- Police Officer: [narrating] I learned that Tom used to brag about his technique for beating the rap if an officer stopped him for a traffic violation. His trick was always to be very pleasant and polite - to say he was sorry for what he'd done, and to agree with everything the officer said. On minor violations, it seems to have worked - he'd actually been stopped several times, and let go with a warning.
- Police Officer: [narrating] The admiration his speeding earned him from his younger brother, and his apparent popularity with his friends, must have been unusually important to him. Subconsciously, he may have looked upon speeding as a way of making up for those small failures and disappointments that we all have to face.
- [last lines]
- Police Officer: [narrating] I felt that Tom's speeding was an emotional outlet. He was probably compensating for feelings of insecurity and inferiority; speeding was a kind of thrill-seeking for him - a childish defiance of authority, and a misdirected attempt to show superiority. These were surely some of the reasons for Tom's compulsion to speed; there may have been others... If there were, he took them with him.
- Police Officer: [narrating] I made it a point to talk with some of Tom's friends. In his desire to be accepted, Tom always seemed to be trying to impress them with his driving. He sure could handle a car, they told me. But there was no doubt they thought he was a pretty wild driver.
- Police Officer: [narrating] Only a few days before his accident, he tried out for first base. He was always likable and conscientious, but his playing was erratic, and he just couldn't handle the position. I've often wondered if this failure might have upset him so much that he unconsciously tried to compensate for it in other ways. Perhaps it was one more factor in his compulsion to speed.