When the car next to you gets pulled over

Your heart still skips a beat, right?

This Saturday, a friend said, Hey, I need to drive my a car a bit so wanna come with?

So we took an hour drive up and around. Just nice to get out for a few.

While passing through a smaller town, I spotted a police car on the median. So I slowed down. My friend was behind me, and he did the same.

At the same time, I noticed a car coming up behind him–a VW New Beetle yet I could see the tires sticking out. Had the fenders been pulled? Pickup conversion? I better really slow down just to get a better look.

Right as he was passing me, blue lights. 

So, sorry, no details other than it looked to be missing all four fenders. And he got pulled over. 

Every time you've been stopped,  there at least 10 times you did something incredibly stupid, RIGHT in front of a cop...and didnt get pull over.

Been stopped a few times but also been saved a number of times by being the second fastest car out there.

I have been the faster car, probably 15 over, when passing a Camaro with my 245 Volvo through radar on I 78 in NJ. The Camaro got pulled over. Served it right, it was "parked" in the left lane no more than 5 over

I say a quick quiet thank you to the driver for taking one for the team.

In reply to Adrian_Thompson (Forum Supporter) :

That's how I look at it when I get pulled over, which happens pretty much once every 5 years. I'll try to be conversational with the trooper, figuring every minute I keep him engaged is another minute the team gets to keep up their average speed.

I frequently see drivers that are very obviously driving just a little faster than anyone else around them, while paying no attention to their actual speed.
 

That makes me glad, because often you get two of them together, and they can be the rabbit, while I can follow them at a slower pace and let them get the unwanted attention.

This happened to me just this morning.  I'm driving down the beltway minding my own business and come up on a state trooper.  No problem as I was driving mildly and saw him well in advance. Traffic is heavy and therefore somewhat slow so I pass the trooper in the center lane at about the limit. He's in the left lane, slowing down traffic, as they do (Biiiiiig gap in front of him). Trooper drops in behind me. No problem, I can drive 55 (or less in this case). I see a gap in the left lane and take it, and pick up the pace to 60 or so. Trooper immediately pulls forward and ... lights up the guy that was just in front of me in the center lane.  What the...? I had shared the road with that guy for several miles and he was perfectly reasonable.  No idea why trooper dude ruined his morning, but it worked for me as my commute improved after that.

TurnerX19 said:

I have been the faster car, probably 15 over, when passing a Camaro with my 245 Volvo through radar on I 78 in NJ. The Camaro got pulled over. Served it right, it was "parked" in the left lane no more than 5 over

They ticket for that in Ohio, now.   I actually witnessed it happening, someone was parked in the left lane going 70, people passing in the center lane, highway patrol officer pulls over the LLB and not the people speeding.

Pete. (l33t FS) said:

TurnerX19 said:

I have been the faster car, probably 15 over, when passing a Camaro with my 245 Volvo through radar on I 78 in NJ. The Camaro got pulled over. Served it right, it was "parked" in the left lane no more than 5 over

They ticket for that in Ohio, now.   I actually witnessed it happening, someone was parked in the left lane going 70, people passing in the center lane, highway patrol officer pulls over the LLB and not the people speeding.

Good.  I'd rather see them ticket based on the most dangerous things they see or the most damaging to traffic flow.  And not just based on what's most illegal or the easiest ticket to write. 

 

They ticket for that in Ohio, now.   I actually witnessed it happening, someone was parked in the left lane going 70, people passing in the center lane, highway patrol officer pulls over the LLB and not the people speeding.

About time. Georgia has a similar law on the books, but I've never seen anyone enforcing it.

Pete. (l33t FS) said:

TurnerX19 said:

I have been the faster car, probably 15 over, when passing a Camaro with my 245 Volvo through radar on I 78 in NJ. The Camaro got pulled over. Served it right, it was "parked" in the left lane no more than 5 over

They ticket for that in Ohio, now.   I actually witnessed it happening, someone was parked in the left lane going 70, people passing in the center lane, highway patrol officer pulls over the LLB and not the people speeding.

If you're actually speeding in the left lane but still being a LLB, I wonder what they'd charge you with.  Obstructing traffic flow, speeding, or both?

In reply to A 401 CJ :

I think it does happen occasionally. And people have tried to fight it based on the fact they were doing the speed limit, but they have still lost and been charged with obstruction of traffic.

This happened to me last week. I am ashamed to say that I was stupidly going over more than twice the speed limit but the highway was empty except for the other car that got pulled over. He was probably going 15 over only. 

I passed him like he was standing still and saw the lights behind me. Got ready to pull over, but not me. Took it as a sign to take it easy for another 5 years. 

They ticket for obstructing traffic in CA. I'm in the #2 lane passing someone in the #1 lane (closer to the center divider) when a HP car suddenly appears and blows up the person I just passed. Just goes to show: if you get passed on the right on the interstate, move over to the adjacent lanes until they stop doing that.

Sometimes, when I have nothing else to do on a drive, if someone's coming up behind me ahead of an onramp, I set it up so that this "rabbit" goes ahead of me and past the on-ramp first. One time it worked out exactly as anticipated, as there really was a cop sitting on the ramp.

A 401 CJ said:

Pete. (l33t FS) said:

TurnerX19 said:

I have been the faster car, probably 15 over, when passing a Camaro with my 245 Volvo through radar on I 78 in NJ. The Camaro got pulled over. Served it right, it was "parked" in the left lane no more than 5 over

They ticket for that in Ohio, now.   I actually witnessed it happening, someone was parked in the left lane going 70, people passing in the center lane, highway patrol officer pulls over the LLB and not the people speeding.

If you're actually speeding in the left lane but still being a LLB, I wonder what they'd charge you with.  Obstructing traffic flow, speeding, or both?

I believe it is called failure to keep right, or failure to yield.

I do know that they accept that the average speed on most 70mph roads is about 72-76mph.  If you are not being a douche they generally don't bother.

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

This was New Jersey, where the keep right law is never enforced. Also over 20 years ago when people really were driving a lot slower than they do now on the same road with 75% more traffic.

One morning years ago on the highway into work I was casually speeding as I always did. Coming up on a hill traffic is blocked on the fast lane so this lady and I both go to the right lanes going probably 20+. Well whadda ya know? There's a police officer there on the right shoulder running radar right beside the both of us. 
 

...and he was laser focused on the fast lane, never had a clue we were there. 
 

She pulled up beside me and we both did the universal *phew* brow wipe 

Last week we were coming out of town on a road that turns rural. The speed limit on the rural section is 80 km/h, but in town it's 50. Of course everybody starts to ramp it up, including me, and this day there was a cop standing there with a radar gun. PW saw him and warned me, as I was probably doing close to 70. I hit the brakes as a girl in a Mustang blew by me about 80. The cop pointed the gun and waved her off with about as much drama as he probably could muster and didn't look at me for a second. I dodged a bullet thanks to PW and Mustang Sally.

Which reminded me of a time almost 20 years ago. I bought a 50cc Yamaha scooter for PW, but she didn't take to it. So I decided I should probably have my fun with it for a summer, and that fun included a lot of mods. One day in the city there was a cop doing the same thing, on a similar piece of 50km/h road. I was maxed out at about 80, and the second he saw me buzzing along on the scooter, he dropped his shoulders, held the gun to his side, and walked back to the sidewalk. I was going faster than any of the cars, but I guess he didn't expect to see a  50cc scooter exceeding the speed limit.

In reply to Peabody :

The scooter had a Somebody Else's Problem field around it.  

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

The wife and I routinely say "That's SEP." 

Test drive of the new Miata.  Salesman got the licenses for both the wife and I so he let us go out alone.  I pull out of the parking lot and just start slamming gears.  Just E36 M3tin and getting.

Right past a deputy. 

I leave it in third and let the gears slow me down, pull into the turn lane for a u-turn and Mr Deputy gets all the way up on my ass.  Like close enough on my ass that I can't see the headlights of the Silverado in the rear-view, just the big ole emblem on the grille.

Light changes, I sedately pull a u-turn, he does as well.  Sits on my butt for a block then drives off.

I hate cops.

I had one cop save me.  I was racing to get back to the Navy Base.  In Arizona at about 105 mph.  Cop coming the opposite way but that was back when police radars were big giant round things hanging off the drivers side window.  Easy to spot and he didn't have one.  Phew!!! 
 But I know he's going to u turn and try to pace me.  So I ease off and   Blend in with slower traffic. 
  Lights, I pull over, all I can do is hope he doesn't take my car away. He announces he's got me. At 105.  How I said, politely more out of curiosity than any doubt.  He shows me his stop watch and the bridge I was on was exactly one mile. 
     When he asked me why I explained I had to get back to base.  Showed him my orders and the hospital admission papers on myself. ( ruptured appendix ) explained my father had passed away and I  stayed for the funeral. ( even had a copy of the  memorial). 
 He told me to just stay there and relax. 
    About 10 minutes later he came back, handed me my papers and license  told me to "drive safe but I had a clear shot all the way through the California border  except at mile marker 132 where I'd have to slow down to the speed limit because he couldn't clear me through them. 
   I made it!  A couple minutes to spare.   The California border people even motioned for me to put my foot down going through the inspection station they opened up just for me.