I got pulled over for speeding !

[Dave ESPI]

Well, apparently I ride my bike much lke how I ride my carver........ Fast.

Speed has always gotten me pulled over (or talked to sternly about going too fast on the mountain) and my fair share of tickets driving cars and stuff, but this one..... takes the cake.

:lol:

Friday morning I went for a Bike ride. Decided to bang down the backside of Old Loudon Road to Route 470 and then was going to cut over and back up at the intersection where the Stewarts and CVS is and ride back up to come out near Diamond 8 billards as the hill is less extreme pedaling back up that way.

I've got a few days of ride time under my belt sofar this season, so I decided to do some "Ricky Bobby" ( I wannah go fast!) and I let all the traffic go a headof me, and I had a clear shot down the hill and up the other side as it drops low and then has a hill on the otherside also (Kinda like a giant halfpipe). I get moving, drop the gears to 27 and hammer it down the hill and I was moving along nicely at a good clip. I have just enough speed to make it up the otherside and slow up just as I crest it and have to shift up to keep moving to 12, and as I'm rolling past the Flowershop before the stewarts, I hear " WOOP WOOP- WOOOOOOP-- eet eet eet WOOP WOOP".

The hell?

I turn around and look behind me, and its a mother****ing cop with his lights on, I slide over to the shoulder, and he still stays behind me. Hits me again with the "woop woop" sound siren and I look back again, and he is motioning for me to pull over.....

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot.......

I'm thinking to myself, you've got to be kidding me.

He gets out of his squad car, ambles up and I say "Hello, whats up?" He looks at me and says " Do you know why I pulled you over? " I kinda nerviously laugh and say "noooo, This is a first for me... never been pulled over on a bike before".

He ask if I have any ID and I say yeah its in my pack. I give him it We exchange a few comments, he points out how I don't live in "Cohoes" and am supposed to have changed it at DMV..... I told him to flip it over, its written on the back of the ID with the address change, and said "that really isn't the point, so please, why am I here right now?". Another car pulls up.... LOL. This one says "Traffic Safety" on the side. the 2 cops are talking, and the one guy ask me why I don't have a helmet on, and I said Accordting to local regulations, theya re not required as I'm 31, not 13". I then ask " Why am I here ? I have a right to know". SO get this: the first cops says "Do you know what the speed limit is around here and how fast you were going?" I say "uh... like Thirty/Fourty or something... why?" his reply,

"You passed me doing FOURTY FIVE MILES AN HOUR".

I can't help it and I bust out laughing.... "hahah, oh man.... Seriously"? he looks at me and says "yes, you were speeding". and as I'm kinda sitting there cars are slowing down as they pass.... the looks on peoples faces are one of complete bewilderment....... they probaly mirrored my expression aswell.

A few cars go by, the light turns red, and the line builds as they stop. A nice convertable. classic car ( Olds or cutlas supreme I think) drives up, and the guy is staring at me, I say "Hey man nice car, I just sold my 66 T-bird last weekend". He says thanks, Whats going on?" I laugh and say that Colonie's Finest have nothing better to do than pull over a cyclist for "speeding" (I make the quotations movement with my fingers) down a hill to save steam for the steep upside". He says to me "Seriously?" I retort sternly "seriously". He chuckles, puts his car in park, gets out walks back to the officers cars, one gets out as he is walking twards it, they say something to each other, and from what I can tell, shows um a badge, turns around after some plesantries of Goodbye, and he walks back over to me with the officer. The guy gets in his car, waves to me and says "Slow it down a bit and have a day". The officer hands me back my ID and says " Keep it within the legal limits Mr. Sheedy, and you may want to think about getting a helmet, it could save your life if someone pulled out infront of you or you hit a pothole and fall".

"Right, ok, thanks, I'll keep that in mind, and I'll adjust my odometer to read MPH in the future when I have to question my speed.".

The cop turns and walks back to his car.

I put my pack back on, and off I go.

Not sure who the Mystery guy in a red car was, but THANKYOU !

I now have a hilarious story to share!

[roscoe]

years ago, my dad was biking with me in one of those bucket seats attached the seat-post. we were riding along the side of the road, both had helmets on, just out for an afternoon ride. I guess we came to a stop sign, and my dad, seeing there were no cars coming, keeps riding. He then gets pulled over by a cop car and told that doing so was illegal, and was given a ticket!

how ridiculous is that? he "blew" a stop sign, going 15 mph on a bike and gets a ticket for it.

[Rob Stevens]

If you're speeding on that bike, I would wear a helmet for when the head tube peels off.

[Seraph]

Back in 1989, I lived in New York City, lower east side, and I used to get up very early in the morning to head up to Central Park to get my training laps in, as I used to ride on a local USCF club.

Anyhoo...On an August morning, round 7:00am I'm heading back downtown to my apartment, high gearing it (30 - 35 mph) and I enter an intersection with the light green, turning to yellow, get to the next intersection and stop because the light is about to turn red. I then hear a siren behind me, and the police officer gets on the PA and tells me, "to pull over". I'm now thinking welcome to the Twilight Zone.

The officer walks up, asks for id, and tells me that he was sitting on the opposite corner of the intersection and that I ran a red light, and was riding too fast to boot. I explained that the light was green, and I was in the intersection when it turned yellow, not red, maintaining an appropriate speed to stay in the flow of traffic, and if I was so reckless why did I stop at the next light which was yellow turning red? He said go to court and fight it, so I did.

So I go to court a month later, and what happens? The officer says that he doesn't even remember the incident and the ticket gets dropped. Now I ask you this...wouldn't you remember this type of incident if you were the officer and it was only 30 days later?

[pebu]

The ticket was getting dropped anyway, I'm sure, so he just wanted to save himself some embarrassment.

[Justin A.]

You should wear a helmet. A helmet saved my father's life two weeks ago, it's plain STUPID not to wear one.

Funny story...there have been some cops around here that have been desperate to issue tickets too, I saw a cyclist pulled over a few weeks ago ...

FYI: Bicycles ARE vehicles, and thus subject to the same laws as every other vehicle on the road, as weird as it sounds to our american ears. You also would have avoided the whole debacle by wearing a helmet.

[scotts.Scheinman]

cops dont have a lot to do unless your in a big city

[KingCrimson]

You should wear a helmet. A helmet saved my father's life two weeks ago, it's plain STUPID not to wear one.

Funny story...there have been some cops around here that have been desperate to issue tickets too, I saw a cyclist pulled over a few weeks ago ...

FYI: Bicycles ARE vehicles, and thus subject to the same laws as every other vehicle on the road, as weird as it sounds to our american ears. You also would have avoided the whole debacle by wearing a helmet.

I've got a talking to for riding a skateboard at night without any lights..bike laws apply to skateboards in San Diego. You can get in trouble for riding Razor skooters at night as well.

+1 on the helmet recommendation. Even if you don't wear one on snow, cement tends to be a little bit more "firm." Especially going 45...that's...fast.

My brother broke a car window with his head. He's lucky he's such a numbskull, he could've gotten hurt otherwise.

[big mario]

If you're speeding on that bike, I would wear a helmet for when the head tube peels off.

:lol::lol::lol:

thought the same thing, but I don't mean that in a bad way, I'm just sayin'....:D pinned the speedo on my roadbike a few times in the past @ 49.9999mph, 230plus lbs on those little 23mm conti's can be a little spooky, but priceless to see the look on drivers faces as as you pass them!

[carvedog]

You should wear a helmet. A helmet saved my father's life two weeks ago, it's plain STUPID not to wear one.

Not trying to flame or start a battle. And I think you are right that you should wear a helmet......

but I pretty much say **** you to anyone who tells me to wear a helmet. On a bike, motorcycle or anything else. Pretty much say that to anyone who tries to tell me what to do.

And 95% of the time I do wear one. But sometimes I don't want too and I am sick of people trying to put their standards on me.

I am glad your father was OK. And maybe someday I will be on the losing side of the risk equation and I am ok with that.

And until my daughter's are not under my control they will wear helmets skiing, snowboarding, biking etc.

When they are old enough to pay their medical insurance and do...then they can do what they want.

What really kills me is these guys doing inverted aerials on cement with the trick bikes and they don't wear a helmet. Gene pool selections now taking place.

[skatha]

Sorry, but as a life member of the Texas Bicycle Coalition, I can tell you that much car driver animosity toward cyclists (and there's a lot) is based on cyclists not abiding by the same driving regulations that, legally, apply to them. Advocate groups around the country have urged local PD to apply road regulations to cyclists as a way to appease angry motorists and reduce deaths among cyclists killed as a result of road rage. Cyclists are ticketed for speeding, running red lights and stop signs and riding 2 or more abreast and I think it's a wonderful idea.

If you have a speedometer, make sure it's properly calibrated and obey local speed limits. If seeing you pulled over and ticketed caused even 1 motorist to deal with a cyclist in a more reasonable way, or even saved a cyclist's life, it's worth it

[Dan]

45 mph on knobbies? Wow, either that's a super-steep hill, or you were mashing some tall gears.

The police here in Portland are fairly notorious for ticketing cyclists for running stop signs/stop lights. They give the same ticket they'd write for a motorist, with a face value of $200+ (!!) before any discounts (traffic school, first offender, etc.).

But hey, being treated like a car is the price we pay if we want to be able to take a lane, which is permitted by Oregon law. The only problem is that cyclists and cops are the only ones who know that...

[skatha]

45 mph on knobbies? Wow, either that's a super-steep hill, or you were mashing some tall gears.

The police here in Portland are fairly notorious for ticketing cyclists for running stop signs/stop lights. They give the same ticket they'd write for a motorist, with a face value of $200+ (!!) before any discounts (traffic school, first offender, etc.).

But hey, being treated like a car is the price we pay if we want to be able to take a lane, which is permitted by Oregon law. The only problem is that cyclists and cops are the only ones who know that...

Yep, that's true, but I think the more gas gets pricey, the more cyclists we'll be seeing-especially for 'round town errands. I'm thinking of getting a big trike with a basket for grocery store trips-especially since my teenaged stepson moved out!

[KingCrimson]

Skatha- http://www.businessfacilities.com/blog/uploaded_images/green-machine-2006-small-750306.jpg

That's all you need right there.

[Dan]

Yep, that's true, but I think the more gas gets pricey, the more cyclists we'll be seeing-especially for 'round town errands. I'm thinking of getting a big trike with a basket for grocery store trips-especially since my teenaged stepson moved out!

Yes, I'm depending on skyrocketing gas prices to reverse my rapidly declining home price (I live within a comfortable bike commute of downtown). :)

There's actually a Huffy cargo trike (looks like maybe from the 70s?) parked in the bike parking at my building now - the coolest ride I've seen for quite awhile!

[big canuck]

Rob Stevens said. I doubt that bad boy could do 70k/hr.

Maybe if you were Floyd Landis on one of his immaculate "recovery" days.

[pebu]

I have no doubt that that thing could do 45. And I'm sure that it's scary as hell at that speed. I've had the same sam's club bike for many many years and on one of our trips out west we went to devils peak. That is one fun bike ride down that road. I was gettin scary bad wheel wobble though up around 35-40. It is a solid frame though, so I guess I can't vouch for the downhill rigs, but I'd like to think they make them alot better than they did umteen years ago.

[Snowriter]

And 95% of the time I do wear one. But sometimes I don't want too and I am sick of people trying to put their standards on me.

.... And until my daughter's are not under my control they will wear helmets skiing, snowboarding, biking etc.

When they are old enough to pay their medical insurance and do...then they can do what they want.

Until your daughters are no longer your financial responsibility, maybe you should wear the helmet 100% of the time ...

A lot of people say, "Let those who ride decide," but they are forgetting about or don't care about the impact their death/severe brain injury might have on someone else's life if they get in an accident.

Example: You crash into a moving car. With a helmet, you would have lived. Without a helmet, you paint the car with your brains. Yeah, you're dead and you were "okay" with that risk. Meanwhile, the driver of that car lives with the fact that their car killed you while they were driving it. Yeah, yeah, yeah, gene pool, natural selection, and all that jazz ... Fact is most people will be traumatized by that type of tragedy ... A tragedy that could have easily been prevented had the helmetless rider been more responsible.

Should bike and motorcycle helmets be mandatory? Sure, no different than a seatbelt. But, if it's legal in your state, it's your choice. Just realize that your choice has the potential to ruin the lives of others.

FWIW: I don't bike anymore and don't ride a motorcycle. I do, however, wear a helmet while snowboarding 100% of the time and have since 2000.

[bobdea]

who foots the bill when you knock yourself hard enough for a disabling injury?

it's cheaper to make sure everyone buys and uses a helmet than to have legions of head injured tough guys living off disability, your dumb ass now becomes my problem. seatbelt laws are a little more arguable for a few reasons.

BTW, who says that bike can't do 70k?

I've gone 45ish on more than one bike, one was a wal mart special, Huffy. on the same hill a friend broke his hip, three ribs and his arm in one crash, that was the last time we did that speed run......

also, some other friends did 40+ on skateboards on that hill

[Art]

Ive done 55 on a road bike (many years ago, had a friend's frame pump fall of in front of me at 45 mph and blow my rear tire (used feet for out riggers, had to choose a ditch, laurel hedge or car to hit before stopping but was able to aviod all three by sheer dumb luck)and have worn a helmet since (15 years). FWIW, people are still labotomized with helmets, a guy was killed on the local path wearing one, severe front brain trauma). even the best equipment fails. There are as many stupid cyclists as there are stupid motorists (ok more motorists but I mean cyclists are not perfect by any stretch and it only takes one to piss off a motorist for years to come. Been honked at, piss bombed, nearly decapitated by truck mirrors, jake braked (for effect) and everything else, and I ride conservatively. I agree with Carve Dog, I hate being told what to do, and dont see how it can be justified if my health insurance rates dont come down since we are saving all of these people from themselves shouldnt there be less expense? That said, a helmet is mandatory (for all) in my house to minimize risk for this primary provider. Last story, was pulled over years ago, Medina Washington cop, beautiful summer night short 20 miler on the local loop. No traffic on Evergreen Pt road, riding no hands to stretch, no helmet (this was b.c.) hear the whoop. Pull over. No helmet, no hands. I argue I was in control and will fight the no helmet since I dont see them pulling over the 8 year olds down the street. Got off with a warning. Dont do 55 any more, just race the local trails with the gang. If you ant ridin' you want to be.

[Dave ESPI]

I had a nasty nasty accident in 2003 on the mountain snowboarding in a GS race, and had a helmet on because it was "required" for racers to wear one. It saved my skull for sure, but still had a wicked hangover and loss of bodily bowel control from the impact.

I wear a helmet always on the mountain.

I agree, I should have had my helmet on with the bike. I need to get a new one. The one I have now is for cold weather and I seriously overheat with it on to the point of near heat stroke despite chugging water.

For those who think that 45mph cant be done, got news for ya......

It takes effort, but with steep gears and a few nice hills, 50+ is not unheard of around here for street louge and bikers.

its nice to have a 29 pound bike.... but I want ~27, but to loose a mere 2 pounds more with a full comp suspention bike ( like the 06 SCOTT Ransom that I've been drooling over for 2 years now) will cost me 3 grand more than the bike I have now if I sell it and get a grand for it, but fat chance on that.... considering its well over 10 years old and has like 15K miles on it of hard back-country downhill and ATB mountain cross trails, rain, snow, sand, clay, city streets, curbs, grass and park rides...etc etc.

I do pay meticlious attention to it mechanicaly and get it tuned professionaly every year roughly twice a year. I can definately say ROYCE bikes from back in the day were built tough as nails, and shimanno shifters are the digidity!

I think I'l shop for a new helmet this weekend... Saw a flyer saying something about a sale I think.

[Jim]

I know it was my fault for having a bag in my hand while powering down a hill on my roadbike when it got sucked into the spokes while passing cars in a 25mph zone. Whiplashed my head on the asphalt so fast that my hands never released from the grips. Woke up with the bike on top of me and still holding onto the grips. Picked asphalt out of the side of my face and both forearms for days afterwards. I must not have been out that long. Also walked in shock for three more blocks home soaked in blood without one person stopping to see if I needed help. That's Arizona for ya.

Also snapped another roadbike in two pieces on a parked car at the bottom of a hill during a power outage at night. I saw a glint of chrome in the starlight and braced for impact. Shot over the trunk and did a handspring on the back window with twisting flip landing to the side of the front of the car skidding to a stop on my feet facing back up the street just in time to see two pieces of my new bike land on the trunk. The bike moved only two feet forward on impact when both tubes snapped clean from behind the fork. I grabbed the pieces and vacated the scene. No helmet.

[EnisiWaya]

Ok, I have been saving this one for Car and Driver magazine for over 30 years.

here goes....... 'cause you are "family" of all of us who are the bad influence uncle or aunt that each family talks about and brags about but does not want their child to be influenced by.!!!!!!!!!!

Back In 1968 I was stopped in Avon CT By a brand new CT state trooper for going 35 on my Peugeot 21 speed in a 25 zone. Went to court and this is the only time i have ever not been able to beat a speeding ticket. Fine of $25 suspended on promise of good behavior and teaching two saturdays clinics on proper bicycle riding.

THis guy was named tony and since he was from the next town Canton CT (home coming rivals they had not won in fifteen years)he had a thing against all Simsbury people.

he had made it his thing to harrass everyone from Simsbury Where ever they went in the Farmington Valley especially route 44 US hi-way. In the east 44 is almost as famous as route 66 out west. (Providence RI to Albany NY and beyond)

After that he had pulled over and given my friend's older brother, an already successful stock car and SCCA race driver at 21, one more BS Ticket.

So My friend Ralph and I had always dated senior girls since we were freshman............

so Ralph and i went up over the border to NY and brought home two pony kegs on the factory option roof rack of dads 57 VW . We were already such regulars they did not even ask for a deposit on the kegs. It was so obvious in the entire 45 minute trip no cop took note and we never got stopped. next day with the help of the auto shop teacher, and one of the history teachers we had a keg party in th third floor boys lavatory in the HS. While there we got to talking about the ******* newbie state trooper.

Ralph and I took the kegs back to NY and lo and behold next to the bar was a blown engine sunbeam alpine for sale cheap. Engine already removed, from the now empty engine compartment. So Ralph bought it as it was the same color as brother Kurt's Sunbeam tiger everyday car. ( we planned to drop his dad's spare 327 stock car engine into it.)

So that night Ralph and I went to Hartford,CT to the Foreign Auto junkyard midnight five finger discount store and found a tiger to strip.

we changed all the trim and badges on the Ralph's alpine to tiger badges.

Then we got five of us and had Kurt drive up RT 44 west.

The trooper and his trainer pulled out after us in Canton CT

Kurt played with them till the old bridge in New Hartford to the reservoir.

When we got near the park lot next to the road to the SKi Sundown ski area

we pulled away from the cruiser and then pulled in , Kurt shut the lights off and Ralph took over and drove the tiger up the road to the snow cat shed. we waited till the cruiser came around the corner and flashed the alpine's Lights to show the plate ( we had towed it up earlier in the day and put the front plate off of Kurts car on the back of Ralph's car) .

The cruiser pulled in and and the a-hole rookie got out and came over and demanded to know who was driving. this went on for five minutes at least,.. Kurt finally said I promised so I can't tell you..... but I can show you......

so he pops the hood and Ralph is under the car in the empty engine compartment hanging by his hands from the engine mounts huffing and puffing from having run back down the hill.

The senior training officer told the rookie "You have been had big time" get in the cruiser. And then they just left ....but we had no more harrassment from the staties for many years in the Farmington Valley.

EWD:lol:

\

Ps real story always better than fiction.....We towed the alpine back from NY state behind my 62 Studebaker Hawk with a trailer hitch and twin Paxton blowers and about 600 BHP Killer car..........

[carvedog]

who foots the bill when you knock yourself hard enough for a disabling injury?

it's cheaper to make sure everyone buys and uses a helmet than to have legions of head injured tough guys living off disability, your dumb ass now becomes my problem. seatbelt laws are a little more arguable for a few reasons.

First Dave gets called stupid and I am a dumb ass.

I believe in seat belts. I believe in wearing my helmet almost all the time. I don't believe in being judged or looked down upon for my legal choice to do whatever the **** I want to.

I think it far more likely that in extremely traumatic collision the helmetless rider does the "state" a favor by being more likely to be fatal than disabled.

Besides the fact that the frontal impact is often not what kills the head injury victim, but the brain rebound to the opposite side of the skull. The helmet does not protect from this type of deceleration, rebound injury other than the very marginal dissipation of force through the impact area. The decelaration and deformation of the brain inside the skull is what causes the most damage.

If you are familiar with the Hans (sp?) device used in car racing with the little tiny shock absorbers (dampers actually I believe) on either side of the head of the race driver, that is why they developed that. To control the rate of deceleration of the skull.

I am sure someone is more well versed in the medical aspect of this, but I'm not making it up.

Also have several ski patrollers on the hill here who adamantly swear that head injuries have increased on the mountain here with the use of helmets. There claim is that the falsely confident helmet wearer skis faster than true ability, most bad crashes involve considerable leverage of feet being stopped (edge catch, collision) and head impact to hard snow, resulting in rebound concussion. One of these anti-helmet patrollers is a good friend who teaches Wilderness First Aid, WEC I think its called and has researched a lot of this because he was noticing more head injuries ( they do track this in the patrol BTW) per same skier count, in spite of helmet use doubling, tripling and now I think it is about 10 times the use that was common 10 years ago.

So let's not be so judgemental. I for one will continue to wear my helmet when carving, because that is what feels right to me. And it helps hold in my earbuds from the iPod.

The idea of wearing a helmet so I don't have to traumatize someone for life should I spread my head along the side of their car is very strange to me.

Kind of sounds like looking at the trees instead of the spaces in between.

Sorry for the threadjack Dave. I didn't like you being called stupid in the first place as you strike me as an intelligent person, capable of making decisions as to what is best for you. Glad you didn't get the ticket.

Maybe I should go back to decaf.

[Jack M]

Wow.

What can a cop do if you're speeding on your bicycle, and you don't have any ID?

who foots the bill when you knock yourself hard enough for a disabling injury?

it's cheaper to make sure everyone buys and uses a helmet than to have legions of head injured tough guys living off disability, your dumb ass now becomes my problem. seatbelt laws are a little more arguable for a few reasons.

Ok, then we'll also have to outlaw obesity, smoking, and drinking.