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About every seventh-tenths of a mile is a speed-limit sign. It reads 45 mph. Cars, bicyclists and even tractors are known to travel this road.
This is where Kyle Busch was cited for speeding and reckless driving Tuesday after he was clocked going 128 mph in a $375,000 yellow Lexus sports car.
"It is serious,'' car owner Joe Gibbs said Thursday, "and when you think about the things ... that could have happened ...''
Busch apologized Tuesday via a statement and reiterated it Thursday in a press conference, admitting to a "lack of judgment.''
Not everyone seemed convinced about Busch's remorse.
"He openly admitted he made a big mistake from what I read, although it sounded like somebody wrote it, not him,'' Ryan Newman said. "We're supposed to be professional race-car drivers and by being professional race-car drivers we don't make stupid mistakes like that on the road. That's the way I look at it.''
Gibbs said no decision had been made on how to discipline. Busch will race this weekend for the organization.
"I'm hoping that somehow out of this, something positive will come out of it,'' Gibbs said. "It may be different organizations that reach out to young people driving and reckless driving. For all of us at Joe Gibbs Racing, I'm hoping that there's something maybe I could do going forward.''
NASCAR does not plan to discipline him. Even if Busch loses his license temporarily, it won't impact his ability to race. NASCAR does not require its competitors to have a state driver's license. Busch's court date is set for July 20.
For as much as Busch apologized Thursday - he used the word "sorry'' four times, "apologize'' twice and stated a lack of judgment six times in a 14-minute session with reporters - he didn't go into details about why he drove so fast.
Older brother Kurt Busch supported his brother but noted that Kyle would learn a lesson from this.
"I feel like he definitely understands the mistake that he made and that speed is supposed to be saved for here at the race track and putting on a good show,'' Kurt Busch said. "All of us drivers have a responsibility as being role models to what we can teach our youth on the roadways. There are posted speed limits and rules and laws.''
Jimmie Johnson understood Kyle Busch's desire to go fast.
"We as drivers aren't necessarily wired the same, but I'd have to say that anybody that buys a high-performance vehicle gets in it and stands on the gas,'' Johnson said. "Maybe not in the same situation, but that's why you buy whatever car.''
Kevin Harvick, though, did not defend Busch's actions.
"I think some people are their own worst enemy when it comes to being responsible as a person or as a business person or anything that comes with life's responsibilities,'' Harvick said.
"I've never driven a vehicle 120-plus down the highway. It could put a lot of people in a bad situation.''
With the officer pursuing Busch, the racer turned left from Perth Road to Judas Road and pulled into the parking lot of St. James First Baptist Church where the sign in front says: "God still answers prayers.''
The officer's report states that after being stopped, Busch described the exotic car, on loan from the dealer, as "just a toy.''
Had Busch not been stopped and continued down Perth Road, he would have whizzed past a sign noting a school bus stop ahead, another warning sign noting that tractors use the road and a third warning sign, this one for curves ahead. And there was another sign.
It read: SPEED LIMIT 45
Contact Dustin Long at
373-7062 or dustin.long
@news-record.com
* There isn't much support in the NASCAR ranks for his 128 mph drive on a two-lane road.
Source: http://network.yardbarker.com/all_sports/article_external/kyle_buschs_speed_demonized/4825311
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