
Yup...I sold my Duck....bought an Aprilia....fun bike...but it's no duck....so back to a duck for next year.
I had 65,000 miles on my last one...I should have never sold it. :( What a fool I was.
I agree. Turbulence from the license plate and taillight is enough to rob the bike of 5-10 mph over 160mph.
*****
To: taxed2death
Ducati ... hmmmmm
You're getting there, fellers.... Vincati
That bike was way ahead of its time....
SWEEEEEEEEEEEEEETTTTTTTTT.
When the Hayabusa came out it would do in the 190's right off the showroom floor. I think I still have the magazines with the articles. From what I understand, the europeans (especially car makers) were upset with the hayabusa and it became pc and law that 300Kph (186 mph) should be the limit. Since then, the bike makers seem to be electronically limiting('neutered' as someone wrote) to 186mph. Those early hayabusas could be slightly modded to add the 5 to 10 mph to break 200. That was 5 years ago in '99, and the newer bikes are made even better now. My 'brag': I could top out my '97 yzf1000(the year before the r1) over 170. I also remember a bike(zx12) that had 2 nitros bottles on it. I'll bet it could break 200, and the newer 1000's could, with good modding, break 200 also.
Ohio? Don't they have the death penalty for speeding there?
Maybe the guy was going downhill.
There's no physical principle that prevents a motorcycle from going that fast; air resistance can always be overcome if you have enough horses.
But my point about the tailwind was that with a stiff enough breeze, almost anything is possible. Case in point: Here's a claim of a cycle going 207 mph. A BICYCLE, that is.
Maybe it was a Turbo.
A 1000 Honda with a turbo could probably do 200
Sorry, but many of the coppers' radar speed guns give up at speeds beyond 199MPH, eliminating them as helpful if expensive timers.
Besides, I'm much more impressed by bikes that'll hold 100MPH+ for extended periods...like 24 hours. Many of the Gofast Sumvitchi bikes that warm the cockles of their owner's heart in shorty tavern-to-tavern races fall way short when serious over-the-road distances or extended periods of performance are involved.
I couldn't tell you how many big bad Sportster and Hog owners sneered at my girlfriend's little 500cc Honda VFR, but backed off a $100 run bet when I suggested having it extend from Memphis to Dallas and back, right then and there, as the bikes sat.
There's nothing wrong with the Harleys, set up right and properly maintained, and they're still awfully hard to beat for over-the-road work riding double and pushing a windshield. But those who just run them around town, then trailer them to weekend runs are missing a lot of the fun- and get left behind by those to whome such riding is routine.
Can't outrun the cops!!!! :-)~
Yes. And so what? I like my '68, XLCH, kick-start Sportster, I've had it since new. I've had some rice burners, but I sell them off within a year. I've had some "new" Harley's and done the same. My "turn of the Century" Sporty is truly a farm implement. I don't deny it. But it took me through 6 years of the Army and has taken me to the four corners of the US. It still takes me to the magic places I want to go on a motorcycle.None of the others do.
You miss the point. I am not jealous or contemptuous of the rice rockets, just indifferent. I really don't care what the Japanese bikes can do. I have MY motorcycle, and have since '68. I'm a "conservative", ya know.
"A quarter-second error is quite likely, especially in the case of someone who is not used to doing this."
Good point, I wonder if he can get the guy with the stopwatch on the stand and make him repeat it a few times.
First off, the air officer is used to doing this.
Secondly, a tenth of a second error is totally irrelevant at this level. That's about 20 MPH, what does that reduce the ticket to? Only 185 MPH!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.