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Speeding tickets

What type of Driver are you?

  • Aggressive, I like to punch it some times

  • Extremely aggressive, cops be damned, just get out of my way

  • Passive, I let people go in front of me even if they don't want to.

  • Overly cautious, not only do I ride my brakes downhill, I pump them going up too.


Results are only viewable after voting.
I've had 2 in my lifetime. One in Emporia, VA . . . 15 years ago, going 80 in a 70 mph zone.

The other back in 1975, going 37 in a 25 mph zone.

The only other violation on my record was a failure to come to a complete stop at a stop sign.
 
I never had one, but I came very close once. I generally stay around eight over the speed limit, but one day I looked up at rear view mirror and saw a state trooper coming right up on me. I wasn't paying any attention to my speed, so I checked the dash and noticed I was going 68 on a 55 and then slowed down. He then came up right on my bumper, so I went ahead and moved over to the right lane conceding the fact that I was going to be pulled over. He went with me, but he apparently decided to spare me, as he went back to the left and passed me. I've tried to be a little more cautious since.
 
I am an habitual fast driver. Not reckless or careless, but I tend to drive 10-15 mph over the speed limit most of the time. But I'm a focused driver and an intuitive drive. I can feel when the heat is around the corner. I know what's around me at all times. It's because of this 6th sense that despite my lead foot, I have never had a speeding ticket.
 
Back in 1989 I had a Maxon radar detector that was having issues. That was when I met my beautiful wife and she happened to be a rep for Maxon and told me she could get it replaced with no problems so I gladly accepted. The next week I was leaving Louisville heading for Lexington and I was running late for an appointment when I got passed by two cars with KY plates just flying. In KY they have front and back license plates and in TN we don't so I guess it makes it much easier for the Highway Patrol to spot out-of-staters. Anyway, when I caught up to those two vehicles and fell in behind them I looked down at my speedometer and we were just under 100 MPH. We went around a curve and I spotted a patrolman on the side of the road and he hit us with his "instant on" radar which was fairly new at the time. He let the other two drivers go and chased me down and pulled me over. He said he had clocked me at 96 in a 55 and gave me a $120 speeding ticket which was pretty high back then. When I asked him why he stopped me and not the two in front of me he said "sometimes it's just not your day".
 
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I've had maybe three tickets in my lifetime. I'm like @coolwaterunc and generally keep it to 7-8 mph over the speed limit ("Nine you're fine, ten you're mine" is how I heard an officer describe it once). From time to time I'll do 80 in 65 or whatever if I know it's a stretch that isn't well-patrolled.

I just bought a new car that has a real-time mpg display on the console. It has actually changed my driving habits. I'm less likely to punch the gas needlessly now because I can see what it does to my mileage.
 
I just bought a new car that has a real-time mpg display on the console. It has actually changed my driving habits. I'm less likely to punch the gas needlessly now because I can see what it does to my mileage.


I get heckled for being a "you kids get off my lawn" type but I want it on record that you are the one talking about gas mileage.:p

Speaking of gas, and we do that often here blaming Obama and then thanking Obama for gas prices and whatnot; I've never really been one to complain about gas prices. Do people realize that milk costs more than gas? Do people who complain about gas prices buy a 16 oz bottled water for $1.49? Now granted, I remember paying 80 cents per gallon back in high school and then to pay roughly $4 per gallon a few years ago was maybe a bit unnerving. But for the most part, I still find a gallon of gas as one of the few things in life that's still a deal. A newspaper, Wrigley's chewing gum and a phone call at a pay phone are all on that list too. I think that could be a good thread.
 
I got a warning ticket in high school, and 8 or 10 years ago I got a ticket for "Exceeding the posted speed in a curve." I was going maybe 61 in a 55, but the curve was marked 45. That was in the 300ZX, which could have gone through that turn at 75 without blinking, so it was pretty silly. Reduced to 5 over, cost ~$150 in court fees.

I loved driving a nimble car and would open it up from time to time for a short burst on an empty road, but for the most part I keep it within 5-10 over. The car I drive now isn't tempting to drive hard at all.
 
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When i bought my wifes bmw i just couldnt stand it and punched on deserted river rd. It was handling so sweet in the curves. I came around the curve and met a sheriff. I immediately pulled over and he turned around and came up behind me. He asked if i knew how fast i was going and i said no. He said he clocked me at 70 in a 55 but that was "with the car standing on its nose from slamming the brakes". Lol. He ran my license and saw my unc vanity plate. "Tarheel fan huh?" I said "yessir!" He said "nice car, be careful" and walked off.
 
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three speeding tickets and i recall them all...

1990 going home from college right off I-95 in georgia; 77-65

1999 after a golf tournament i played in...congaree, sc near the airport; 45-35

march 7 2015 going home from a school auction; 47-35

got the last one dropped
 
I lost count. (shamefully hangs head and walks away)

Sadly...i'm not joking. As was mentioned in a previous post, I have always been a very alert driver and I refuse to even think about texting or fiddling with a radio while driving. But it's hard to explain -- When I was in my 20's, I always felt I was a more alert driver when I was driving naturally - which tended to be faster than other people. The few times I have been in an accident were all during times when I was driving cautiously.

That said, I don't speed anymore... We took a family vacation to Disney a few years back and I was following my stepdad -- he was one of those types that bought the radar detector, etc...he was FLYING down I-95 in GA...was going in the 110 range for what felt like forever and I had to keep up with him. This was before smartphones with maps, so I literally didn't know where I was going...just had to "keep up." When we pulled over to fill up with gas, a cop was parked there and it came over his radio that they were in pursuit of a car that matched my car's description going over 110 mph. Naturally the cop came over to "ask us some questions" and he let us off b/c my stepdad told him that we were on a family vacation and traveling together, so they must be looking for someone else. We got lucky that it didn't come over the cop's radio that they were also looking for my stepdad's car too. I'd probably still be without a drivers license today. So...that was the smack upside the head I needed, I guess.
 
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I got one ticket when I was 18, and I'm still kind of salty about it. The speed limit changed from 70 to 55, and the cop was parked right on the other side of the 55. He got me for going 68 in a 55.

As for my usual driving habits, I go about 5-9 over, depending on the area. Around here, most people don't even reach the speed limit though. That's probably my biggest pet peeve, like I don't have to be a speed demon by any means, but at least go the speed limit.
 
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