OT What would you do ?...

[tireater]

A friend of mine was coming down hwy 154 last night when he saw a car coming up behind him at high speed...
He was just starting to cross a long bridge...The car got on his as$ so he hit the gas and the car stayed on his as$...
He figured he could speed up and pull off at a vista point a couple of hundred yards past the bridge...
Right before he got to the pull out... the car put on it's lights and siren and he got a ticket for 104 in a 55...
What would you do if the car behind you seemed to be driven by the devil himself....on a bridge...?

[specialx1]

take the ball bearings out of my pouch n throw em over my shoulder(maybe)

[CraigArizona85248]

Hmmm... that blows.  Maybe try to explain it to the judge?  How fast was he going when the cop first pulled up behind him?

I had something similar happen on the way to work one morning about 4 years ago.  It was 6am and I was traveling due west when I came to a traffic light.  The sun was just up and totally blinded me in my mirror.  A motorcycle cop pulled up behind me.  Couldn't see here in my mirror (couldn't see anything because of the sun) but her shadow was long on the road and was ahead of me so I knew she was back there (didn't know she was a cop).  So I pulled out from the light... start to accelerate and the shadow stays right with me.  I can't really tell how far back she is so I speed up to try and get some separation.  Shadow stays right with me... speed up... etc.  Finally I just give a hand signal and move over to the right lane (had been in the left lane) to make my right turn in about 1/4 mile.  Make my turn and now I can see in my mirror.  She pulls me over and tells me I was going 75mph in a 45mph zone.  Yep... I believe it.  I explain that I could only see her shadow and that I was trying to get some separation to make a safe lane change.  She didn't ticket me.  But she tells me I'm supposed to have turn signals on my bike.  I politely pointed out that since my bike was a 1949 H-D I didn't need turn signals.  All good.

-Craig

[tireater]

I met this guy a couple months ago...Union high wire guy about 30 on a BMW offroad 1200...As straight as they come...
The real bummer is he had a comercial lic. for truck driving and a plate from Alaska on the bike...
Ins. will kill him...And ticket will kill his job prospects...Just a bummer deal all around...

[Princess Butt]

I've found the best thing to do is hit the hazards, pull off to the right, slow down and wave them past.

One time, I was coming to an intersection, and the light was turning. I started applying the brakes, and I looked in the mirror, and there was a car coming up on me fast. I rolled on the throttle, right thru as the light turned. Wouldn't you know it, there was a cop right there. He saw the whole thing too, because speed racer behind me ran thru the light.

So the blue lights came on. I pulled over, and Mr. Speed Racer went right past me. So did the blue light special, and he lost all interest in me.

BnEUC

[tireater]

There was no place to pull over....He was on a long bridge....

[Showdog75]

If it was a one lane bridge speeding up might be prudent BUT if it were two lanes he should have let the faster vehicle pass him.I've been let go 4 times on my bike since hot rod engine work. I just tell them yes sir officer I was getting on it , I'm enjoying the beautiful weather and my hot rod harley. Two of those four times I was running 100+. It's all about respect and good attitude. Also no lies and bull$hit goes a long way.   

[northbrun]

tireater, how fast was he going relative to the speedlimit  when the car came up behind him? to me thats the real question. if he wasnt speeding, then I would think he has a good case. He had no idea it was a popo behind him and he was scared of being run down, so the only thing he could do was try to save his a$$ and get out of the way. i'm shure we all know the feeling of having some SOB trying to push us out of the way becuse we are not in as big a hurry as they are. I would think that if he has a clean record he may beat it in court. I think I might even be tempted to ask for a jury trial if i had to. In mass.   trafic court can be heard by a 6man jury if desired.

[TooLow]

Our local leo's use that deal around here. They come up fast behind you hopeing to make you do something stupid like speed up or turn quickly without signals- anything they can then use to pull you over.  He can try to explain this to the judge, have no idea if it will help or not.  I dont know what I would have done myself on a bike ?  in a car I slow down when someone comes flying up behind me,figure iffin they want to ram me so be it. But on the bike its different.  

A little off the topic,  years ago as a teen I had this happen to me wile in my 69 olds 442. car came up behind me very quickly wile I was leaving town. Thought it was someone looking to run me so I threw it into first and hammered it through the gears. About the time I hit second the red lights & siren came on. Well I just kept into it and left him behind so bad. [I know stupid kid thing to do] later I came back to town and was parked. The cop came driving by, rolled his window down and laughing asked me " if the next time I leave town I would go a little slower, as my car is loud and he would have to TRY and catch me"  Guess he figured the Ford LTD they drove was never a match for my car.  TooLow.

[Jeffd]

If the guy was going the speed limit and the patrol car came up on him fast and was tailgating then he will have a strong case for dismisal.  If on the other hand he was speeding and that is why the Patrol car came up fast on him to begin with then he stands little chance. 

[Sonny S.]

If the guy was going the speed limit and the patrol car came up on him fast and was tailgating then he will have a strong case for dismisal.  If on the other hand he was speeding and that is why the Patrol car came up fast on him to begin with then he stands little chance. 

[CndUltra88]

Hmm, going through the Rockies here in Canada a few years ago had a car coming up behind me at a shade over the speed limit. Going through snow sheds with now interior lights (no electricity for lighting) and double solid painted lines with curves tossed in for good measure. I would go into the tunnel and be blinded for a few seconds as my eyes adjusted, after the first tunnel this car was still on my ass and after the second tunnel the road opened up for a couple hundred yards before the next. The moron was still on my ass  .. I had a few seconds to pivot in my saddle and look over my shoulder right at them and gave him and his wife the  big one fingered salute.
They backed off then and 100 miles later in Canmore Alberta I see then pulling into the same gas stop as I am and the ole lady recognizes me about the same time I recognize them.... but, alas I was back on the bike and gone before anything more came of it.
I would plead that case in a court of law wearing my Sundays best of course, and if the LEO had a camera recording device for his evidence I am sure the judge would the real course of action to take  in this case.
Sorry for hijacking the thread with my story ....
Rob

[blk-betty]

Jeffd makes a good point.  Not saying your friend is guilty just wondering is a cop's radar sensitive enough to pick up an accurate speed of a bike if the cop is following he bike with such a narrow sillouette.  Could it have been the cop was running traffic duty and had to get close enough to match his speed before he could accurately determine if your friend was truly speeding and in doing so scared your bud so he sped up to avoid perceived danger.  Once that started that I'm guessing the cop figured the chase was on not knowing the circunmstances under which the biker took off.

I know a lot of guy have been hassaled by LEOs but in 27 years of driving and riding I've never been pulled over when I wasn't clearly in the wrong.  Sometimes have been let go, and sometimes gotten the citation but luckily none in the last 10 years.  Funny thing is my driving habits haven't changed that much, just now I'much more aware of my surroundings and if I'm not reasonably sure a suspect vehicle is not a cop I take it easy.

In this case it sure sounds like it would be in his best interest to take it to court and plead his case but 104 in a 55 is pretty steep.  Maybe he can plead it down to 10 mph over with a claim of "in fear for his life" because as he sped up the car behind him kept up with his pace which only made him more fearful.

Best of luck and a bummer no doubt.    

[Bruno]

A friend of mine was coming down hwy 154 last night when he saw a car coming up behind him at high speed...
He was just starting to cross a long bridge...The car got on his as$ so he hit the gas and the car stayed on his as$...
He figured he could speed up and pull off at a vista point a couple of hundred yards past the bridge...
Right before he got to the pull out... the car put on it's lights and siren and he got a ticket for 104 in a 55...
What would you do if the car behind you seemed to be driven by the devil himself....on a bridge...?

I did the opposite a few years ago, and still got pulled over.   A cop was riding my ass, so I pulled off the road and let him pass, then got right back on the road.  He called that "probable cause".  After explaining to him that I get nervous when cars follow my bike too closely he let me go, but not before successfully running a check on me (his original intent I am sure).

Your friend should never have let the cop (or anybody else) "push him" into driving any other way than he himself intended to drive. Either slow down and let him pass, or pull over. That is likely what the judge will tell him when he dishes out the fine. Spend some big bucks on a lawyer and maybe get the charge reduced, but I don't see any bright side to this (other than educating the other posters).

[tireater]

It's just too bad this all happened at night...The bridge has one ane each way and about 2ft extra...There is no place to pull over...
This guy has been waiting for the weather to break so he can travel around the US to do high wire work...it's a bummer...
Does anyone know the name of the service you pay to have a lawyer represent you for traffic cases...?

[apendejo]

My sister in-law got off work from swing shift and was heading home, AZ 95, Ft Mohave area. She had a car come flying up on her 6 then throw the high beams and just hung there about a foot off the bumper. She slowed down put on her right turn signal and started to pull over into the dirt. Thats when the trooper turned on the gumball machine.
He walked up to her window and wanted to know why she slowed from 45, then put on her turn signal. She replied that he was behaving like a typical late night drunk driver and scared the crap out of her. He just did the blink-stare, then told her to drive safe.
AP

[HroadhogD1]

  He probably thought she was a drunk driver.

[wavlovr1]

Following too close is annoying to say the least. I usually slow down and wave them around. You wouldn't believe how many tickets I seen given for passing me in a no passing zone...

jb

[stro1965]

Unless he can convince a judge that he thought there was an axe murderer behind him he's toast.  104 is too high to expect any kind of a break.  Just guessing here, but I would say that the cop came up fast because he was trying to catch him for a traffic violation he'd observed and followed for a while to see if maybe the driver was drunk.  When your buddy kept speeding up, he figured well, let's see how fast he wants to go!

[Geezerglidebill]

If it happened the way your friend said it happened then what the cop did is called inticement and it's against the law in Texas.

GGB

[HyperDetroit]

Due to his having a commercial license, this would be a really bad thing on a record.  If I were in his shoes, I would talk with an attorney and see what can be done about it.  Who knows, a lawyer may be able to reduce it to something negligible, or even turn it into a very expensive ticket with no violation on driving record.  Either way, I would ask an attorney what can be done about it.

Good Luck
Hyper

[bigblock6912]

tireater- i know the guy you're talking about. i would believe his story. i'm suprised thought that he was not arrested for the 104 mph though. he definitely needs to at least talk to a lawyer though. there's a office that advertizes on kfwb news that claims 95% success rate. i'll see if i can catch their # in the morn.....bill

[tireater]

Thanks...He is one of the more normal people who spend alot of time at the store...He seems like a real straight shooter...
I know he dosen't have good internet access so I thought I would try to help him out...Even if he rides the wrong flavor...

[bigblock6912]

have him call adam pearlman[santa barbara attorn] says he has free consultation. he knows s.b. area cops judges etc. may or may not help. 805-957-1665. worth a try

[tireater]

Thanks..........I think there is a National group of lawyers that just handles traffic cases and has good results....