Nine Amish men were ordered to jail for racing their horse-drawn buggies on a public highway an incident that had one responding police officer saying it was the worst drag racing event he had ever seen.
The men, who cannot be named as I know no Amish sounding names apart from Levi Zitterman, had been racing for years, with bets laid by others within the hard drinking community, gambling on the outcome of the races.
Kentucky, where the offences occurred, has strict laws regarding Amish behavior and judges do not tolerate their unsocial behavior lightly.
One local man, who did wish to be identified, should he become a target for Amish gangs, said ''These people are okay if they keep themselves to themselves but when they come into town its bedlam, they smoke, drink, curse, make obscene sexual gestures and the men are just as bad.''
Some reports claim that the buggies were racing at speeds exceeding 10mph.
A police spokesman said ''It was a miracle no one was killed or worse.
