What's up, Nathan?
It's widely accepted that the average rider takes at least 1/2 second to recognize and react to an obstacle they see while riding.
154 mph = how many feet per second? (f/sec.)
1 mile = 5280 ft
154mph x 5280 ft = 813,120 ft/hour
813,120 / 60 minutes = 13,552 ft/ minute
13,552 / 60 seconds = 225.87 ft/sec
So, in that 1/2 second, you've traveled 112.94 feet. That's longer than a 10 story building is high.
I couldn't find any figures for your bike (you don't give a year), but in tests the 2007 Mille stopped from 60 mph in roughly 120 feet. Braking distances don't increase linearly (as in 70mph takes 130 feet, 80 140, etc) it's exponential. From 154 mph, it could take more than 200 feet.
Most magazines don't test the candlepower of the lights on sportbikes, but the wattage limit of street-legal vehicles is 110 watts for a high beam. The range of illumination for that bulb isn't much more than 100 feet.
In other words, if you're travelling that fast and there is a non-reflective item in your path, you probably won't see it, you'll just hit it.
If that doesn't shake your tree, this is from the Cal DMV website:
Street racing is illegal. The CHP won't hesitate to take street racers to court.
A first conviction on a street racing violation means:
Minimum county jail sentence of 24 hours and maximum of 90 days.
Vehicle probably impounded for at least 30 days.
Owner responsible for vehicle's towing and storage charges ($1,000 or more).
If owner fails to pay, vehicle could be sold at a lien sale.
Anyone who aids or abets a street race also faces a maximum 90-day jail sentence.
And if you're still saying "so what", at least do yourself a favor and add one piece of gear to your riding outfit - leather trousers.
And yes, I've gone fast on the street as well. But I've learned two things in over a decade of riding which have contributed to my slower pace on the street -
1) You never "know the road". You can know the layout of the road, but conditions change from hour to hour on heavily traveled roads. You almost never know where the obstacles are until you see them.
2) I don't have to worry about how skilled I am, or how much I am in control of whatever motorcycle I happen to be riding. What I do have to worry about are those things that I cannot see coming or cannot predict. Those are the things that will kill me.
Of the 6 people I've known personally that have died riding since the start of Barf, only two of them died because of something they did wrong. The others died from something that happened to them that was outside of their control. These were talented riders, some of whom had good careers as amateur racers. No descrimination: Pavement wins.
