Ever been in a situation where you might want to ditch the police? Maybe you have a few outstanding tickets or just want some kicks. Losing the police in a high-speed pursuit will not be easy, but it can be done. According to the California Highway Patrol, 26% of drivers that the police are chasing make the escape and are never found, which means nearly 1 out of 4 elude the cops. With those encouraging statistics in mind, this article hopes to provide you with some tips.
So let's say that you are going to be dumb and daring and the decision has been made to ditch the cops. It's going to take stealth-like driving skills, a quick mind and a good car. To show you what you might be up against, the LAPD puts their officers through forty hours of hard-core driving school that includes oil slicks, water, and sharp turns-basically every condition possible. You might be wondering what size engine an LAPD car has, and well, to our surprise it isn't anything special. A 4.6 liter engine, with 230 horsepower, it can reach up to speeds of 130mph; definitely not the NASCAR vehicle you thought, but the question is: Can your car go that fast or faster?
So the question still lingers about how to ditch the cops if they're chasing you. It would help if you had some prior race or stunt driving experience. Dan Hodish of Precision Stunt Driving School says, "If you have knowledge of j-turns, high speeds and how to maintain control if someone rams you then you are halfway home." And the cops will try to ram your car at some point in the pursuit if it goes long enough. Hodish says, "You've got to keep your cool when they bump your car. It only takes a little tap and your car will get away from you, so you must maintain control when they hit you." Hodish's school offers training in Spin and Crash Recovery, which basically teaches you how to keep your car on the road and driving in the event you should lose control.
If you are going to get away from the cops then your best bet would be to do it in the first minute because once back up is called then your chances of escape start to diminish and if a police helicopter is called in, then it's over. So say you've been pulled over and the cop is walking up to you car. The second he gets to your door, step on the gas and haul out of there. This way he will have to get back to his car and you already have a couple of precious seconds on him.
These first few seconds are crucial because it's here where you will make the most gains. And it's here where a good grasp of high-speed turns will be beneficial because the cop will be trying to call in your location. You might also want to use the 180-degree turn right out of the gate to try to throw the police off. Furthermore, the use of a J-turn will keep the chase on an erratic pattern and this will prove successful since the police tend to capture those who drive in a linear pattern. The California Highway Patrol says, "Once drivers are on a straight pattern such as an open road or highway then we use spike strips, which puncture tires."