I drive like an shiny happy person

i drive like an shiny happy person all the time, and it has bitten me four times in the last 6 months. in Jun i got a speeding ticket. in July i got another speeding ticket. in August i overcooked a roundabout, slammed the curb, and pretzeled my right front lower control arm. two days ago I got a ticket for "improper passing on the right".

it's 2:37 AM and I'm still awake because i just finished replacing the LCA and halfshaft on the PGT. my boss was cool enough to offer that i could work on it in our shop, and that it was OK if it had to stay inside overnight. after driving a '99 plymouth voyager with 180k on it, i was willing to work late to put my car back together.

and i'm rambling because i'm really tired.

Entry fees are cheaper than tickets.

Recognizing you have a problem is a big step.

11 more to go shinyhappyperson

You've gotten more tickets in the last four months then I've received in the last 10 years!

I got a ticket the other day from a red light camera...I was following a semi too closely, and couldn't see the red light until I was under it.... got it in the mail a week later.

i just realized that i forgot to include the most important result of my recent streak of deserved luck -- note i didn't call it bad luck:

ticket 1: $82 ticket 2: $140 bent parts: $148

that's $370 that i can't put into my kids' college funds, take my wife out to dinner, spend on beer at the Challenge, etc. that's what makes me an shiny happy person.

Should we go back to TAFKAAC?

4eyes wrote: Entry fees are cheaper than tickets.

The hell they are... its around $3-500 for practice, qualifying and two 25 min sprints depending on the track. Thats like 3 speeding tickets right there -and there aren't even any pedestrians to dodge.

Well... auto-x entry fees are less...

in August i overcooked a roundabout, slammed the curb, and pretzeled my right front lower control arm.

Holy crap, you are a shiny happy person.

Track days are usually cheaper too. And you get a lot more time on the track. Those tickets and damaged to the car should send you a message. Maybe it did,bye posting on this board.

Karting is cheap. But better your LCA than a pedestrian.

David

Yeah dude - you need to get your autox on. As a bonus, you'll suck less and won't run into curbs, even when you are driving like an shiny happy person.

In reply to DILYSI Dave:

i LOLd.

z31maniac wrote: You've gotten more tickets in the last four months then I've received in the last 10 years!

It's more than I've received in the last 20 years (since I started driving), or at least it will be in another month and a half.

maroon92 wrote: I got a ticket the other day from a red light camera...I was following a semi too closely, and couldn't see the red light until I was under it.... got it in the mail a week later.

i just got a ticket from a "mobile speed checking device" - aka a plain black and white cleveland cop car they park on the sidewalk with no officer and a radar/camera set up on the dash. $100 - ouch. at least if it were a real officer i could get out of it because half my family is cleveland cops.

i saw it again parked near the same location yesterday, but a couple hours later it had moved.

I am in no way condonong speeding but may I recommend a radar/laser detector. For the same price as what the tickets and repair cost you, you could have purchased a really nice detector. Mine is on all the time and it is a constant reminder to watch my speed. I drive mostly city and it goes off frequently so I am very aware of the speed limits, traps and so forth. Let me say again............I do not use it for speeding but only to protect myself. Here's an example: I was recently in a small town I had not been in before. As you are coming in to town there is a long grade down of maybe a mile or so. The car naturally begins to pick up speed. As I crest the hill the detector goes off. No speed limit signs are visible at this point. I slow way down..........stupidly slow to 25 mph and keep that speed all the way down. This section of road was 5 lanes, two each way and a middle left turn lane. As I get to the bottom of the hill I see the cop hidden off to the side behind some trees and a speed limit sign of...............yup you guessed it, 25 mph. You would never think a 5 lane road would have a 25 mph limit but this one does. The detector probably saved me a $150 ticket. They want your money and are out to get you so protect yourself. Ok I will go away now.

My kid got tagged by a camera, pay $50 no points. It's a money generator in NYC.

His g/f on the other hand, 50 in a 30. Didn't want to go through the BS and just said "Guilty".

OK, she's new at this, but she has SIX brand new points on her license. Living in NYC there's also a $350 annual tag for being stoopid. Wait til you see the insurance bump ....

walterj wrote:

4eyes wrote: Entry fees are cheaper than tickets.

The hell they are... its around $3-500 for practice, qualifying and two 25 min sprints depending on the track. Thats like 3 speeding tickets right there -and there aren't even any pedestrians to dodge.

So how much extra will it cost in insurance hikes and/or paying the court fees, lawyer fees, and missing work to go to court itself?

fortunately i'm from a state that doesn't do the reciprocity thing with other states, so i won't get points and won't see an insurance increase.

and dig this: on the ticket the other day, i thought what i did was totally legal, so i looked up the statute the officer claimed i violated. what i did was totally legal, so i went to the magistrate to get it dropped. she said she couldn't drop it, but i could "just stop in the station and have the dispatcher call the officer, and he'll come back to the station so you can talk to him about it. the officer who wrote the ticket is the only person who can make it disappear before the trial." i walked out of the magistrate's office and BAM! the officer was standing outside talking to another PO. so i waited for a break and said hello and we talked about it for a while. he said, and this is no E36 M3:

"before the trial, i can amend the ticket to show whatever MV statute I want. i'm sure between now and then i can find another one that shows what you did is illegal."

so i said since it seemed that they'll certainly find me guilty, i'd like to request community service instead of a fine. i'll clean toilets, i'll mow the lawn, i'll do story-time for kids at the library, whatever, i just don't have $150 to spend on anything right now. then i explained the layoff, the working out of state, the living away from my wife and kids, the whole "woe is me" thing. he said, and this is no E36 M3:

Gimme the ticket. It doesn't exist. I'll go put a "null process" on it right now. Just don't do that again, because it's illegal.

i chose not to argue at this point.

in another "check this out", i drove the repaired PGT for the first time today. destination: the same place i was when i cracked it up on the roundabout. i did not hit the curb today.

Smart move to not argue at this point.

I got a wake up recently also, one ticket and a warning is a lot for me in 4 months, I told the 2nd cop about the first violation, he said because I told him the truth he would just warn me....whew.

Now slow down dammit

AngryCorvair wrote: i just realized that i forgot to include the most important result of my recent streak of deserved luck -- note i didn't call it *bad* luck: ticket 1: $82 ticket 2: $140 bent parts: $148 that's $370 that i can't put into my kids' college funds, take my wife out to dinner, spend on beer at the Challenge, etc. *that's* what makes me an shiny happy person.

Wow, tickets are cheaper there than here. I seem to average a ticket every 10 years. The last 2 even at 10 years apart and the last one was 3 years ago were more than that. Seem to remember something around $160 for the one 13 years ago and $180 for the one 3 years ago. Do you drive like that when the wife and/or kids are in the car? Hopefully not. Then drive like they are in the car with you.

http://www.hallettracing.net/ I rest my case Look under COMMA

4eyes wrote: http://www.hallettracing.net/ I rest my case Look under COMMA

That is a bargain! most places are $200+! Too bad I live many states away