Re: Yo, Thomas, about those ...... drivers.

[four.rings@MCIONE.com]

Phil Payne wrote:

> If the police here see a nose-to-tail group speeding, they do the _last_ guy.
> The logic is if he wasn;t being held up by the others, he'd be going even
> faster ...

Jee, Phil, I did not know that you were watching when they nailed me for
79 in a 55 zone a fortnight ago in Upstate New York on I-87, when I was
coming back from Montreal.

I got sloppy and violated my own rule: never ever speed if there is a
forest divider in between the opposite lanes.
The State Revenue Collectors like to ambush you in those narrow,
restricted to general public service roads, that connect the opposite
lanes.
The cruiser was totally hidden, I couldn't see him, he couldn't see
me...until I passed him. That's when he shot me in the back with the
instant-on Ka. My V1 started screaming it's lungs out (8 out of 8 LEDs).
That's when I made the dumbest mistake: I hit the brakes instead of
dropping into the 3rd. I should've known better -- the V1 was pointing
the arrow to the back.

The officer stopped by my window and scrutinised the inside of the car
with a genuine curiosity. Yes, in addition to all those boost and
mixture gauges, small wheel, pedals, short shifter, CB and radar
detector that were visible in my car, I was also wearing my red 4-point
racing belt. Oh-oh, thinks me, I got a problem!

Amazingly, the officer kinda liked me and asked if I had a clean lic in
PA, to which I replied: -"yes Sir...so far"
he goes: -"sit tight, I'll see what I can do"
He comes back 5(!) min later and writes me a citation for...disobeying a
sign.
Yee-ha, thank you Sir!

For all non-U.S. listers: it meant a modest (~$50) fine and no points on
the lic.
If I were sited for speeding, I'd gotten a higher fine (~$180 in PA) x 2
(work zone. Never mind that it was a Sunday eve and there was not a
single road worker in a 100 km radius) = $360, plus 3 points on the lic,
which according to my ins provider could've hiked my premium by as much
as 150%. Yes, I was caught out of state, but what if tomorrow I move to
NY?

I guess the officer thought that if a middle-aged guy drives a tricked
out conservative German sedan and has time and interest to invest in
safety features (4-point harness), he probably knows how to drive
judiciously.

OTOH, if I were a kid in an automatic Rustang with a wing on the trunk,
wearing a baseball cap backwards, I would've probably been less lucky.
Just my thoughts. 
-- 
Igor Kessel
'89 200TQ -- 18psi (TAP)
'98 A4TQ
Philadelphia, PA
USA