InternetOpenUrl hangs when site is down!!

Hi all,
I just wanted to see if anyone knew if there is a way to avoid InternetOpenUrl hanging when the url u pass it is down. Is there any other API calls you can make to verify that the site is up?

I'd appreciate any help.

TIA!

module code:
dim starttime as long
dim duration as long

code in button:
starttime = timer
duration = 1000
webbrowser1.navigate...

timer code:
if webbrowser1.busy = true and starttime + duration > timer then webbrowser1.stop