Too High to Drive? Geneva Dispensary Owner Breaks Down Cannabis and Road Safety

Darryl Hilkert — High Points Dispensary
Paul Szmal 5:49
Exterior view of the High Points Dispensary building, featuring its sign above a covered entrance with columns.
The High Points Dispensary building, a legal cannabis business in Geneva, New York, is shown here.
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Darryl Hilkert, owner of High Points Dispensary on Routes 5 and 20 in Geneva, joined FLX Morning on Tuesday to discuss responsible cannabis consumption — with a particular focus on what consumers need to know before getting behind the wheel.

Hilkert was quick to draw parallels between cannabis and alcohol when it comes to driving. While New York State has established a 0.08 blood alcohol limit for drivers, no equivalent measurable threshold yet exists for THC impairment. “They really don’t have any way to calibrate it yet,” Hilkert said, adding that until such a standard is developed, consumers should simply err on the side of caution. That same advice, he noted, extends beyond cars to motorcycles and boats.

One complicating factor is that cannabis affects people very differently depending on body chemistry, weight, and tolerance. Hilkert gave the example of a 10-milligram edible — a standard dose under New York State’s regulated market — noting that one person might feel significant effects while another might consume five times that amount with little reaction. “Everybody’s body reacts differently,” he said.

Hilkert also addressed the role of CBD, which contains no psychoactive properties and is fully legal. Beyond being a standalone product, he explained that CBD can actually counteract the effects of THC — useful information for anyone who feels they’ve over-consumed. “If you feel too high, you take just a straight CBD and that will help bring you back down,” he said. He pointed to unregulated black market edibles as a particular concern, noting that high-dose products have sent people to the hospital believing they were having a heart attack — when in reality, they simply needed to wait out the time-release effects of THC.

New York State’s regulated cannabis products are monitored for milligram content specifically to prevent accidental overconsumption, Hilkert noted — one advantage of purchasing through a licensed dispensary.

High Points Dispensary is located on Routes 5 and 20 in Geneva. Hilkert serves as cannabis correspondent for Finger Lakes News Radio and appears regularly on FLX Morning.

Read Full Transcript

Paul Szmal: And welcome back to FLX Morning here on Finger Lakes News Radio. It is 7.53. Joined by our cannabis correspondent Daryl Hilker from High Points Dispensary on Routes 5 and 20 in Geneva in studio with us. Good morning, Daryl.

Darryl Hilkert: Morning, Paul. How are you doing today?

Paul Szmal: Doing good. Doing good. I wanted to focus our conversation this time around on the art of consuming responsibly because that is a very, very important thing. The first thing I've got to ask is that any type of THC is a no-go if you're going to operate a motor vehicle, correct?

Darryl Hilkert: They really don't have any way to calibrate it yet. Of course, it's the same thing as drinking. The motto is do not drink and drive. Basically, the same thing with cannabis, don't consume and drive. There is a tolerance of what, 0.08 for alcohol. There's a limit. It's not saying you can't consume and drive and it's totally illegal. It's another one of those gray areas in the cannabis industry right now. People are going to consume and drive. We just would like to make sure everybody consumes responsibly. Same as having a drink opposed to a drink of cannabis. It could be the same thing until they actually come out with a way to calibrate your THC levels. I don't know if there's any way to really predict that, but as long as everybody's consuming responsibly and the New York State products are also monitored at certain milligrams where you're not going to over consume. It's just like an alcoholic drink. One dose of cannabis at 10 milligrams would not make you too impaired to drive, but it could if you're a smaller person with a lot lighter weight, very similar to alcohol. There's tolerance levels too. How much you have built up in your system is also going to affect how you can perform and operate things like a motor vehicle after you've consumed.

Paul Szmal: Correct. Also, with cannabis and different cannabinoids, everybody's body reacts differently. Somebody might be able to eat one 10 milligram gummy and really feel the effects, and somebody might eat five of them and not feel the effects at all. It all depends on your own personal chemistry.

Now, what about the usage of CBD that has no THC in it?

Darryl Hilkert: CBD is 100% legal. There is no psychoactive effects to it. That's why a lot of our products, when we bring people in, that's why we try to ask them if they're looking for products for any specific needs because there are so many different cannabinoids besides CBD. With the CBG, CBN, THCV, CBG, and all those help with different effects to your body.

Paul Szmal: Right. Each of those will result in a different effect depending on vis-a-vis here, say, operating a boat or a motorcycle.

Darryl Hilkert: Correct. The general rule is, if you're consuming, probably not a good idea to get behind the wheel of a vehicle, but the same would also go for motorcycles and boating.

Paul Szmal: Correctly. I mean, we all know driving with a clean head is the best way to go. Any infringement on top of that is going to affect anything that could possibly happen. What's the best way to determine how you're... Is it basically just how you're feeling at that particular point in time?

Darryl Hilkert: That's a tough question. I mean, how many times have people had drinks and said, oh, I'm fine to drive? They are definitely not fine to drive. So, err on the side of caution.

Paul Szmal: Correct. That makes sense to me. And with, since you did mention CBD, CBD will help counteract the psychoactive effect of THC. Okay. So, anybody that does overconsume, when all the black market stores are out there, they got high dose edibles and stuff and people would eat one and they would just be on cloud nine. They'd forget where they were. They'd think they're having a heart attack. I'm sure the hospitals after legalization came around seeing a lot more people coming in there. And it's just time release for THC. You're going to have to wait it out and you'll come back to normal. There's nothing that they're going to give you that's going to actually make you not high, but CBD will counteract the psychoactive of THC. So, there are items out there that are just CBD products. And if you feel too high, you take just a straight CBD and that will help bring you back down.

Darryl Hilkert: And there you go. Some good words of advice. Thank you, Daryl. Much appreciated as always. Thanks for stopping in.

Paul Szmal: Absolutely. Thanks, Bob.

All right. That is Daryl Hilker, our cannabis correspondent from High Points Dispensary. You can find them on routes five and 20 in Geneva. It is 7.59 on FLX morning on Finger Lakes Newsradio. We have newsmaker interviews with our friends from the Finger Lakes Visitors Connection coming up at 8.15. And Jeff Shipley from the Seneca County Chamber stops in at 8.35 this morning. Also coming up, we have Greg Conroy with local news. But first, we have the CBS World News Roundup as FLX morning continues.