No hope for Rendell on the race track

In addition to rundown roadways, rubberneckers and rancid rest stop refreshments, a new hazard faces motorists along the Pennsylvania Turnpike: Gov. Ed Rendell.

Rendell likes the state troopers who double as his chauffeurs to put the pedal to the metal while traveling the turnpike. The governor's car has been clocked by other troopers doing more than 100 mph nine times since November, according to the Philadelphia Daily News.

If this seems unduly fast to you, it's probably because the turnpike speed limit varies between 55 and 65 mph, except in selected work zones.

State troopers aren't revealing precisely how fast Rendell's vehicle was traveling, but anything over 100 mph is pretty fast. Consider this: The average speed for the 43 racers who finished the March 21 Carolina Dodge Dealers 400 in South Carolina was 114 mph.

Speeding tickets aren't issued at South Carolina's Darlington Raceway, but they are supposed to be on the turnpike. Unless the offending vehicle happens to belong to an elected official code-named Cheesesteak One.

That Rendell has avoided a ticket irritates people such as Fred Galati of the Easy Method Driver Training School in Edgewood. He has spent 15 years driving home the point that speed limits should be obeyed.

"If I'm out there speeding, they're going to hang me, they're going to strap me to a wall and whip me," Galati said, slightly overstating the penalty. "But because he's the governor, he gets away with it. It's a double standard."

Or at least a standard worthy of a racing professional, which begged the question of how easy it might be for Rendell and a driver to participate in an actual NASCAR event.

My first question to NASCAR spokesman Mike Zizzo was whether Rendell's Cadillac DeVille DHS would be eligible for the circuit.

"Doesn't fit our template," Zizzo said. "He'd have to get himself a Dodge Intrepid, Ford Taurus or Chevy Monte Carlo."

Each probably would offer Rendell sufficient leg room, so I didn't consider that a problem. Moving on, I asked whether a NASCAR driver had ever chauffeured a passenger in a race.

"Well, back in the '50s or early '60s, Tim Flock competed in eight races riding with Jocko Flocko, his pet monkey," Zizzo said.

"So there is a precedent," I said.

"For a monkey, yes," Zizzo said.

But not, alas, for a governor.

"He would be too heavy for the car," Zizzo explained. "In today's competitions, the car and all of its components can't exceed a certain weight. You might remove some part of the car to fit him in under the weight limit, but then the car probably wouldn't run a competitive race."

Zizzo hated to dash a dream. But he said unless Rendell is content to drive himself, "he may want to try racing somewhere else."

He already does, on a sprawling 359-mile-long speedway known as the Pennsylvania Turnpike. If you're driving it, keep an alert eye on the rear-view mirror.

That Cadillac DeVille racing up behind you in the passing lane might just contain the governor.