A PA28 PLT FOLLOWS ANOTHER ACFT INTO IMC WHILE VFR; ENRTE TO RYV.

Narrative

I CHKED THE WX ON DUATS. IT WAS MARGINAL VFR; BUT WAS SCHEDULED TO IMPROVE INTO THE AFTERNOON. I HAD SCHEDULED A REPOSITIONING FLT OVER THE WEEKEND TO LEAVE THE ACFT FOR SVC BEGINNING THE FOLLOWING MONDAY. A FRIEND; AN INST RATED PLT; WAS FLYING TO MY HOME BASE TO FOLLOW ME AND FLY ME BACK. HE SAID HE HAD PLANS FOR LATER IN THE DAY; AND HAD TO GET BACK HOME BY AFTERNOON. I CONTINUED TO BE LATE IN GETTING READY FOR THE SVC. I HURRIED THE SETUP AND PREFLT SO WE COULD GET AIRBORNE; BUT I MANAGED NOT TO MISS ANY ITEMS. WE RECHKED THE WX AT THE ARPT. BEING A NON IFR PLT; I WOULD HAVE PREFERRED TO WAIT UNTIL THE WX CLRED LATER IN THE DAY; BUT WE DECIDED TO LAUNCH SO MY FRIEND COULD GET BACK IN TIME. WE LAUNCHED UNDER A SOLID OVCST AT 3000 FT AGL. THE OTHER ACFT DEPARTED BEHIND ME. WE WERE IN AIR-TO-AIR RADIO COM AS WE ENCOUNTERED MODERATE TURB AND LAYERS OF CLOUDS WITH A FEW SCATTERED LOW CLOUDS; SOME SPARSE CLUSTERS OF LOW CUMULUS AT 3000 FT AGL; AND A SOLID OVCST LAYER ABOVE. WE STEERED AROUND THE LOW BUILDUPS AND FOUND A WIDE OPENING IN THE CLUSTERS; SO WE DECIDED TO CLB ABOVE THAT LAYER. I WAS ANXIOUS THAT I'D GET CAUGHT FLYING VFR BTWN 2 SOLID COULD LAYERS OR THAT THE LAYERS WOULD CONVERGE INTO IMC. AS WE CONTINUED ON COURSE; THE OTHER PLANE PASSED ME ON THE RTE AND RPTED BACK TO ME THAT THE UNDERCAST WAS CLOSING UP; SO WE AGREED TO DOUBLE BACK TO THE OPEN AREA AND GET UNDER IT. I CHKED FOR NEARBY ARPTS AND CONSIDERED MAKING A PRECAUTIONARY LNDG WHEN I SPOTTED THE ARPT AS I DSNDED UNDER THE LAYER. HE RPTED THAT IT WAS CLR AND SMOOTH AHEAD AT 1400 FT MSL. WE ENCOUNTERED A RAGGED OVCST WITH INTERMITTENT MODERATE RAIN. WE FOUND THAT FLT AT 1400-1700 FT MSL -- ABOUT 1000 FT AGL KEPT US BELOW THE CLOUDS. VISIBILITY BELOW THE CLOUDS WAS GOOD -- UP TO 10 MI EXCEPT IN THE HEAVIER RAIN SHOWERS. I GOT RATTLED AS I INTERMITTENTLY LOST THE VIEW OF THE HORIZON IN THE HEAVY RAIN SHOWERS. I CALMED MYSELF THAT I HAD JUST HAD AN HR OF INST DUAL AND CALMLY WENT ON INSTS WHEN I FELT THE NEED. I HAD MOMENTS OF PANIC AS I VOWED TO GET DOWN AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. MY FRIEND IN THE OTHER ACFT HAD LANDED SAFELY; AND CONTINUED TO ASK ME ON THE RADIO WHERE I WAS AND WHEN I'D GET THERE. AS I APCHED THE ARPT; I WAS IN FLYING AT 125 MPH; FASTER THAN MY USUAL 110 MPH SLOW-FLT APCH AND WAS HAVING A HARD TIME SPOTTING THE ARPT IN THE MODERATE RAINFALL. AS I GOT WITHIN 2 MI; I SPOTTED THE RWY AND REALIZED MY POS WAS ON AN EXTENDED L BASE LEG. SINCE I HAD DECIDED TO GET DOWN ASAP; I ANNOUNCED ON CTAF THAT I WAS ON L BASE. I WAS CLOSE AND HIGH -- NEAR PATTERN ALT -- BUT I THOUGHT I COULD SLOW THE PLANE DOWN. I BROUGHT THE THROTTLE TO IDLE; AND VERY SHORTLY AND CLOSE IN ANNOUNCED AS I TURNED TO FINAL. THE AIRSPD WITH FULL FLAPS HIT 100 MPH RATHER THAN THE USUAL 85-90 MPH. I TOUCHED DOWN FAST AND LIGHTLY; BUT AT A HIGHER THAN NORMAL SPD. THE RWY END WAS CLOSE AHEAD WHEN I SLAMMED ON THE BRAKES AND MADE AN ATTEMPT TO TURN L TO ESCAPE AT HIGH SPD DOWN THE TXWY. THE TIRES HYDROPLANED ON THE RAIN-SLICK RWY; AND THE PLANE SLID SIDEWAYS SMASHING A RWY LIGHT AT THE RWY END; AND INTO THE WET AND MUDDY GRASS RWY OVERRUN AREA. I WAS UNINJURED; AND AS I EXITED; I FEARED THE MAIN GEAR HAD COLLAPSED FROM THE SIDE LOAD; BUT THE PLANE HAD SUFFERED VERY MINIMAL DAMAGE. THERE WERE ONLY A FEW SCRATCHES ON THE PAINT FROM THE RWY LIGHT.