Street Racing

Street Racing

To race or not to race, what will keep you safe? Racing can be safe but not always if you race illegally. There are a lot of safety items that some racers don't even use, I mean they keep you safer but they don't spot the buck for the equipment. They spend so much money on their cars to make them faster, yet most of them don't spend money towards safety. I know what you're thinking, THIS IS LUDACRIS but it is the truth and you will learn more by reading below.

Safety is a very important thing when you are in an object that weighs over a ton and could do over 100mph or more. A lot of racers do not spend enough money on safety, yet a surprising majority of racers do. Racers can have different combinations of these safety items; racing seats, racing harness, fire extinguisher or in some cases a roll cage (to prevent being crushed in a roll or flip). A racing harness goes hand in hand with a racing seat to keep you held to the very durable (usually aluminum) yet comfortable (padded) seat, also the fire extinguisher in case of a fire. A roll cage is in the more serious racers car to prevent the car from crushing you or being crushed in a flip or roll.

There are many different types illegal racing, there is drag racing, stoop light races, and point to point races. Drag race is simply when cars line up and race a short distance usually between Ð'ј mile and one mile. A stoplight race is something you could see on the road any time. This is when two cars pull up at a light and one revs their engine signaling that they want a race and usually race until

the next light or so. A point to point race pretty much explains itself, but it is a race from one point to another usually longer than a mile and not on a straight road, like a race from Canyon Park to Mill Creek (if you are not familiar with these cities it is about a six and a half mile course) and whoever gets there first wins all the money in some kind of container that every racer placed his/her bet in this container before the race even started.

There is a big price to be paid if caught street racing by police, and this isn't always a price to pay with money. Street racers have been charged with vehicular homicide for hitting a pedestrian, which can be 20 years to life in prison. You can get your license revoked if you are 16 as they take away 6 points, which is what you start with at 16. You can even get charged up to $5,000 or sentenced to a max of one-year jail time just for racing and many more years if in an accident with anyone else.

Why are there so many illegal races when they know that they might be killed or kill someone? Well a lot of racers do it for the money, at anywhere from $100-$5,000 in less than an hour for only one race, it seems too good to be true. "Why race at a track when I can go two miles down the road and race?" "No one wants to waste gas to go to a course,