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2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat [w/videos]

Darrell Waltrip once said, "If the lion didn't bite the tamer every once in a while, it wouldn't be exciting." The sentiment behind that aphorism is causing my adrenal gland to wake up as Dodge and SRT drivers and engineers - somber-faced to a man - give me the track talk that will precede my driving the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT on the circuit at Portland International Raceway. PIR might not be Daytona, and the 707-horsepower Challenger Hellcat might seem tame to a legend like ol' Jaws, but there's a not-small part of me that's thinking about how hard Dodge's fire-breathing kitty might bite.
Just a few hours previous, I'd gotten behind the wheel of the Hellcat for the first time, letting its hyperbole-spitting, supercharged V8 Hemi pull me yieldingly through Portland's morning commuter traffic. Lulled into a cocky certainty by the Challenger's good manners at low speed, I drove the throttle just a hair too deep, too fast when I ran on to the highway ramp. For just an instant the rear tires were utterly drenched in torque, and the back end of the big Dodge loosened up like a drift car on a wet track. Throttle steer lives at the fleeting whim of your right foot in this car.
It was no big thing to lay off the gas and pull the Hellcat back in line as I entered the highway, but the incident did get me to thinking: What will this car do to me on a road course?

Cruiser's close call caught on camera

A new recruit to the Kansas Highway Patrol experienced his first brush with danger on his first day when a semi truck clipped his cruiser during a traffic stop last week. Public relations officer Tod Hileman said in a Facebook post that the incident occurred when an officer and his brand-new trainee pulled over a black Dodge Charger on I-70 in Trego County, Kansas. Hileman said in the comments that the cruiser was parked two feet away from the white line on the shoulder. Not only did the driver not get over a lane when he saw the stopped cruiser per Kansas law, he seemed to have moved closer to the side of the road. The big rig managed to send the cruiser's side mirror and spotlight flying across the road. The truck could have easily injured one of the officers, perhaps fatally. The truck driver ignored Kansas' Move Over law, which requires "drivers approaching a stationary emergency vehicle displaying flashing lights, including towing and recovery vehicles, traveling in the same direction, to vacate the lane closest if safe and possible to do so, or slow to a speed safe for road, weather, and traffic conditions." With a clear lane to his left the trucker in this case had no excuse. He stopped after the crash and was cited by the officers for failing to change lanes when he saw the stopped vehicles. Being a cop is a risky job. So far this year, 28 officers have lost their lives in the line of duty due to car accidents, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page. News Source: Facebook Government/Legal Dodge Videos traffic traffic stop traffic tickets move over law

Dukes of Hazzard reruns dropped amid Confederate flag controversy

Those Duke boys are in a mess of trouble again, as TV Land announced Wednesday that it will be dropping the classic 1980s action-comedy the Dukes of Hazzard from its roster. But it may not be Bo and Luke's fault this time. Rather, it appears to be the changing political landscape. Entertainment Weekly reached out to TV Land, which is devoted to airing episodes of classic TV series, but it had no further comment. While the network didn't say why the episodes were removed, EW speculates that the cancellation is part of the reaction to the racially motivated murder of nine people in a historic black church in Charleston, SC, last month. The shooter was often photographed carrying a Confederate flag and other trappings of white supremacy. Since the tragedy, Confederate flags are being dropped from state houses, license plates, and toys. Last month, Warner Bros. said it would stop producing toys featuring the rebel flag, including a die cast miniature version of the Dukes of Hazzard's trademark ride, The General Lee, which was a bright orange 1969 Dodge Charger with a Confederate flag plastered to the roof. The same week as the shooting, the Supreme Court decided that states can reject license plates featuring the stars and bars as part of the states' right to free speech. Nine states currently use the flag in license plates, and the ruling will allow Texas, North Carolina, and Tennessee to remove the motif from their state's plates. Georgia is also considering redesigning its plates in the wake of the shooting. For our younger readers, the Dukes Of Hazzard was a television show that aired from 1979 to 1985 on CBS. It feature the antics of the Duke boys in a fictional place called Hazzard County, GA. Related Video: