"Racing" C8s Busted
01-10-2020, 07:52 PM
#21
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One of the many ‘versions’ posted all over now :
Listen, folks, it's fine to be fast, and it's alright to feel furious on occasion, but it's never a good idea to give in to the temptation to do both, especially not in a car owned by your employer in a town that has deep ties to the vehicle you're driving.
Now that may sound sort of like a hypothetical, but according to a report published Friday by Automobile, it isn't. Specifically, two General Motorsengineers were arrested for allegedly racing two 2020 Chevrolet C8 Corvettes on public roads near Bowling Green, Kentucky -- the home of the Corvette.
The two employees in question -- Alexander Thim and Mark Derkatz -- were stopped by the Kentucky State Police on (and this isn't a joke) Lovers Lane for doing at least 67 mph in a 45 mph zone. Now, it's not clear if they were only going 67 or if that's just the threshold for the reckless driving charge, but we kind of doubt that was the case.
The reason that we doubt it was the case is that with 495 horsepower in its most basic form and a fast-shifting dual-clutch transmission, the C8 Corvette will hit 60 miles per hour in under three seconds. So, were they only doing 67, it would have had to have been a very short race indeed.
The cars were collected and impounded by the Kentucky State Police and were then collected the next morning by the "vehicle owners," which we take to mean GM representatives. It's unclear if Mssrs. Derkatz and Thim were as quick to be sprung as the cars were.
When asked for comment, GM responded only with, "We are aware of an incident involving our test vehicles and are currently investigating. Safety remains our overriding priority at General Motors. We have no further comment at this time."
Listen, folks, it's fine to be fast, and it's alright to feel furious on occasion, but it's never a good idea to give in to the temptation to do both, especially not in a car owned by your employer in a town that has deep ties to the vehicle you're driving.
Now that may sound sort of like a hypothetical, but according to a report published Friday by Automobile, it isn't. Specifically, two General Motorsengineers were arrested for allegedly racing two 2020 Chevrolet C8 Corvettes on public roads near Bowling Green, Kentucky -- the home of the Corvette.
The two employees in question -- Alexander Thim and Mark Derkatz -- were stopped by the Kentucky State Police on (and this isn't a joke) Lovers Lane for doing at least 67 mph in a 45 mph zone. Now, it's not clear if they were only going 67 or if that's just the threshold for the reckless driving charge, but we kind of doubt that was the case.
The reason that we doubt it was the case is that with 495 horsepower in its most basic form and a fast-shifting dual-clutch transmission, the C8 Corvette will hit 60 miles per hour in under three seconds. So, were they only doing 67, it would have had to have been a very short race indeed.
The cars were collected and impounded by the Kentucky State Police and were then collected the next morning by the "vehicle owners," which we take to mean GM representatives. It's unclear if Mssrs. Derkatz and Thim were as quick to be sprung as the cars were.
When asked for comment, GM responded only with, "We are aware of an incident involving our test vehicles and are currently investigating. Safety remains our overriding priority at General Motors. We have no further comment at this time."
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MikeyTX (01-10-2020)
01-10-2020, 08:07 PM
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St. Jude Donor '06-'07-'08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15- '16-'17-‘18-‘19-'20-'21
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01-10-2020, 08:07 PM
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St. Jude Donor '06-'07-'08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15- '16-'17-‘18-‘19-'20-'21
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01-10-2020, 08:33 PM
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St. Jude Donor '06-'07-'08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15- '16-'17-‘18-‘19-'20-'21
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In fond memory of Thim and Merkatz
01-10-2020, 08:47 PM
#26
01-10-2020, 08:49 PM
#27
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01-10-2020, 08:59 PM
#30
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St. Jude Donor '15-'16,'18
Incidents like this is an example of why some view Corvette owners as aholes.
01-10-2020, 09:06 PM
#31
Le Mans Master
So does GM reward them because in the eyes of the customer they love what they did or does GM ignore the fact it’s a frig’n sports car.
Would make a great Corvette Ad, “Even our engineers get carried away with the C8’s performance”.
Would make a great Corvette Ad, “Even our engineers get carried away with the C8’s performance”.
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ratvet (01-11-2020)
01-10-2020, 09:11 PM
#32
Race Director
67 in a 45? All day long here in NJ. The most densely populated state in the union.
Get over it.
You get run off the road unless you're doing 10 over everywhere and the highways at 65 are 80mph without a trooper blinking an eye.
Get over it.
You get run off the road unless you're doing 10 over everywhere and the highways at 65 are 80mph without a trooper blinking an eye.
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01-10-2020, 09:36 PM
#33
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120 MPH? On the street? Throw the book at them.
01-10-2020, 09:39 PM
#34
Safety Car
Makes me glad I ordered white. I'm liking the machined snow flakes better then my black open spoke now though.....
01-10-2020, 10:22 PM
#35
01-10-2020, 10:30 PM
#36
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Who won the race? Asking for a friend. 🇺🇸
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01-10-2020, 11:20 PM
#38
Race Director
They did not get free overnight lodging from the authorities for doing 67 - believe it.
They got carried away (could happen to any of us with a new toy) and possibly ruined their lives. Sad story; thankfully not worse.
01-10-2020, 11:23 PM
#39
Drifting
Around my neck of the woods (SE MI), when I drive home from work on I-75 and see a C8, it’s usually doing UNDER the speed limit! They must really enforce it with engineers and execs driving them here because I’ve come up on several while driving on I-75 and every one of them was going agonizing slow compared to normal traffic. Must be really frustrating for those drivers to not be able to enjoy the performance of them on the road. 
Last edited by dreamr616; 01-10-2020 at 11:24 PM.
01-11-2020, 02:05 AM
#40
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There’s more to this story for all you jumping to conclusions. The not so nice officer who pulled them over yet had time to snap chat it needs to be fired! So many of the BG police are just out to get these cars :/
