Getting behind the wheel of a fast car, such as a V12 Mercedes, is all fun and good until you hit a stretch of highway that has a 60-mph speed limit. If certain legislation passes in Montana, it looks as if that state will be the place to blast off in an AMG road rocket.
According to the Missoulian, “Four state lawmakers are drafting bills for next year’s legislative session that would raise the daytime speed limit on Montana interstate highways from 75 to 80 and possibly as high as 85 mph.”
Two of them, state Rep. Mike Miller, R-Helmville, and state Rep.-elect Art Wittich, R-Bozeman, have pointed to the lack of problems in Utah, Wyoming and Idaho after they raised their maximum highway speeds above 75.
True, higher speeds reduce reaction times and make coming to a stop more difficult (in other words: a longer process), as Montana Highway Patrol Col. Tom Butler has mentioned. However, even on parts of the Texas freeways that are limited to 70, I see plenty of people hitting well below that mark. (Thank goodness for the right lane.) I’m sure a lot of folks in Montana will do 70 or 75 all day long if the cap is elevated to 85. Plus, automotive safety systems (airbags, active braking functions, forward collision warning technologies, etc.) have come a long way, especially in luxury vehicles, such as those from the three-pointed star.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
