Maybe It's Not Just Oregon...

[snowmonkey]

The Hartford Courant recently had an article about high-speed motorcycle incidents. The opening paragraph sets the tone:

Motorcyclists who tear through traffic in a blur of metal and screaming engines are nothing new. The riders are usually young and not thinking about the chance of shredding themselves along a highway guardrail.

The article goes on to detail several incidents of high-speed motorcycle riding on public roads including:

A 22-year-old man on a 2005 Suzuki sport bike going 150 mph in Florida

20-year-old on a Yamaha R6 at 155 mph in Louisiana

Sam Tilley's 999-cc, 126-hp Honda RC51doing 205 in Minnesota

Skeptics said that even tweaked to maximum output, Sam Tilley's 999-cc, 126-hp Honda RC51 could never get close to that speed. But police and prosecutors maintained that an air patrol trooper clocked the bike four separate times on Sept. 18, 2004, and each marking was fairly consistent.

The world land speed record - set in a car, by the way - is 763 mph

 

[odot]

The air patrol man must have been monitoring his own speed, then. If logic serves me correctly. Hold on....let me sharpen my ears.

 

[Fallen Jim Rides again]

The air patrol man must have been monitoring his own speed, then. If logic serves me correctly. Hold on....let me sharpen my ears.

I don't believe that any civilian helicopter in the world is capable of 200mph. In fact damn few military helicopters can do that, IIRC.

 

[sparky3008]

I just got in from being stopped by a State Trooper doing 78 in a 55.

I was not in the fast lane and was right next to a Semi.

I got off with a warning because I have a clean record and a Class A.

After leaving the spot he stopped me I stayed right with traffic again and the average speed was indeed 70mph. So if common sense is even part of our country anymore that would mean if I did the speed limit I would be doing 15mph below the average which would be like someone doing 40mph in a 55 if people actually did 55.

Now I know when he stopped me I had all kinds of cars around me but no one was in the fast lane so I was the easy target. :angry:

I really have no reason to be angry as I did just get a warning and it could have been much worse. However, I wasn't being reckless and sometimes to me traffic tickets being nothing more than revenue really can get to you when you get hit with increased insurance just to pay the state more money...

 

[Woodstock]

I wonder if there are any lawyers looking at that RC51 reading to discredit the entire "speed measured from airplane" method.

 

[sparky3008]

RC51 goes 205mph

 

[exskibum]

Well, regarding the RC51, you gotta wonder how much of that report is true, or which parts, if any. Unless that RC51 has had some SERIOUS aerodynamic work done on it, it's hard to imagine how less than 130 HP is near enough to push it past 200mph. Those last 20 mph or so reported there would require a lot of additional horsepower to overcome the exponentially increasing aerodynamic drag at those speeds.

Edit to add: Looks like Sparky's link does a lot better job of debunking it than the more limited skepticism off the top of my head.

 

[sparky3008]

Well, regarding the RC51, you gotta wonder how much of that report is true, or which parts, if any.  Unless that RC51 has had some SERIOUS aerodynamic work done on it, it's hard to imagine how less than 130 HP is near enough to push it past 200mph.  Those last 20 mph or so reported there would require a lot of additional horsepower to overcome the exponentially increasing aerodynamic drag at those speeds.

Did you read my link?

It says the hellicopter pilot was using a stop watch method.

That means just a small delay in the motorcycle actually passing the 1/4 mile mark and the pilot clicking the watch would result in a huge difference between 186 and 205mph.

To use this method in court to me is rediculous.

Even Radar has to be straight on to be accurate.

Was this guy speeding, yes.

Is the penalty for doing 18x that much different than doing 205? Probably not.

His license was already suspended or lapsed or something.

Rereading the article his license was expired...

 

[exskibum]

Did you read my link?

Only after I posted and the thread reloaded. I typically search for interesting posts from the "View New Posts" feature and open several tabs, sometimes from this and other web sites. I don't always remember how long it's been open and refresh to see the new posts in a thread before I read. So, no, when I responded, I had not read your link, since I must've had this tab open a while. Indeed, when I edited, I didn't see your latest (the post I'm responding to here).

Maybe I shouldn't try to surf in between work efforts, or should be more meticulous with my non work computer efforts.

Edit re: 2 issues:

First, I'll stand by the motorcycle related skepticism on the aerodynamic drag and HP vs. MPH observation; the linked article briefly touches on that as well.

Second, it's hard to imagine a situation where a lawyer would try THIS high end inaccuracy issue to the court. As mentioned, he was exceeding the speed limit by so much that the fact of his speeding is a virtual certainty, a few MPH isn't likely to make much of a difference in penalty, the cost of experts to testify on this one issue is too high to be feasible in light of the likely small difference in result, and it probably would get pled out at some reduced mileage in chambers with the judge and D.A.

 

[throttlejockeyTJ]

That 205 went to court. Evidence was presented that that speed was unatainable. He still had a substancial ticket. TJ

 

[exskibum]

That 205 went to court. Evidence was presented that that speed was unatainable. He still had a substancial ticket. TJ

HAR!!! Of course!!

Probably only submitted documents reporting capabilities of the bike. (Keeping in mind this was only a traffic case.) A lawyer was undoubtedly needed for that high a performance award, and it's likely that the assigned Deputy D.A. was "standing on principle" in refusing to make any reasonable deal. Conviction records are a BIG deal to new deputies D.A. (almost always who is on these calendars in any decent sized jurisdiction), and there wasn't much chance of him not getting that conviction (even if at a reduced speed), plus he got some trial experience in a case that was hardly crucial to win from the perspective of putting a hardened criminal back on the street if acquitted.