# Just how fast is twenty-two thousand telephone poles an hour in MPH **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 19, 2018, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105 "2018-02-19T07:40:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 7:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105/1 "2018-02-19T07:40:31Z")
I heard Wolf Creek Pass on the radio today: [C.W. McCall - Wolf Creek Pass - YouTube](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=C5A8COF_NYQ) He got to this verse… “I looked on outta the window and I started countin’ phone poles, goin’ by at the rate of four to the seventh power. Well I put two and two together, and added twelve and carried five; come up with twenty-two thousand telephone poles an hour.” And it made me wonder, just how fast would that be in MPH? They just don’t make novelty songs like they used to. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 8:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105/2 "2018-02-19T08:26:56Z")
[Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utility_pole) says that, in rural areas, they’re typically 300 feet apart in rural areas. 300 feet x 22,000 = 6,600,000 feet in an hour. Or, 1,250 miles in an hour. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 9:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105/3 "2018-02-19T09:09:42Z")
at an average spacing of 91m, I make that (22000\*91/1000) = 2002 km/h which is 1244 MPH. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 10:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105/4 "2018-02-19T10:20:13Z")
> [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > phone poles, goin’ by at the rate of four to the seventh power. Well I put two and two together, and added twelve and carried five; come up with twenty-two thousand telephone poles an hour. His algorithm is bad. Four to the seventh power is 16,384, not 22,000. Assuming a spacing of 300 feet, that makes only about 931 mph or Mach 1.21, which is far more realistic. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105/5 "2018-02-19T13:41:00Z")
You guys rock! Only on the dope… ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105/6 "2018-02-19T14:28:08Z")
> [@bibliophage](#): > > His algorithm is bad. Four to the seventh power is 16,384, not 22,000. Assuming a spacing of 300 feet, that makes only about 931 mph or Mach 1.21, which is far more realistic. Well, he and Earl were both hepped up on Nehis and onion soup mix. Missing a decimal point here or there can probably be forgiven. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105/7 "2018-02-19T15:18:44Z")
> [@Gordon\_Urquhart](#): > > Well, he and Earl were both hepped up on Nehis and onion soup mix. Missing a decimal point here or there can probably be forgiven. That, and worrying about dying. Unless you’re a Vulcan, it’s hard to do complex math while in a panic. In a related question, in Hot Rod Lincoln, when the singer describes his blazing speed he sings: They said slow down, “IC” spots the lines on the road just look like dots For the part in quotes, is he singing “I see” or “icy”? I always thought the first, which refers back to the classic joke (have you seen a doctor? No, just spots.) and parallels with the lines “looking like dots”. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105/8 "2018-02-19T15:21:12Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > That, and worrying about dying. Unless you’re a Vulcan, it’s hard to do complex math while in a panic. > > In a related question, in Hot Rod Lincoln, when the singer describes his blazing speed he sings: > > They said slow down, “IC” spots > the lines on the road just look like dots > > For the part in quotes, is he singing “I see” or “icy”? I always thought the first, which refers back to the classic joke (have you seen a doctor? No, just spots.) and parallels with the lines “looking like dots”. “I see” ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105/9 "2018-02-19T15:23:35Z")
> [@bibliophage](#): > > His algorithm is bad. Four to the seventh power is 16,384, not 22,000. Assuming a spacing of 300 feet, that makes only about 931 mph or Mach 1.21, which is far more realistic. Did you add 12 and carry the 5? ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2018, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105/10 "2018-02-20T16:57:40Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > That, and worrying about dying. Unless you’re a Vulcan, it’s hard to do complex math while in a panic. > > In a related question, in Hot Rod Lincoln, when the singer describes his blazing speed he sings: > > They said slow down, “IC” spots > the lines on the road just look like dots > > For the part in quotes, is he singing “I see” or “icy”? I always thought the first, which refers back to the classic joke (have you seen a doctor? No, just spots.) and parallels with the lines “looking like dots”. “I see”. I think the joke is that they are going so fast the center lines appear to be just spots. ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2018, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/just-how-fast-is-twenty-two-thousand-telephone-poles-an-hour-in-mph/809105/11 "2018-02-20T17:13:59Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Did you add 12 and carry the 5? They got her down to a hundred-and-ten when they hit the tunnel. I figure those hens might not be so aerodynamic.