There aren’t many islands in the world where you can lead police on an extended 122 mph chase. In fact, Christopher Brinkley Smithers of Virginia might have found the only one: the U.S. Route 1 causeway connecting the Florida Keys.

Smithers’ first mistake was nearly sideswiping a Monroe County Sheriff’s deputy on Key Largo. She reported he was driving his Range Rover erratically. The deputy suspected he was drunk and pulled him over immediately. Smithers stopped dutifully.

Sure enough, he was “wearing dark sunglasses despite the overcast weather, appeared visibly fidgety and restless. He struggled to form coherent sentences and seemed agitated.”

The deputy called for a backup officer to help administer a roadside field sobriety test. But when the second deputy arrived, Smithers panicked and took off. He floored his Range Rover, hitting 122 mph on Route 1. He knocked down several road signs.

Then he appeared to abruptly change his mind, coming to a full stop. The moment Florida Highway Patrol officers got out of their cruisers, Smithers took off again.

To evade the police, Smithers drove “on the shoulder and sidewalk.” In Islamorada, he veered off the road, raced through Founders Park, crashed into a guardhouse complex, and lost a tire. But he found his way back onto U.S. 1 and raced off again.

At this point, FHP decided Smithers was a danger to himself and others. Officers performed a PIT maneuver at mile marker 87, successfully pushing him off the road.

Suspect blamed behavior on prescription drugs

The FHP also found Smithers acting strangely. Officers reported he “had a gaze to his eyes and was acting out of character for someone who had fled and resisted the efforts of law enforcement.” A breath test didn’t find any alcohol in his system.

That’s when he volunteered that he was on 80 mg of Adderall. Police took a urine sample to test for other drugs.

Smithers was booked into the Plantation Key jail, with no bond listed. He faces charges of fleeing and eluding, and DUI.