I'm sure this part of the "boring details" omitted.
But what was the actual timeout and distance?
Presumably 60-70% VF of PVC coated copper?
So a 5ms timeout would be a 500mile run?
It was a fake story he made up to help in his job search. Don't expect any of the details to add up.
There's an FAQ here: https://www.ibiblio.org/harris/500milemail-faq.html