Police: 2 GM employees arrested after racing new Corvettes in Bowling Green

January 10, 2020

BOWLING GREEN, Ky.- Kentucky State Police say two General Motors employees were arrested last Wednesday night in Bowling Green after a trooper caught them racing in new Corvettes on Lovers Lane.

Alexander Thim, 27, of West Bloomfield, Michigan and Mark Derkatz, 30, of Winsdor, Ontario, are each charged with reckless driving, racing a motor vehicle on a public highway and speeding 26 mph or more over the speed limit.

“If the speed limit is 45 miles per hour, there is a reason for that so if you double or almost triple that, it makes it a lot more dangerous. There is a lot more things that can go wrong. It makes it a lot harder to see what is in front of you. It is a lot harder to react to vehicle and things in front of you,” said Kentucky State Trooper Daniel Priddy.

According to arrest citations for both men obtained by WNKY, at 11:20 p.m., a trooper noticed three 2020 Corvettes turn onto Lovers Lane. Derkatz, traveling in a white Corvette, achieved a speed of 100 mph in the 45 mph zone, while Thim, traveling in a red Corvette, achieved a top speed of 120 mph in the 45 mph zone, according to the citations. The citations note that the driver of the third Corvette, which was blue in color, was not participating in the racing.

“It’s one thing if they do it on their own test track that they have that is at the facility, that goes around it. I can understand them doing it there, that is a private road, or even the corvette track owned by the Corvette Museum. That is a very good option if they want to do road testing, that is a very good place to do road testing at,” said Kyle Gouvas production manager at MCR Tuning.

When both drivers were pulled over, they alerted the trooper that they were employees at General Motors and had just been at Cue Time Cocktails and Billiards, according to the citation.

Both men were lodged in the Warren County Regional Jail and released on a $1,000 bond, respectively.

“Keep racing to the tracks. Stay off the roadways if you are planning on doing anything like that. And, again, maintain a correct level of speed,” said Priddy.

In a statement provided to Automobile Magazine, General Motors said the following:

“We are aware of an incident involving our test vehicles and are currently investigating. Safety remains our overriding priority at General Motors. We have no further comment at this time.”