firemanfrank

This guy recently took a local reporter on a 160mph ride down a rain soaked highway in NY State (Northway) - AT 3pm IN THE AFTERNOON IN LIGHT TRAFFIC.

I think he is a perfect example what NOT to do behind the wheel. What do you think?

(excerpt from article on his 160mph run below - see link for full article, see link for interview video)

Quick spin with a serial speedster
Peter Robinson drives fast and has no plans to slow down; in fact, he has a speed record on his mind

Some go fast. Others talk about it.

Peter Robinson does both.

He's a 25-year-old packer for UPS. He lives in Delmar in an apartment attached to his mother's home and drives a 1999 Toyota Tacoma with 183,000 miles on it.

He's not a race car driver. He just acts like one.

Robinson is a speed freak. A speed freak with a dream. One as simple as it is unbelievable. He wants to break the world record for the fastest speed reached by a pickup truck. It would require him to go 231 mph.

His motivation: "No one thinks I can do it."

But Robinson isn't trash-talking. And he isn't interested in theory, either. For him, it's not only about how fast his truck could go. It's about how fast it does go. He'll show you. And he'll do so on a major highway during heavy rain.

Want to go for a ride?

It's 3 p.m. on a recent Friday and Robinson climbs behind the wheel. He sticks his key in the ignition and fastens his seat belt. Then turns the key.

The starter whirls and the engine, which he's outfitted with $10,000 worth of high-performance parts, begins to roar and rumble. Robinson checks his gauges. Then he steps on the clutch, shifts into gear and takes off toward the road.

Robinson flips on the radio as he pulls out of the parking lot, turns right onto a highway ramp and merges onto four lanes of Northway pavement. He tilts his head back and laughs when Rihanna begins singing "Shut Up and Drive" as he picks up speed.

A whining sound comes from under the hood as the supercharger turns, 17,000 revolutions per minute. "My friends tell me it sounds like a jet going down the runway," Robinson says.

He flips a switch on the dashboard. Air shoots from two purge valves in the hood, hissing and obstructing the view out the windshield as the nitrous oxide lines clear for maximum boost.

A green van appears in the right lane, 500 feet ahead. Robinson grabs the shifter and slams it from fourth to third as he hammers the gas pedal to the floor.

The speedometer shoots from 60 to 95 mph in a few seconds, pinning Robinson's head to the headrest as the green van gets bigger, smaller, then becomes a blur before disappearing in the rearview mirror.

Rain begins crashing down on the windshield as Robinson pushes the truck passed 100 mph. Droplets traveling at high speed pepper his face like mini-daggers. He rolls up his window as more cars come and go in quick bursts of color.

The truck begins to slip and slide. His tires have little tread because using slicks improves racing speed. Traction is compromised.

Robinson and the truck have been through some trying times. They've racked up three pages worth of driving violations and received more than 20 speeding tickets.

The most serious infraction was a ticket in Pennsylvania for going 93 in a 65, the fastest they've been clocked by the law. Another time, he got two speeding tickets on one day, including one for going 85 in a 30.

Robinson isn't sure how many thousands of dollars he's spent on legal fees, but said the cost isn't as bad as one might think. Hiring lawyers helps keep insurance costs down. His premium each year is modest: $1,200.

The speedometer needle passes 100 mph and the truck continues to accelerate, shaking and jerking like a cart on an old wooden roller coaster.

Robinson lets go of the shifter and grips the wheel with both hands. He drifts into the left lane as the speedometer needle hits the end of the gauge, wiggling violently back and forth at 110 mph.

Cars in the right lane appear and disappear in fractions of a second. The rain falls harder. The truck goes faster.

"The possibilities of what I can do with this truck are only limited by my income," Robinson said. "If I had all the tools I would ever need to work on it, heat, electricity and water, I would have no reservations about living in a garage."

Robinson turns the wipers onto high as rain crashes harder onto the windshield. The truck continues to accelerate. Large objects like trees and houses whip by as though they've been dropped on a supersonic conveyor belt.

Trouble. A sign: CONSTRUCTION AHEAD.

A traffic jam. At 160 mph.

Robinson ... doesn't condone what he considers dangerous driving. He doesn't weave through traffic. He doesn't speed during rush hour or floor it near highway ramps.

"There is a time and a place," Robinson said. "And if you're risking someone else's life, it's neither the time nor the place. Why don't you drive fast in busy traffic? The same reason you don't go hunting in the city."

But if he sees mostly open road on the highway...

Robinson applies the brakes and the truck begins slowing down. The traffic jam looms. Closer now.

The speedometer drops below 100. Closer.

Ninety, 80, 70. Closer.

Sixty, 50, 40.

Robinson rolls up to the back of the jam of cars. He smiles. His moment on the edge lasts just five minutes. During the ride he's more than a regular guy on the highway who works at UPS and goes grocery shopping on the weekend.

Now he's stuck in traffic, like everyone else.

Edubs

Someone like you is going to have to peel him off the back of a tractor trailer some day Frank. That guy is an idiot. I think I've seen him at Lebanon, but I don't remember what he runs...

firemanfrank

I really hate to be a hypocrite (seeing how I drive a "performance" car), but what this guy did was just uncalled for.

I guess it's because of people like him that Fire Dept.'s carry the "Jaws" ...

firemanfrank

The guy is being interviewed on WGY radio as we speak.

He says the whole article was full of misinformation. He claims:

• the tire size on his vehicle was smaller (therefore making his speedometer run faster)
• his speedometer only goes to 110mph (making the 160mph claim bogus)
• he did not speed after it started to rain (he says he only hit around 85 mph before it rained)
• he does works for UPS (but he is not a driver)
• he's had speeding tickets before (but a couple, not 20 like the article stated)

So there you go. Who do you believe? I dunno.

But I felt it was important to report his side of the story ...