Speeding Tickets...

[mudmucker]

I will never ever ever use my feminine wiles when I get pulled over. I refuse to use such tactics as I feel I would insult my own personal integrity. Over the last 10 years I must have gotten pulled over either for speeding or "rolling" through suburban or rural stop signs about 12 times. Ahem, yes that is alot. (There is an ongoing joke here in MA, that Massachusetts drivers drive like Ma**holes.) I'm guilty. Only once during these years have I been issued a ticket and that is when there was an actual highway speed trap set during a morning commute and several others were caught as well. My approach to getting pulled over is to remain quiet and matter of fact, and make no excuses.

As for being pulled over; I'm not sure it's always a car thing. I have a green Subaru Outback with a roof rack. However in my cases, yes, I was speeding.

My thinking is that these guys have heard every excuse in the book and don't feel like hearing it again. When they ask "do you know why you were pulled over" I say, "I think I have a pretty good idea". I don't bat the proverbial eyelash because of the integrity thing but also that they would certainly see through it and not fall for it and/or get angry for trying to do so. As it is their job to be stern, they are pretty curt, pissy, and with attitude when they approach the car so why aggravate it. However, my result is that they give me a warning, I thank them as I take back my license and reg, and drive off.

I end up getting free stuff sometimes. It usually happens when I just create a dialog making sure I don't come off like a "know it all". I get a free stuff from my bike shop alot. I do know some things that might be considered more male. For example I got some free stuff at a flyfishing shop after I was talking fly tying with the proprietor. I get reduced prices at my local construction home supply place, and at my local car mechanic. Now I would expect that male comradery would play here more. In the above cases I believe it is more a "you are local and supporting your local farmer" comradery. In the flyfishing case I suspect it might have been because I was female.

[Wahine]

I will never ever ever use my feminine wiles when I get pulled over. I refuse to use such tactics as I feel I would insult my own personal integrity.

My approach to getting pulled over is to remain quiet and matter of fact, and make no excuses.

My thinking is that these guys have heard every excuse in the book and don't feel like hearing it again. When they ask "do you know why you were pulled over" I say, "I think I have a pretty good idea". I don't bat the proverbial eyelash because of the integrity thing but also that they would certainly see through it and not fall for it and/or get angry for trying to do so. As it is their job to be stern, they are pretty curt, pissy, and with attitude when they approach the car so why aggravate it. However, my result is that they give me a warning, I thank them as I take back my license and reg, and drive off.

I don't actually bat my eyelashes or anything else, like show clevage. I do exactly what you are saying. But I think that playing into the male power thing, telling them they are right and how sorry I am, is using my feminine whiles. Also, I'm not a showboat by any means, but I have a clean cut girl next door kind of look that doesn't hurt.

I have a lot of pride and I would never do anything to degrade myself. Hey, I don't even even wear make-up. So it's not a being made up and showing things off issue. It's how I communicate with the officer.

DH on the other hand, always argues and gets defensive and he always get a ticket.

[Mr. Bloom]

DH on the other hand, always argues and gets defensive and he always get a ticket.

My tendency is to argue...but I don't in a situation like this. I could rationalize...there was no one on the road...I wasn't being 'unsafe' (however that's defined)...and frankly, I think the cop deserves respect for doing the job they're paid to do...a dangerous one at that.

[mimitabby]

So were you driving the RED CAR?

[Veronica]

The red car is a Mercedes. He said it was in a Lexus - therefore not in THAT red car.

V.

[snapdragen]

I haven't been pulled over since I was 17 or 18 years old. One speeding ticket, one check to be sure I wasn't casing some apartments that had been hit by burglers a few times (I was dropping a friend off).

Never got a ticket in my red car, sorry mimi! I don't believe the red cars are cop magnets. I was ticketed in my mothers bomb of a buick .

[whippetgirl]

I think it is a matter of time...if you drive a lot you will probably get a ticket. Here in California where there are lots of drivers I notice the cops in distinct places waiting to nab a driver passing by. Some of these places are legit: near a school, near a residential area, etc. etc. So maybe you were passing through one of those zones.
Agree with the red car thing.
And I can't resist this....anyone see "Little Miss Sunshine"?

[Thistle]

I agree with cc... i dont think police downunder discriminate. I got pulled over when i was 19, doing 81 in what i thought was an 80 zone... turns out it was 60 My fault... the policeman asked me if i had a reason, and i didnt - other than ignorance, so i didnt try to talk my way out of it.

Given i was young they made me go to a "driver information night" instead of fining me. Excellent idea ... i learnt a lot. I didnt get stopped for speeding again until i was 42.... again, i thought i was in a 60 zone but they reduced it to 40 cos of roadworks. I was also particularly upset at the time and probably shouldnt have been driving.

The lesson for me is to note the speed signs, given that I always drive at (what i think is) the speed limit or less. That early "information night" made a massive impact on me. I think they should do more of them.

Personally i'm grateful to the police for stopping me and others for speeding... way too many people die on our roads, and if it takes a ticket to reign me in cos i'm not driving properly, then i've just got to cop it on the chin.

DH has been driving 35 years and has never had a ticket - not even a parking ticket! It was so embarrassing to fess up just before xmas that i got a parking ticket (havent had one of those since the year dot either )

Guess we're just cautious in this household So, Mr Silver, I'd just take it as a remainder that we need you here, and dont want you (and Silver and the rest of the family) written off in a car accident

And my thanks to the police, who stop us from doing stupid stuff and usually dont get any thanks from us for doing so

[silver]

Hang on a second.....I never said I used feminine wiles (is that the word?)

I'm just nice, and apologetic. I admit what I was doing, speeding...and give a reason and say I know better and won't do it anymore.

I know that you've got to say whatever you say before they go back, cause when they get back they will have decided.

And I've only been pulled over ....let's see...1,2,3,4,5,6....6 times total in my 25 years of driving and the first two I got tickets and the last 4 warnings. However the last 3 pull overs were in the last two years.

However, I don't drive as fast and as aggressive as Mr. He knows this.

All the times that I've been pulled over it's been by a man. the first time was for expired license plates once in college when my dad hadn't yet sent them to me. All the others were for speeding.

I did mention to Mr. that the last 3 were after I got my ...ahem....boob job. And I wondered if it made a difference. However, they were, as always completed concealed.

Finally, I want to say that it's my intention not to speed and to drive in a most responsible manner and I need to do a better job of this. There's no better wake up call for this than to see a fellow cyclist killed because of one second of inattention by a driver.

[Tuckervill]

I got stopped a lot when I drove my red Beetle. Only got a ticket when I happened to be going 80 in a 55 (I had just passed someone on a two-lane and hadn't slowed down, yet). They can't let that kind of speeding go.

The other times I got warnings only. This is what I do: I make it easy for the officer to see inside the car, and I don't make him ask me for my license or insurance card.

If it's night time, I turn on all the interior lights, turn off the car, and if it's not cold, I roll down all the windows. After I do that, I keep one hand on the steering wheel and throw my purse up on the dash so they can see what I'm doing as they approach. I hope to have my license out and in my hand out the window before he gets there (I've never been stopped by a female officer). When gets there, if I haven't gotten it yet, I ask if I can get my insurance card out of the glove box.

By then, they're usually so disarmed and not feeling threatened, that they laugh and joke with me, and usually end up giving me a warning.

I got stopped in OK last summer, while driving dh's pick-up (red). I had the cruise set on 80 and I was in a 70. I didn't see him until it was too late, and I never slowed down. He finally caught up with me, and his first question was "How many speeding tickets have you had in the last 3 years?"

I looked him in the eye and said, "None." Pointed at my husband and said, "He has lots!" Laughing, the officer said, "Are you sure? Because even I'VE had ELEVEN in my life!"

"Nope, none, " I said. "OK." Then he went to his car with my cards. In the meantime, our son asked, "how many tickets can you get before they take you to jail?" We thought about it a while, and I said, "Apparently you can have ELEVEN and still be a state trooper!"

When the cop got back with my *warning*, I related the question and the answer to him, and we all had a good laugh.

I think it's important not to be nervous, and to talk to the guy like he's a human, and make his life easier. And never lie to a police officer.

Karen

[Mr. Bloom]

So were you driving the RED CAR?

I wish it were my red mercedes...since it was due last weekend to be ransomed from a 14 week visit to the mechanic for 'winter restoration'...

Instead, it was my old, boring, green Lexus.