Posted on Sat, Sep. 25, 2004
Motorcyclist can't drive 205, experts say
SPEEDING CYCLIST:The State Patrol claims it clocked a Stillwater man at that speed, but enthusiasts say the bike he was riding can reach only 185 mph without unlikely modifications.
BY HANK SHAW
ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS
Can motorcyclist Samuel Tilley of Stillwater, Minn., really get his machine to do 205 mph? The State Patrol says Tilley was clocked at that speed last weekend while driving his 2003 Honda RC51 sport motorcycle on a stretch of U.S. 61 near Wabasha.
He faces misdemeanor charges of speeding, reckless driving and riding without a motorcycle license.
After the Pioneer Press first reported the details of Tilley's citation, the nation's media picked up the story and, within hours, the motorcycle racing world began buzzing about whether Tilley could have reached such a record-breaking velocity.
There are more than a few skeptics.
"Theoretically, it could happen -- anything is possible -- but I don't believe it," said John Ulrich, editor of Roadracing World, a magazine that covers sport bike racing. "Guys who want to break speed records and go over 200 mph have to go to great lengths to get there."
Ulrich is a leader in a chorus of motorcycle aficionados who doubt the State Patrol's timing methods.
They note that if the State Patrol pilot who timed Tilley were off by half a second -- which critics say is possible given variables such as the altitude, speed and angle of approach of his Cessna -- it drops Tilley's speed to about 185 mph.
This still would be the unofficial state record for the fastest speeding ticket, and everyone agrees a Honda RC51 can hit that speed. But it's not the double C-note.
The State Patrol is sticking to its guns -- and stopwatch. Spokesman Kevin Smith said it's possible for Tilley's bike to go that fast and noted the pilot who timed Tilley has more than two decades of experience on patrol.
"What we have is what we have," Smith said. "That is the number he came up with, and there's really no going back on it. We have no reason to believe he's wrong."
Smith suggested that if Tilley were to plead his case down, it wouldn't help him beat the reckless driving charge. "Let's say he was going 186 -- that's still 121 mph over the speed limit. I don't see the relevance."
Enthusiasts of sleek, colorful sport bikes designed for track racing and made famous by movies such as "Torque" and "Faster" say the relevance is the magic number -- 200.
Two hundred mph is difficult to comprehend, and critics say the misplaced fear of zooming "crotch rockets" blasting by mom's minivan could lead opportunistic politicians to try to place restrictions on the bikes.
"They're making it like these are missiles going down the road," said Jason Farrell, a sport bike racer who runs 2 Wheel Authority, a performance shop in Oshkosh, Wis. "This gives sport bikers a bad name. These bikes are fast enough as it is. We're not looking for some government official to put speed limit (restrictors) on them."
As it is, bike experts say that most unmodified sport bikes top out at about 185 mph because of limits with their fuel injectors. To get an RC51 up to 200 mph, they say, the owner would have to change the bike's transmission, fuel injectors and gears -- and might have to add a supercharger or pumpnitrous oxide or methane into the fuel system. All of these changes are possible but seriously expensive.
And anyone with those kinds of modifications probably wouldn't tool around southern Minnesota withnitrous or jet fuel in his bike, they say.
"It's just not something that some dude can roll out of his garage and go for a ride and do," Ulrich said. "A hundred fifty? No problem. Two hundred? Big problem."
Tilley, who did not return a call seeking comment Thursday, will get a chance to plead his case in Wabasha County District Court on Oct. 25.
Motorcyclist can't drive 205, experts say
SPEEDING CYCLIST:The State Patrol claims it clocked a Stillwater man at that speed, but enthusiasts say the bike he was riding can reach only 185 mph without unlikely modifications.
BY HANK SHAW
ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS
Can motorcyclist Samuel Tilley of Stillwater, Minn., really get his machine to do 205 mph? The State Patrol says Tilley was clocked at that speed last weekend while driving his 2003 Honda RC51 sport motorcycle on a stretch of U.S. 61 near Wabasha.
He faces misdemeanor charges of speeding, reckless driving and riding without a motorcycle license.
After the Pioneer Press first reported the details of Tilley's citation, the nation's media picked up the story and, within hours, the motorcycle racing world began buzzing about whether Tilley could have reached such a record-breaking velocity.
There are more than a few skeptics.
"Theoretically, it could happen -- anything is possible -- but I don't believe it," said John Ulrich, editor of Roadracing World, a magazine that covers sport bike racing. "Guys who want to break speed records and go over 200 mph have to go to great lengths to get there."
Ulrich is a leader in a chorus of motorcycle aficionados who doubt the State Patrol's timing methods.
They note that if the State Patrol pilot who timed Tilley were off by half a second -- which critics say is possible given variables such as the altitude, speed and angle of approach of his Cessna -- it drops Tilley's speed to about 185 mph.
This still would be the unofficial state record for the fastest speeding ticket, and everyone agrees a Honda RC51 can hit that speed. But it's not the double C-note.
The State Patrol is sticking to its guns -- and stopwatch. Spokesman Kevin Smith said it's possible for Tilley's bike to go that fast and noted the pilot who timed Tilley has more than two decades of experience on patrol.
"What we have is what we have," Smith said. "That is the number he came up with, and there's really no going back on it. We have no reason to believe he's wrong."
Smith suggested that if Tilley were to plead his case down, it wouldn't help him beat the reckless driving charge. "Let's say he was going 186 -- that's still 121 mph over the speed limit. I don't see the relevance."
Enthusiasts of sleek, colorful sport bikes designed for track racing and made famous by movies such as "Torque" and "Faster" say the relevance is the magic number -- 200.
Two hundred mph is difficult to comprehend, and critics say the misplaced fear of zooming "crotch rockets" blasting by mom's minivan could lead opportunistic politicians to try to place restrictions on the bikes.
"They're making it like these are missiles going down the road," said Jason Farrell, a sport bike racer who runs 2 Wheel Authority, a performance shop in Oshkosh, Wis. "This gives sport bikers a bad name. These bikes are fast enough as it is. We're not looking for some government official to put speed limit (restrictors) on them."
As it is, bike experts say that most unmodified sport bikes top out at about 185 mph because of limits with their fuel injectors. To get an RC51 up to 200 mph, they say, the owner would have to change the bike's transmission, fuel injectors and gears -- and might have to add a supercharger or pumpnitrous oxide or methane into the fuel system. All of these changes are possible but seriously expensive.
And anyone with those kinds of modifications probably wouldn't tool around southern Minnesota withnitrous or jet fuel in his bike, they say.
"It's just not something that some dude can roll out of his garage and go for a ride and do," Ulrich said. "A hundred fifty? No problem. Two hundred? Big problem."
Tilley, who did not return a call seeking comment Thursday, will get a chance to plead his case in Wabasha County District Court on Oct. 25.
