Cliff Faced
The
Arizona Highway Patrol were mystified when they came upon a pile of smoldering
wreckage embedded in the side of a cliff rising above the road at the apex of a
curve. The metal debris resembled the site of an airplane crash, but it turned
out to be the vaporized remains of an automobile. The make of the vehicle was
unidentifiable at the scene.
The
folks in the lab finally figured out what it was, and pieced together the events
that led up to its demise. It seems that a former Air Force sergeant had somehow
got hold of a JATO (Jet Assisted Take-Off) unit. JATO units are solid fuel
rockets used to give heavy military transport airplanes an extra push for
take-off from short airfields.
Dried
desert lakebeds are the location of choice for breaking the world ground vehicle
speed record. The sergeant took the JATO unit into the Arizona desert and found
a long, straight stretch of road. He attached the JATO unit to his car, jumped
in, accelerated to a high speed, and fired off the rocket.
The
facts, as best as could be determined, are as follows:
The
operator was driving a 1967 Chevy Impala. He ignited the JATO unit approximately
3.9 miles from the crash site. This was established by the location of a
prominently scorched and melted strip of asphalt. The vehicle quickly reached a
speed of between 250 and 300 mph and continued at that speed, under full power,
for an additional 20-25 seconds. The soon-to-be pilot experienced G-forces
usually reserved for dog-fighting F-14 jocks under full afterburners.
The
Chevy remained on the straight highway for approximately 2.6 miles (15-20
seconds) before the driver applied the brakes, completely melting them, blowing
the tires, and leaving thick rubber marks on the road surface.
The
vehicle then became airborne for an additional 1.3 miles, impacted the cliff
face at a height of 125 feet, and left a blackened crater 3 feet deep in the
rock.
Most
of the driver's remains were not recovered; however, small fragments of bone,
teeth, and hair were extracted from the crater, and fingernail and bone shards
were removed from a piece of debris believed to be a portion of the steering
wheel.
Ironically
a still-legible bumper sticker was found, reading
"How
do you like my driving? Dial 1-800-EAT-SHIT."