Doubts cast on claim that biker rode at 205mph

A YOUNG biker ticketed for allegedly riding his motorcycle at 205mph has set tongues wagging all over America — some out of disapproval, others because they doubt he went that fast.

Ever since a State Patrol pilot clocked Samuel Tilley’s 2002 Honda RC51 going a quarter of a mile in 4.39 seconds on September 18, people in chatrooms, garages and biker bars have been buzzing about the alleged feat on Highway 61 near Wabasha, Minnesota.

“Certainly anyone who flouts the law to that extent is seen by some as a latter-

day Robin Hood, flying in the face of authority and doing stuff we all want to do but common sense stops us from,” said David Edwards, editor in chief of Cycle World, a magazine based in Newport Beach, California.

Edwards is among the many experts who doubt Tilley’s bike could have gone so fast.

“More likely, the cop with the stopwatch had an itchy trigger finger,” he told the Star Tribune of Minneapolis.

“There are lots of guys who have been spending a lot of money and a lot of years at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah trying to join the official 200 Club and most still haven’t done it,” Edwards said.

He said Tilley’s bike would have needed an add-on turbo charger to go above 165mph.

But State Patrol pilot Al Loney, a 27-year veteran, and his superiors stand by their report.

Tilley, who graduated from Stillwater High School last year, has not returned numerous calls seeking comment. He is due to appear in Wabasha County Court on October 25.

Tilley bought his motorcycle last summer from Tousley Motorsports in White Bear Lake, where he once worked.

Tousley president Larry Koch said Tilley was “a nice guy, but I really want to ask him, ‘What in the hell were you thinking?”’