Some people like to show off, thinking they'll be impressing the other drivers, but it only works for the teen crowds, who haven't the amount of road experience the middle aged or higher crowd does, and who know more about what happens when a person is hit at high speeds. A lot love speed, and going fast with no one around is thrilling at any age, but everyone has their own personal limitations, and if someone cuts in front of you and you don't know how to avoid them, an accident will happen. but of course you aren't allowed to exceed the speed limit so most cars go faster than needed anyway. Like another mentioned, getting up to speed is a good thing, and sometime is a safer option than trying to merge into traffic going slow. I'm sure most of us would love to try the Bonneville Salt Flats at least once in our lives but you can't do that on the roads. In Thailand, where many are inexperienced or plain incompetent, you aren't only worrying about your own ability, but of all the others around you. I've never been more aware or observant than while driving here, and am much more relaxed when I'm back home in Texas. I've been cut off almost every time I've driven here and one cut in front of my scooter from a dead stop without looking and I had nowhere to go but right into him. Luckily I braked enough before impact and only damaged the front fork of my scooter. The younger crowd loves speed and the roar of the engines, and that's part of being young. The problem is many die every day because of this, along with many more accidents non fatal. And many of them are too young to legally drive and are without helmets here.
