[BrianR]

Jinx, I have advocated graduated licenses and mandatory training for years. It disturbs me that a 16 year old who just got his license that morning can jump into a Corvette and go tearing around the town. The same phenomenon can be observed with motorcycles. Any kid can get the license and hop on a superbike capable of 200 mph. And they WILL try to hit that, despite being barely able to get it from point A to point B without crashing it at low speed. Come to think of it, why do we need such motorcycles available to the general public anyway? The highest legal speed in the country is 80 mph (in rural Texas). I can see 100 mph. But 200? And then the owners further modify the bike to go even faster? But that's another rant.

I think drivers should be limited to a class of vehicle consistent with their demonstrated abilities and type rated for certain designated "high performance" vehicles to show that they are able to safely drive and handle that vehicle. Much like pilots are licensed. I can fly certain classes of airplane without restriction. If I want more power, I simply get an instructor to sign off on me. If I want to move up to the next class, I need a checkride from an FAA examiner and a logbook signature. If I want to fly a P-51 Mustang, I need a type rating from a specialist. Just because my license allows me to fly single-engine, land aircraft with engine power over 250 hp and complex systems, does NOT mean that I can handle a 1300 hp thoroughbred with quirks all it's own.