Let's face it folks NONE of us should be driving that fast on a public road!
That said, I think that there are a few & I mean FEW, who are capable of driving that fast & do so in a controlled manner.
Is it safe?
NO!!!
I am an experienced driver who has had numerous driving courses & attended performance driving schools.
I drive a $100,000 performance sedan which was designed to run on the Autobahn & I can tell you that even I restrict myself to only 240kmh! (even though it will do 260)
Now, I know - some of you will be sayin;
"Krustee, that's just silly talk!"
Well, let me assure you kiddies that I do not make a habit of traveling that fast, but when you have a fine crafted German driving machine with a copious amount of horsepower & torque, matched to world class handling & aerodynamic design, well it's not easy to keep her below 140kmh.
The question that must be posed here is this;
Should anybody be driving like this?
I'll be honest - NO!
The times I have driven that fast were on roads with very little to no traffic at a time of day which I knew there to be few, if any people driving on it.
If others found themselves in the same circumstances would it be OK for them to try a high speed run like I've done?
NO!
Here's why;
- Skill
- Equipment
- Circumstance
1. You have to be skilled enough to know how to drive at that level of speed.
Just because you can make it go that fast does not mean you know what the hell you are doing!
When you take a professional or performance driving course you learn about vehicle dynamics, momentum, effects of G-force on the tires, suspension & you.
You are taught how to react in many different scenarios.
Your instructors teach you how to control you vehicle in a high speed slide, emergency braking, spin-out on acceleration, rough road surface & water on road control.
If you do not have hours of time under your belt driving at those speeds then you should
never be doing it.
2. Any ding-bat who thinks his or her Jetta, Camry or Chrysler 300 is gonna perform on the same level as a BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar or any other premium performance car is off their rocker!
Trust me folks I've driven close to 200 different cars & trucks & there is a BIG difference between the premium performance vehicles vs your average box on wheels from the big 3, especially at speed!
The design of the vehicle is paramount when you are going to be traveling above 140kmh or 90mph.
THERE IS A DIFFERENCE in design!
3. What about the "what if" factor?
- What If...
you are driving above 140kmh & a deer jumps out in front of you?
How will you react?
Are you trained to react without flipping the car?
Is your car built to handle at that speed?
What about 180kmh?
- What If...
you are traveling at that speed & the tire blows because you were not smart or knowledgeable enough to know that your tires are not rated to travel at that speed?
Do you know what happens when the tire overheats & separates?
Here's a clue - you die!
Some sobering numbers about speed:
Driving at a higher than reasonable speed increases your risk in two ways: it cuts your reaction time and results in more "stored" energy (that must be dissipated in any collision). You should consider if the risks are worth the gain.
This is the science of math and physics—you cannot bend these rules. Each incremental increase in speed reduces your ability to react in time to hazards, because you may be covering distance in less time than it takes to react. Normal reaction time is between .75 second and 1.5 seconds, on average.
Average reaction time distance at 50 mph would be approximately 83 feet.
At 70 mph, it is over 115 feet (over 7 modern car lengths).
These numbers do not include braking distance, just reaction time.
The average difference in reaction-time distance from 50 mph to 70 mph is about 32 feet.
If you were relying solely on braking, any hazard you encounter within the reaction distance is already a problem; you can't react quickly enough to miss it. This is particularly important at night, when darkness restricts your visibility.
Do you know at what distance your headlights will illuminate a hazard? How is your night vision these days? When headlights finally light up a road hazard, it is often too late to avoid it.
Many experts would tell you that even 50 mph is too fast for conditions at night, on any dark roadway.
If you could choose the speed at which to hit a brick wall, assuming that it was a sure thing you were going to hit one, would you choose to hit the wall at 10 mph or at 100 mph? Not hard to decide, is it?
Higher speeds also bring additional accumulated, or stored, energy.
More stored energy means increased crash forces if you hit something. Here's a real-world example; a loaded semi traveling at 60 mph develops about 6.5 MILLION foot-pounds of force. Or, your body, unrestrained in the vehicle, could hit the windshield with about 16,000 foot-pounds of force, should your vehicle hit some immoveable object - like a tree.
A defensive driver chooses a speed matching traffic as closely as possible without exceeding speed limits. If traffic is moving at higher speed than you should go, keep to the right and out of the way. This is often a legal requirement as well, if you are traveling at a speed less than the flow of traffic. Also, don't neglect to maintain the correct following distance.
In the chart below you can see the distance you travel per second at the speed in miles per hour.
As a rule of thumb you can assume, for example, if the speed doubles the reaction distance doubles.
Some sobering numbers & the reason I do not suggest that anyone who has not had the proper training & a vehicle designed to drive at high speed attempt to do so.
Just because you are stupid enough to force your vehicle to go that fast does not mean that it is designed to!
