That Big Bad Police man

[mrich12000]

:stick Well, So your motorcycle says it is at the right speed for you. BUT the:fight Officer says's you were doing the speed of the Earth rotating.:bolt

What is your comfortable speed on you bike ?:gerg :gerg

Do you believe that you are:stick persecuted and receive excess traffic:bolt (moving violations):buds :bottle :D
Or do you comply with the traffic systems?

:wave
New thread:violin :fight as we want to know:deal:dunno

[Rasbutan]

The only reason I can figure that we still have antiquated speed limits is because it's such a huge revenue generator for the state.

[BONEY]

I ride my motorcycle at the speed which I feel is appropriate for the conditions, taking into account the expected density of law enforcement officers. It's a complex formula.

[BouncinBob]

I ride my motorcycle at the speed which I feel is appropriate for the conditions, taking into account the expected density of law enforcement officers. It's a complex formula.

Yes it is. You have to include the propensity for the state you are in to use air support and the weather.

I consider speed enforcement a sport. I use a V1, CB and proximity alert for speed / red light cameras.

[RandyB]

The only reason I can figure that we still have antiquated speed limits is because it's such a huge revenue generator for the state.

We have a winner.

That and any idiot can get a license. We need driver training in this country, not driver education.

Wan't there a study that showed after interstate speeds were lowered to 55 that fatalities on secondary roads went up? Something about trying to make up for lost time?

[userw5]

I ride my motorcycle at the speed which I feel is appropriate for the conditions, taking into account the expected density of law enforcement officers. It's a complex formula.


There are many additional varibles in this formula. Including but not limited to:

1. Number of days, weeks, months, years from your previous violation.
2. Number of days, weeks, months, years from your spouses or so's previous violation.
3. Number of days, weeks, months, years from receipt of your insurance bill indicating an increase in your premium.

:rolleyes :nod :brow

[jdmetzger]

I tend to travel fairly fast, but it indeed depends on where I'm at. I think it also has to do with how fast you LOOK. For example, leaving the MOA rally last year, I spotted a police officer in the median, pointing my way. I was doing about 78 at the time. He didn't move, although he did look closely at me as I went by. Something tells me my 1978 R80/7 plus the stylish "samsonite" looking saddlebags plus the small cooler and duffel strapped to the back plus the full gear really screams "troublemaker". Now, had I been on a Yamakawazuki sport bike, wearing either a boy-racer suit OR jeans, tennis shoes, gloves and a helmet, he may very well have stopped me. No way of knowing, of course.

[screwtop]

I often ride on interstate 70 in Maryland, for which the posted speed is 65. I once spoke to a retired State Trooper about sppeding citations on route 70, and he said that most Troopers will give you 78 or so (in good conditions) before they lower the boom. That said, there are other major arteries in the state where they won't cut you any slack - period :deal

In general, I go with the flow. On interstates, I like 75 mph, cause the GS purrs nicely at that speed (in 5th).

Related thoughts....

Isin't it aggravating that the LEOs always blow by in the left lane at 20-25 mph over the speed limit? (for no good reason).

I agree with RandyB, we need driver training. Perhaps we could recruit Governor Corzine (NJ) to speak at the National.

[SheRidesABeemer]

What are these tickets you are talking about? Where I come from (or going to) they only give me warnings. :nyah

http://home.comcast.net/~sheridesabeemer/BadGirlSM.jpg

[GeoffMiller]

Ya,Ya, I tried crying too. Ended up with a ticket and ruined my mascara!:p

[crazydrummerdude]

The only reason I can figure that we still have antiquated speed limits is because it's such a huge revenue generator for the state.

x10000000

[jwhite518]

The first time I rode my Beemer on a long trip I realized that it just loves to ride at 90mph. It's the sweet spot on the R1100 motor. Must have been engineered for German roads. I feel very comfortable cruising at 90 when I'm reasonably sure there are no cops around.

I've taken track days and gone as fast as I felt comfortable. It wasn't a number on the speedo.

I've ridden at the specified maximum speed of my bike (132) for long stretches of empty Nevada desert. I didn't feel comfortable, both due to the bike's reduced smoothness and sensitivity to wind and road bumps, and also the threat of unseen cops or critters.

In town I'm comfortable at about 10-15 over.

To answer the underlying question, I'm comfortable going as fast as I can get away with given the road conditions and the expected LEO presence.

[terham]

That said, there are other major arteries in the state where they won't cut you any slack - period :deal

Like Route 50 around Annapolis?? I got pulled over there for "doing 58 in a 55mph zone." WTF? I guess my first mistake was passing a marked police car. He was doing 55 and traffic was backing up behind him so I thought I'd go by him very slowly. Next thing I know there are flashing lights in my rear view and he pulled me over. I only got a warning though once he determined I wasn't wanted in any states. He said he was going to stop the first car that came by him and I guess I won. That's the last time I pass a marked cruiser who's doing the speed limit.

[BubbaZanetti]

He didn't move, although he did look closely at me as I went by. Something tells me my 1978 R80/7 plus the stylish "samsonite" looking saddlebags plus the small cooler and duffel strapped to the back plus the full gear really screams "troublemaker".


i got pulled over on my airhead doing around 105 or so on a 55 road a few months after i got my license. my two friends on their modern ducs were behind me. he walked right past the ducs and said "i honestly couldn't believe it when i saw you go by on that thing with that old british helmet and goggles". proceeded to check out the bike for a few, told me that "he still didn't believe it" and gave me a ticket for 65.

i got pulled over two more times within a year of that, luckily, my appeals pushed the final decision date on the last ticket past the year, so no loss of license.

i slowed down quite a bit after that and have only been pulled over once since, by a VT state trooper who must have been younger than me, his first words were "i'm not going to give you a ticket" i thought that was kinda weird.

[kbasa]

I've had 110mph seem slow in southeastern Nevada and 25mph seem dangerously fast in downtown Boston.

[BubbaZanetti]

I've had 110mph seem slow in southeastern Nevada and 25mph seem dangerously fast in downtown Boston.

Burnzilla's K75 would only do 112 with me sitting on the back seat and my feet on the rear pegs, fully layed out on the tank with my head tucked in behind the faring. deserts make even slow bikes seem slower:laugh :bolt

[riderR1150GSAdv]

We have a winner.

That and any idiot can get a license. We need driver training in this country, not driver education.

Wan't there a study that showed after interstate speeds were lowered to 55 that fatalities on secondary roads went up? Something about trying to make up for lost time?

You hit the nail on the head. I have never seen such moronic driving as in Florida where even the dead have driving privileges ....:hungover
There are those who think it is a right to drive. Well folks it is NOT. I'll take a sip of wine now before I really start a rant....:banghead

[SheRidesABeemer]

Burnzilla's K75 would only do 112 with me sitting on the back seat and my feet on the rear pegs, fully layed out on the tank with my head tucked in behind the faring. deserts make even slow bikes seem slower:laugh :bolt

I'm reading this wondering where Burnzilla was in this scenario... :brow

[BubbaZanetti]

I'm reading this wondering where Burnzilla was in this scenario... :brow

about 150 ft in front of me to the left:laugh

[KGT1200]

While riiding around horsetooth reservoir west of Fort Collins, CO one early morning, with LEd Zep blasting the "lemon song" on my ear buds, I came along a yellow crotch rocket that I decided to see if he knew how to ride the many curves of this foothills road. Since I was on a old 400 Yamaha Virago with a loose chain, and he was on a hot shot kawasaki 900 somthing or other (give er take a cc or two) he pulled ahead by 4 car lengths as we scooted round a corner doing 90 and 85 respectively, and it was then I saw the smoke come up from his rear tire!

Well the cause of the skidding rear tire was parked 300 yards down the road (a steep hill) with his radar drilling a hole in my competitor!

I was now back 100 yards behind him, frantically jerking on my head phone cords, fully convinced at this point my ass was going to be hauled over as this big, tall state trooper was now doing to the Kawasaki!

And for some reason, he let me by...

I left the scene with a big smile on my face, saved by a puff of smoke 1992 or so...

Red

[wezul]

i got pulled over on my airhead doing around 105 or so on a 55 road a few months after i got my license. my two friends on their modern ducs were behind me. he walked right past the ducs and said "i honestly couldn't believe it when i saw you go by on that thing with that old british helmet and goggles". proceeded to check out the bike for a few, told me that "he still didn't believe it" and gave me a ticket for 65.

i got pulled over two more times within a year of that, luckily, my appeals pushed the final decision date on the last ticket past the year, so no loss of license.

i slowed down quite a bit after that and have only been pulled over once since, by a VT state trooper who must have been younger than me, his first words were "i'm not going to give you a ticket" i thought that was kinda weird.

So this would be the director of FAST. :stick

[Fritzc]

I play cards with a Michigan State Trooper and he says if a violator stops in the hot sun when he could have stopped under a shade tree, he/she will get a ticket for sure. Also he says he always gives tickets to pretty girls just because they think they won't get a ticket because they are so pretty!! So if in Michigan, beware!:nyah

[OfficerImpersonator]

I always strive to be the 2nd fastest vehicle on the road.

I'd prefer to provide Officer Friendly with a more appetizing donut to chase.

[Bike_Rat]

2nd fastest is my technique as well. Two nights ago I was traveling I80 heading east and I was only going a few mph slower than the Ford Mustang in front of me. When the lights came on and I pulled into the right lane I was happy to see the Mustang get the ticket.

In a weird way I felt bad.

[OfficerImpersonator]

2nd fastest is my technique as well. Two nights ago I was traveling I80 heading east and I was only going a few mph slower than the Ford Mustang in front of me. When the lights came on and I pulled into the right lane I was happy to see the Mustang get the ticket.

In a weird way I felt bad.

You can always assauge your guilt by offering to pay the ticket and increased insurance costs for the Mustang driver...

I bet you don't feel THAT guilty!

[Bike_Rat]

Nope, don't feel that bad :)

[knary]

I always strive to be the 2nd fastest vehicle on the road.

I'd prefer to provide Officer Friendly with a more appetizing donut to chase.

I want to be the second fastest, but it just doesn't happen around here. Oregon and Washington drivers are glacially slow, with Washington drivers in Oregon being the slowest creatures outside the Galapagos. On the plus side, it can make riding the interstate feel like a high speed cone weave.

If there's enough traffic, I'm usually within 5 to 10 mph of the flow.

[bubbagazoo]

Personally, I ride the speed I am comfortable with at that moment. And it's nowhere near the speeds some folks here are stating. I've never gotten a ticket on a motorcycle. And the only places I have ever gotten tickets are in urban areas (45 in a 30 zone type of thing).

[knary]

Personally, I ride the speed I am comfortable with at that moment. And it's nowhere near the speeds some folks hear are stating. I've never gotten a ticket on a motorcycle. And the only places I have ever gotten tickets are in urban areas (45 in a 30 zone type of thing).

Speed is very relative, as Kbasa said. 100+ can be a very mellow speed when you're crossing Nevada on a straight road with miles of visibility and not a thing to be seen beyond stubby scrub grass and stubby safe brush. And 30 mph can feel hectic and foolish in tight city traffic.

[mrich12000]

Today while I was comming back from Winham Ontario On hiway 86 comming into
Waterloo< Ontario there goes a Hyabusa at + 160 (metric) 100mph.
Me on my K75s duing a @ 120KPH blows by me, well sure enough there it was a new OPP black & white :banghead :banghead . First one that I had seen as the new cars hve converted to that colour from the familer solid white. He was nailed as I rode by thanking him for riding point Back home now nice ride. great little towns. Highly recomend that you visit Suable Beach in the summer as today the Ice was still in the bay :wave


Spelling Corrected thanks..

Mike Rich
VE3CEH


:wave :wave

[downhillhunter]

I commute (between snow storms) about 70 miles round trip.

What flippin' speed limit? I'd be thrilled to get into 3rd gear!

If traffic permits, I generally like to drive just a little faster than traffic. Keeps more of the problems in front of me and fewer coming from behind...but trouble from the rear still exists!

Saturday, I was stopped at a light, behind a muscle car from the 70's and he was next to some sort of Hot Rod from Japan. They decided to drag race a couple of blocks to the next light.

I couldn't resist. I joined the fracas. They were dishearted to see 'Grandpa' on his BMW, with bags, tall windscreen and what not...honking to pass.

We didn't have any problems with the police...but my wife was following me and
when we got home, I got a stern "warning" that I would have traded for a polite traffic ticket!

When I rode her 'new' K75 home from St Louis last fall...the darn thing was so smooth and quiet that I found myself sailing along about 90-95. She was following in the car...same lecture.

I think I see a pattern here. Some engines have mechanical governors, I have the marital kind. Probably a good thing!

Downhill Hunter

[MplsK100RT]

I want to be the second fastest, but it just doesn't happen around here. Oregon and Washington drivers are glacially slow, with Washington drivers in Oregon being the slowest creatures outside the Galapagos. On the plus side, it can make riding the interstate feel like a high speed cone weave.

If there's enough traffic, I'm usually within 5 to 10 mph of the flow.

Omg...Wisconsin drivers are the worst. Every time one crosses the river into Minnesota it's like i'm trying to drive through queso dip or something. And MN drivers don't have a freakin clue how to merge. (rant over) Whew!

[Rob Nye]

Isin't it aggravating that the LEOs always blow by in the left lane at 20-25 mph over the speed limit? (for no good reason).

I agree with RandyB, we need driver training. Perhaps we could recruit Governor Corzine (NJ) to speak at the National.

Greetings,

I once had a NY State trooper tell me to follow him to the barracks (very long story but I had to go press charges).

We got on the road and he immediately hit it up to 85-90 mph. When we were all done I asked him about the speed and he replied that they are trained to do that for a couple of reasons.

One was that if they go the speed limit or even 10 over they become a rolling roadblock. The other is that at speed the see more cars then if they are in a rolling pack and they always have a list of cars / plates they are looking for.

Just a FWIW.

Best,

Rob Nye

[BubbaZanetti]

,


One was that if they go the speed limit or even 10 over they become a rolling roadblock.

totally, i HATE when they DONT fly down the highway. it happens more often with town cops, everyone just rides along at 60 cause no one dares pass them. i do, never been pulled over, but have had the lights flashed at me in a "don't even think about it" kind of warning

i prefer they do 90.

[KGT1200]

Omg...Wisconsin drivers are the worst. Every time one crosses the river into Minnesota it's like i'm trying to drive through queso dip or something. And MN drivers don't have a freakin clue how to merge. (rant over) Whew!

Girls in red sports cars who reside in or around Chanhassen/Eden Prarie, MN are by far the most aggressive drivers, OBVIOUSLY without a clue that their merging and tailgating has the potential to KILL me on my bike!

These twits and others like them do not reconise a motorcycle as "owning" any part of the lane, and consider us a nusience on the scale of maybe a suicidal squirrl!


rant
over!
Red
in Northfield, MN

[screwtop]

Greetings,

I once had a NY State trooper tell me to follow him to the barracks (very long story but I had to go press charges).

We got on the road and he immediately hit it up to 85-90 mph. When we were all done I asked him about the speed and he replied that they are trained to do that for a couple of reasons.

One was that if they go the speed limit or even 10 over they become a rolling roadblock. The other is that at speed the see more cars then if they are in a rolling pack and they always have a list of cars / plates they are looking for.

Just a FWIW.

Best,

Rob Nye



Well that would explain it. Gotta admit, those are legitimate reasons for them to speed. It just seems like a double standard to me. But then again, the world 'aint always fair is it?

[peter_j_r1200gs]

i'm lawenforcement, so i tend to stick with the posted speeds (gotta practice what i preach). but my solution is buy a gs, hit the dirt and go as fast as you want.

peter
r1200gs

[ian408]

We got on the road and he immediately hit it up to 85-90 mph. When we were all done I asked him about the speed and he replied that they are trained to do that for a couple of reasons.

I wonder if this was the reason the NJ gov's driver crashed? Not sure what happened
but there was some mention of speeds upto 95.

BTW Dave, no speed seems too fast when crossing NV :lol

[screwtop]

I wonder if this was the reason the NJ gov's driver crashed? Not sure what happened
but there was some mention of speeds upto 95.

BTW Dave, no speed seems too fast when crossing NV :lol

According to local news reports, Gov Corzine's vehicle was doing 91 mph when it crashed, and the Gov was not wearing his seatbelt. In an odd twist to the story, sources say that Corzine (riding shotgun) was reading a message on his blackberry at or near the time of the incident. The message had something to do with an alleged affair Corzine was having with some other state trooper's wife.

Wierd stuff.

[wsteinborn]

I just got my R1200RT after two years on an H-D Sportster. :brad

The RT is so smooth, quiet, and fast I have found myself doing 80-85 before I knew it. I keep looking around the fairing for the automatic ticket dispenser that it should come with.....

[rmarkr]

I am a recent engineering graduate in a course that includes highway design.
The calculations that are required to design a road for use at a particular speed, or the converse, what speed limit should be set on an existing road, are fairly lenghty and include many factors including sight distance, reaction time, traffic volume and the like. Always, once the design speed is derived, the speed limit will posted at 10 mph lower. (The assumtion is made that motorists will exceed the posted limit by 10 mph.)

So, given the 10mph grace that most enforcement agencies do, exceeding the DESIGN SPEED of the road by a mere 1 or 2 mph will bring the heavens down.

I believe it is David Hough - author of "Proficient Motorcycling" - who states that the California Highway Patrol advises their mounted guys that the safest speed in traffic is 5 - 10mph faster that the traffic flow speed, and I would agree. A rider has more control of his/her situation when the hazard is ahead, whereas a hazard approaching from the rear is real trouble. Also, by moving a little faster than the traffic allows one to maintain some distance from the following vehicle/s and to have a better spacial awareness of where one is in the traffic flow.

Speeding fines are indiscriminate and bikers get a raw deal!

My whine of the day:blah

[BubbaZanetti]

So, given the 10mph grace that most enforcement agencies do, exceeding the DESIGN SPEED of the road by a mere 1 or 2 mph will bring the heavens down.


haha, 57 in a 45 on tuesday, how accurate!

[pcsof8]

We have a winner.

That and any idiot can get a license. We need driver training in this country, not driver education.

Wan't there a study that showed after interstate speeds were lowered to 55 that fatalities on secondary roads went up? Something about trying to make up for lost time?

Darn right we need driver training in this country! We need to make one whole *%$%$@ing class on MERGING! :nra

[Pat Carol]

I am a recent engineering graduate in a course that includes highway design.
The calculations that are required to design a road for use at a particular speed, or the converse, what speed limit should be set on an existing road, are fairly lenghty and include many factors including sight distance, reaction time, traffic volume and the like. Always, once the design speed is derived, the speed limit will posted at 10 mph lower. (The assumtion is made that motorists will exceed the posted limit by 10 mph.)

So, given the 10mph grace that most enforcement agencies do, exceeding the DESIGN SPEED of the road by a mere 1 or 2 mph will bring the heavens down.

I believe it is David Hough - author of "Proficient Motorcycling" - who states that the California Highway Patrol advises their mounted guys that the safest speed in traffic is 5 - 10mph faster that the traffic flow speed, and I would agree. A rider has more control of his/her situation when the hazard is ahead, whereas a hazard approaching from the rear is real trouble. Also, by moving a little faster than the traffic allows one to maintain some distance from the following vehicle/s and to have a better spacial awareness of where one is in the traffic flow.

Speeding fines are indiscriminate and bikers get a raw deal!

My whine of the day:blah


I strongly agree with riding 5 to 10 mph over the posted speed. It is the people in cages that are doing 20 to 30 over the limit. I try to stay ahead of the cagers.
I have been stopped several times by LEO. The first question asked is do I know why I am being stopped? I am very cordial and immediately state yes, I was speeding to keep away from the heavy traffic. After the officer checks out my information, he or she has returned with a friendly warning.
I feel that if you don't try to BS your way out of a ticket and admit your wrong doing. It makes the LEO's job easier and makes their shift go better. I am glad to be a fireman. The LEO has to put up with way too much BS. Now not all LEO's are good and the same goes for firemen. I have been lucky and encountered very professional LEO's.

PC

[rgvilla]

I never gave fireman a ticket when I was a cop! they might have had to pull me out of a fire some day!:brad

[SIBUD]

I have a wrist problem with my R 1100 RT. The right wrist. It seems that the bike is happiest at a speed which is over the limit. The only way to solve the problem is with my wrist.

I tend to go a little faster than traffic. It gives me options I wouldn't have if I was riding slower. I try not to go fast enough to attract attention.

I've been given the eye by troopers but I feel that wearing all the gear, even in the summer, helps in the perception of what kind of rider I am. I mean, what kind of person wears black pants, boots, armored jacket, gloves and a helmet when it is 95 degrees and 95% humidity? Most likely a responsible person who really isn't trying to flaunt the law.

MY .02 YMWV

[StevieWonder]

My wife in an ER nurse and she was stopped (in full nursing regalia) by a local cop a couple of years ago. He had written her up for 10mph over the limit. As he handed her the ticket, she told him that she would show more professional courtesy in the ER when he showed up there.

Prophetically and very sadly, he DID show up there nearly two years later but was DOA after being hit by a drunk driver while giving a citation to another motorist. The drunk driver was arrested several miles away and never knew he'd even hit anybody. He was subsequently convicted of vehicular manslaughter.

My only bike ticket (knock on wood) was a Houston PD laser cop who picked me out of a crowd of vans/cars that were PASSING me on a major Houston freeway. He assured me that I was the target vehicle when I questioned the stop (he had already started writing). There is no doubt whatsoever, in my mind, that he singled me out as a motorcycle rider. I was on a '98 yellow/taxicab K1200RS and I think we was taken back by the 55 yr old rider after the helmet came off. I thought it was pretty obvious that he was looking for a teenager or earlier 20's vintage rider. But he was committed at that point.

[mrich12000]

My wife in an ER nurse and she was stopped (in full nursing regalia) by a local cop a couple of years ago. He had written her up for 10mph over the limit. As he handed her the ticket, she told him that she would show more professional courtesy in the ER when he showed up there.

Prophetically and very sadly, he DID show up there nearly two years later but was DOA after being hit by a drunk driver while giving a citation to another motorist. The drunk driver was arrested several miles away and never knew he'd even hit anybody. He was subsequently convicted of vehicular manslaughter.

My only bike ticket (knock on wood) was a Houston PD laser cop who picked me out of a crowd of vans/cars that were PASSING me on a major Houston freeway. He assured me that I was the target vehicle when I questioned the stop (he had already started writing). There is no doubt whatsoever, in my mind, that he singled me out as a motorcycle rider. I was on a '98 yellow/taxicab K1200RS and I think we was taken back by the 55 yr old rider after the helmet came off. I thought it was pretty obvious that he was looking for a teenager or earlier 20's vintage rider. But he was committed at that point.

Shure hope your wife wasn't affected by that happening to that leo..
:heart
:type Thanks to all who have posted thier tales of traffic humour:gerg :

Michael