Highway 101 race in Santa Rosa reaches 110 mph, two arrested

Side by side, two drivers zoomed down Highway 101 into Santa Rosa reaching speeds faster than 110 mph, at times cutting through busy nighttime traffic, before being stopped by CHP officers who moved in and arrested both, according to the CHP.

The unofficial race took place about 8:50 p.m. Saturday in southbound lanes in the few miles between River Road and Steele Lane.

An officer on patrol initially spotted the two north of River Road, a Scion and BMW rapidly switching lanes and cutting through traffic at about 85 mph. At about 90 mph, the two drivers lined up and sped off, still cutting through traffic on their way to speeds exceeding 110 mph, Sloat said.

Officers pulled over the drivers and arrested Chad McChinak, 18, of Santa Rosa, who said he’d challenged a 17-year-old Healdsburg acquaintance to race, Sloat said.

They both were arrested on suspicion of street racing and reckless driving. McChinak, in the Scion, also was arrested on suspicion of under-age drinking. He was booked into the Sonoma County Jail. The other driver was taken to the county’s juvenile detention facility. The teen passenger in the Scion was cited for not wearing a seat belt, Sloat said.

-- Randi Rossmann