I was driving home from the city. I'd been out to the Blues club with some friends there and had a great time. It was rather late when I started home, and there were very few cars on the road - it was dark, quiet and I had some good tunes playing on the radio.
There's a good stretch of highway between towns, so I set the cruise control and took that opportunity to wind down and do some thinking. It wasnt too long before some great ideas came to mind, and as they took form into words I decided I'd better jot them down - it was a perfect little piece for one of my blogs.
I reached for a pen and just jotted some quick notes on my left hand, holding the wheel with my knee. I do realize there is better technology out there for these types of situations - voice recorders, etc. I have little gadgets like that, yes. But this was a spur of the moment thought and I reached for the quickest tool for the job.
Just as I looked down for that pen, I must have passed - and missed seeing - that little sign that reads "Warning! Speed Trap Ahead" (or maybe it says "reduced speed ahead" or something like that). Regardless, the speed limit there goes from 55mph to 30mph as you come into the next little town and I guess I didnt realize just how close I was to the end of that stretch.
By the time I finished jotting the words down on my hand, I was entering the 30mph zone and realized how quickly it came up on me. There was no sense throwing the breaks on at that point. I just brought my speed down slowly..
It was too late, though. There was a cop waiting right there at the change in speed zone. He whipped out behind me like a bat outta hell, lights flashing and siren screaming. Nice, I thought, real nice.
I imagine he thought he had himself a drunk driver at that hour, but it was just little old me. He did seem sort of disappointed 😛 . I explained to him that the speed zone sort of snuck up on me. He nodded, but then cocked his head to the side and made a funny face at all the writing on my hand as I handed him my license and registration 😆 .
All said and done, that little 'blog post' cost me 125 bucks...
Lesson learned!
Technorati Tags: police, cops, speeding tickets, blogging
About Lynn Terry
That's quite an expensive post. You can hire at least 25 ghostwriter to write 25 different articles. Not to mention you can buy almost 1000 PLR articles, wow... 😉
I'm really looking forward to that post... hehe 🙂
A weak excuse, but a truthful one. I imagine a great info product here - Secrets to Getting Out of a Speeding Ticket. You could have a list of excuses to put in the glove box for just such occassions! LOL.
I can relate, I enjoy driving and listening to audios or just thinking. Though this is a lot safer when my hubby is driving. This brainstorming while driving session cost me $500 and my insurance company a lot more. 🙁
Uh oh LOL - I'm off to check out that link 😉
As for getting out of tickets... I'd be the last one to write THAT one 😆
Looks like you need to consult with Jeff Mulligan. 🙂
I actually have a great method for beating tickets,
but I'm not sure you would want to go through
all the trouble.
I've been pulled over more then 30 times (most of those
when I was a cab driver) and have received a guilty
verdict only twice in all those times.
Once upon a time, I was riding with a friend who also happened to be a gorgeous brunette. Her car had a broken taillight cover with red tape covering it, studded snow tire in June and she was speeding to boot.
She was pulled over, alright, and proceeded to sweetly explain away
every single violation while batting her big beautiful eyes. She received a warning...a verbal warning, no less.
I couldn't speak for the next five miles.
P.S. Ask me about the stunt my wife once pulled and got away with...
LOL, you guys are too funny 😆
And just for the record (Peter), it wasnt for this blog. Sorry!
-Lynn 😀
Ooh Lynn, that's rough! That's why I carry around a digital recorder all the time - I even have a dedicated one for my car.
Now if I could only get one that would record in the shower, I'd be ready to set the world on fire!
Yes, I have one too and I love that thing! But I think I would have missed the sign reaching for *anything* - digital recorder or ink pen, or anything else for that matter. It was dark and late and I had a million things running through my mind lol
Ahh well 🙄
A likely excuse Lynn 😀 (kidding of course). Sorry to hear about such an expensive blog post.
The most memorable ticket I was able to talk my way out of was the one where I took the officer on an unintentional high speed chase back when I was in college. Luckily his alma mater was the rival to my school and I pretended to listen while he rambled on about it. (An angel smiled down on me that night.)
My father, however, is the master at getting out of speeding tickets. To this day, I still don't know how he managed to get out of a speeding ticket in Texas where he was cruising at a 125 MPH. I remember he got out of the car, lit a cigarette, and from the rear view mirror, I saw him and the officer exchange a few words...then he sat back down in the car and we drove away as though nothing happened. When I asked if he got a ticket, he told me no.
Kirk, I await that day as well. Some of my best ideas come to me in the shower.
~ Teli
I can just imagine the wave of audio products that would follow once that product came out. Some kind of cross between an info product and an Herbal Essences commercial 😆
Well, if we're posting speeding ticket stories...
In college, I nabbed a ride with a friend from Texas Tech in Lubbock back to Dallas for spring break.
Here's the dangerous combination - you've got a week of partying in front of you, you're travelling in a black Trans Am (hey it was the 80s!) and you're traversing 352 miles of wind swept desolation...
We came over a hill about halfway in our journey and (to our horror) there was the local sheriff just waitin' for us. He said he clocked us at 100, but I know we doin' 115 before we saw him... I had never been so scared in my life.
Looking over his mirrored sunglasses, he said, "You boys need to slow down a little - don't let me catch you goin' this fast again..." and he let us off with a warning. To this day, I still have no idea why he let us go - guardian angel I guess 😉
(polishes halo) No ticket problems here, but one of my uncles pulled a pretty good one.
(pulls out the devil horns) He was driving along pretty fast when he spots a speed trap, and slows down. Yes, the cop did notice that he slowed down, but wasn't able to get a radar reading on him, so he followed my uncle for a while.
This was in an area with a lot of valleys, so every time the cop went out of site, my uncle sped up, then slowed down before he could be seen again. Apparently he drove the guy just about nuts trying to catch him in the act for quite a few miles.
Just a story I remember from when I was a kid.
How long do tickets stay on your driving record in your state? It's 5 years in Washington, which means if this had happened to me I would fight it. Even if it meant paying more to avoid the "black mark".
But how do you 'fight' a legitimate ticket? 😉 lol
The officer did mention it would be to my benefit to show up in court versus just paying the ticket - that I would likely get off with 'traffic school' or something along those lines. Since I dont have a record.
I'm trying to decide if it would be worth it, since it's out of town and all...
Lynn,
Contact the clerk of courts or visit their website, they may have some FAQ regarding out of town (I assume, it's not out of state) tickets and their rules regarding them.
And if the officer told you it's probably better to show up in court than pay the fine, I'd listen. Having points on your license can be a detriment, especially where insurance is concerned.
My buck...
~ Teli
Good point 😉