This is just food for thought. I was just reading a post where the person talked about driving his last car at 145 mph (I hope at the track). Now I like speed but I do not think that most people really, really realize how fast, fast is (if that makes sense).

A vehicle traveling at (100 mph)(1.466 ft per second) is 146.6 feet traveled per second!

A person’s average reaction time is 2 seconds from seeing something to hitting the brakes.

So you have just traveled 293.2 feet before you even hit the brake. Now figuring in the roads drag factor (we’ll say Asphalt that is traveled and dry about a .75 drag factor) and deceleration stuff you come out to 445 feet the car will take to skid to a stop so total that is 738.2 feet or .14 miles, almost 2 1/2 football fields!

Just for kicks here are the numbers for 145 mph.

145 = 212.57 feet per second
To skid to a stop will take about 935.5 feet
Total with reaction time is 1360.64 feet or .25 miles, almost 4 1/2-foot ball fields to skid to a stop.

You come around a corner or crest a hill with traffic stopped in front of you and you are screwed. Yeah hit the grass with a drag factor or .35 and travel 2430.14 feet or until you hit an immovable object. Ouch!

 

Very interesting. Thats incredible that if you are going 145mph, it takes you a quarter mile to hit the brakes. Wow.

 

Road conditions, tires, weight, ABS are all things that would play a factor but still are traveling at 212.57 feet a second which just blows my mind.

 

damn. nice math. and you gotta point out that 2 seconds is for an unexpected stop. if you dont see it coming, it takes longer to react than if you are planning on hitting the brakes at a certain point.

 

im blown away. im sure people who drive that fast after reading this wont drive as fast anymore.

 

only if i get the chance.

 

Well Thanks for not telling me you made this post. yes my mazda would go fast and I am not an idiot, I dont know the number or skid to stop and what not but I do know that going that fast is putting my life and car on the line. For one I would not go that fast on a road or highway I have never driven down. Manchester Express way in columbus, GA is a very long highway. Straight aways go for as long 5 miles so yes I know this road very well every bump turn and when to slow down for sitting cops. My civic hits the limiter at 120. I dont like going that fast in my civic it does not feel comfortable like my mazda. So only an idoit would speed on a road they are not aware of. And about going fast maybe alot of people are scared to go fast cause it is very dangerous, I am a very good driver trained by a provessional. And another thing if I fly off the road or whatever I know were I will end up. And am looking forward to it. If I die I die, Thats teh way its goin to be, ever watched Final Destination. So when it comes to your numbers, it dont really mean much does it?

 

well, i grew up in rural Nevada, so there are a lot of empty straight roads. thats where i try to go fast, but the elevation change hurts.

 

I live near a huge body of water with a lot of islands and ferries that go to them. My parents have a house on one, and my dad had his business there before we expanded. There are tons of abandoned country roads to speed on and about 5 cops on the whole 60 mile long island (not including staters on the highway). There's always tons of ricer kids "street racing" at night (topping out at like 55...). Call me stupid, call me crazy, but the fastest I've ever gone on a country road is 165 in a '91 300ZX TT.

 

When my friends and i go to the track 20 miles away on a 4 lane hwy i almost always hit 125-130 in my civic and my buds supra mkiv hits 145 at the bottom of the onramp (runs 10.3 @ 152mph). The point is we only do this on limited access highways where we can see over 3/4 mile away at all times. If someone is doing this on public roads (not hiways) ya their f***king stupid and might kill someone.