"But officer, my speedometer is broken"
Lando 
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."
_
Patrol Officer: "Do you know why I pulled you over?"
Wel, I had the "informal" record for the fastest speeding ticket in NJ (143mph), but that was back in the 80's, so I don't know if a bigger fool has yet to come along and capture the honor.
I once called 911 when driving home because of a group of kids on bikes riding extremely dangerously and nearly causing a couple of wrecks. The 911 operator told me "We can't pursue motorcycles. There is nothing we can do."
BS
Unless there was some serious motor work done on that bike, it was not doing 205. Maybe 190 give or take but not 205.
WHOOAA!
Moth
Windshield.
"But officer, my speedometer is broken"
Lando
Or trooper Loney's math.
What could he wear, a space capsule?
Well 190 is plenty fast for me!
There's no protective gear that can help one iota in a 205 mph motorcycle crash.
He was probably only doing 160, and the cops were just trying to make quota.
Hooligan List PING!
A Suzuki Hayabusa, a 1300cc Sport Bike, can hit 200mph out of the box. Sport bikes today are incredible machines. Some times all you have to do is change the sprockets to increase top speed.
It's just hard for me to imagine controlling a bike with the wind on you at that speed. (I'm no bike rider).
LOL. Reminds me of a time I was pulled over unfortunately doing over 100MPH. The officer asked me if I knew how fast I was going. I told him I thought I might have been going a little over 55 MPH. He got a kick out of that.
It seems there are alot of instances where there is nothing they can do. :(
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