by Marc Santora, New York Times
GARDEN CITY, N.Y., — They thought the coast was clear. It was after midnight, and the Wantagh and Ocean Parkways near Jones Beach were nearly empty. A pack of 75 cars had turned out for the drag races. Girls cheered, boys revved their engines, and the New York State Police watched it all in unmarked cars.
As soon as the races began, the police moved in.
In what the state police called their largest covert operation involving illegal street racing on Long Island, the police issued 91 vehicle and traffic summonses for offenses ranging from broken taillights to speeding. The police said that two cars were impounded, and that there were no arrests although criminal charges were possible.
The size of the race, which was to have taken place around 1 a.m. today, reflects a growing problem on Long Island. Capt. Ulric B. MacKenzie of the state police said that since “The Fast and The Furious,” a hit movie last year that featured speeding cars in wild races, drag racing on Long Island had become more popular.
“It’s a well-known movie that clearly has developed a following, especially with young adults,” Captain MacKenzie said. While the movie was released more than a year ago, Mr. MacKenzie said street racing had picked up in intensity in the last seven months.
The police say an undercover operation like this one staged to stop the race is unusual because of the difficulty in getting advance knowledge about race times. But as the races grow in size, they are becoming more formally organized.
Captain MacKenzie said an investigation of a recent accident led the police to Web sites with detailed information about the times and places of planned races.
“Usually, the problem is that our response is reactive,” Captain MacKenzie said. This time, the police knew of the race, so they could set up the operation. Some police officers watched in the unmarked “road rage” cars, which look like minivans and are equipped with special surveillance equipment, while others blended in with the crowd in Camaros. Police cruisers were nearby to set up roadblocks and “stinger” spike strips, which deflate a car’s tires without causing the driver to lose control, were strategically placed on the road.
Everyone fled when the police moved in, and 20 cars tried to run the roadblocks but were stopped by the spike strips, the police said.
The police said that the cars were registered in places as far away as Georgia as well as in Brooklyn, Queens, Westchester and Long Island. Usually, the police say, participants use everyday cars like Hondas and Acuras, but heavily modify them to reach speeds well over 100 miles per hour.
John Gill, 35, who owns a store called Drag Racing Underground in Astoria, Queens, said he was well aware of the growing popularity of the street races.
Mr. Gill said that it would be better if all that racing energy could be channeled into the legal drag racing community, but that he understood young people’s desire to operate outside the law.
“The older folks, the ones now dissing the races, were the ones who grew up when the movie culture of the 50’s encouraged it,” Mr. Gill said, referring to movies like “Rebel Without a Cause.”
But Captain MacKenzie cited a big difference between drag racing then and today. “The speed is much higher now,” he said.