Stopped by the Rozzers

[nigel bickle]

Just got tugged by the local Traffic boys in my old 66 Dattie 411. Followed me 4 miles before stopping me so it wasnt unexpected. Thought my 'spirited' driving before he tailgated me might have been a prob.

 

But no.

 

Very pleasant Officer got out, donned his cap (so I knew it was official) and pleasantly told me that my brake lights weren't working. Somewhat suprised -as they certainly were for last weeks MOT (straight through, no advisories) I leant in & turned the key (immed start, 600 rpm steady tickover) and pushed the pedal.

 

At which point he visibly coloured up. So I pushed it several times -to prove the point, and switched off. I explained that I was taught to drive using the gears -and that to rely on 46 year old drums would be a bit ''silly''. Hanging back, and better anticipation being the key.

 

He mumbled that -with everyone these days dabbing their brakes every 30 seconds, he had believed my lights were out. ''Lovely car Sir- pleasure to see one being driven properly''

 

And i was away.

 

Cant be all bad -can it?

[Timewaster]

Excellent work Mr. B. Anything that wipes the smug look off a coppers face is priceless!

 

I thought this might be related to the dodgy advice in the Traffic camper thread.

[chaseracer]

...I explained that I was taught to drive using the gears... Hanging back, and better anticipation being the key...

Not just me, then - I was beginning to wonder! Good work, Mr B

[KruJoe]

MOT (straight through, no advisories).

What?

No OMG WIPR SMEAR FAIL?!

 

Nice one NB.

[nigel bickle]

Spanking new chrome blades. Got that one taped now. New blades, every car -every time.

[Pillock]

That'll never do!!

How are we meant to believe that all policemen are hardened cynical thugs a la half the channels on my TV after 7pm, when some of them insist on going around being reasonable?!!?

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

Maybe I am too demanding about what happens to my tax money, but I think that "reasonableness" is not the correct term to apply to a traffic policeman who invests publicly-funded time and money following someone for 4 miles and still can't understand whether their brake lights work or not (taxpayer training FAIL).

 

[i'm not saying "ACAB, he is bound to be a nasty piece of work" or anything else to that effect. There are a lot of naive/stupid people who nevertheless are perfectly pleasant.]

[Negative Creep]

If only there were more coppers around to stop those tossers who knowingly drive with no brake lights

[Guest Leonard Hatred]

I don't use the brakes much either, but probably enough to alert following rozzers to their presence on 4 miles of country road.

 

When I was driving my Rover 623 late at night in the snow, I think it was 10 inches deep or more, a police Freelander selected to tailgate me. Why do that? It's almost like they want you to slip up and crash, just to ease their boredom.

[gtd2000]

I've got some great stories about being stopped by the police but I'm not going to be putting them up here

 

Nicest police ever, have to be the Dutch - very polite indeed.

 

Being stopped by American cops, with what looks like the spaceship from Close Encounters of the Third Kind in your rear view mirror is certainly different at 4am in the morning.

 

It's sad to say but the biggest tossers, from experience, have been British cops.

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

I got stopped by police in Senegal (!) while driving a rented Suzuki Jimny, and got ticketed for crossing a solid white line (!!). I then tried negotiating an off-the-books deal with them (it was only a tenner, but "it's just the PRINCIPAL, innit") and got suitably rebuffed!

[oman5]

suprisingly, given the sort of crap I normally drive, I haven't been stopped for about 9 years. the last time, I was driving a 1982 chevrolet caprice, sprayed gloss black with gangster whitewalls, home from work at 2 in the morning. It had a straight through exhaust to make the most of the V8 rumble, and I thought that was why they pulled me over. but they had a look under the bonnet, had a look inside and let me go. they were just petrol heads who wanted a quick nosey at something unusual, I reckon. I had no problem with that

[Pillock]

Maybe I am too demanding about what happens to my tax money, but I think that "reasonableness" is not the correct term to apply to a traffic policeman who invests publicly-funded time and money following someone for 4 miles and still can't understand whether their brake lights work or not (taxpayer training FAIL).

 

[i'm not saying "ACAB, he is bound to be a nasty piece of work" or anything else to that effect. There are a lot of naive/stupid people who nevertheless are perfectly pleasant.]

 

Personally, I'd rather be stopped by the fuzz to check they do work than leave it till I get rear-ended. There was no mention that NB was going to get ticketed for them, and it might have been that they worked just not as often as he thought they should - loose connection. Maybe he was going that way anyway, and it was a few miles before he noticed there was something amiss.

 

Regardless, being pulled over for a friendly word when he thinks there might be a defect with your car is reasonable. I'd rather that, than my tax pounds go towards speed cameras or whatever. How would you rather your pounds were spent, what is a reasonable use of TEH FORCE to you?

[Lacy]

Just got tugged by the local Traffic boys in my old 66 Dattie 411. Followed me 4 miles before stopping me so it wasnt unexpected.

 

So, whereas I can understand a well driven car not needing the brakes on a spirited drive how did you manage to come to a stop without using them?

[nigel bickle]

Nice try. Rolled to a halt uphill. Selected handbrake, switched off. Until he spoke I assumed I'd been speeding.

[seth]

I read your first sentence and thought he was going to say that the car had been reported stolen

[Lacy]

Oh yeah, right, 'course.........

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

Regardless, being pulled over for a friendly word when he thinks there might be a defect with your car is reasonable. I'd rather that, than my tax pounds go towards speed cameras or whatever. How would you rather your pounds were spent, what is a reasonable use of TEH FORCE to you?

 

"catching criminals", even if that means harrassing mouthbreathers to find out where they get their coke from, or, if it has to be on traffic-related duties, going down the oval with a set of VINs belonging to cars reported stolen. Of course, things like those would require more effort than leisurely driving on some country roads following some quality shite.

 

I'm not saying that they shouldn't pull you over if they spot something that is wrong but this is not what we are talking about here, unless they just happened to be following the road as opposed to pursuing Nigel's Dattie.

[gtd2000]

In my part of the country, a tug from the police usually involves driving something that is slightly out of the norm.

 

1. You ride a motorcycle.

2. You drive a faster car.

3. Driving late at night.

 

I've no problem being stopped by a polite and courteous cops at all - I just can't stand when they try to "get clever" with you when you have not done anything to warrant being stopped.

 

Years ago I had a Corolla AE86 and I'd been out for a drink with my friend Julie (a very attractive tall blonde who did modelling at the time) and we were on our way back to her place from the pub for a coffee I suppose.

 

As we approached the car, a white police Astra came down the road just as I was hitting the remote for the alarm - cop car slows down and does a U-turn as soon as we get to the car.

 

I drive off like Mary poppins on her driving test, 25 metres from Julies place we get pulled over.

 

Bill & Ben get out the car - one comes to my window - the other to the passenger side.

 

I'm asked when I'm going and point to the blue door down the street - asked if I have been drinking and reply with a smug "YES".

 

A look of glee appears on plods face and asks how much I've had to drink, "two pints of shandy since around 7pm" (it's now about 11pm) - miranda warning given and breathalyser produced.

 

I casually explain that they are wasting their time.

 

Plod number 2 is trying his best to chat up Julie but she's got a disinterested look on her face that he's just a twat

 

Plod number one gives me allsorts of warnings that I'll be coming down the station and getting booked for drinking and driving, blah blah blah, I explain that he's still wasting my time and his - I blow into the breathalyser and it turns orange - "you've been drinking!" he says.

 

I agree and remind him that I've already explained this to him.

 

I also offer that I have a car, motorcycle and HGV1 license, so I'm not going to throw them away for a drive of half a mile or so.

 

Plod 1 tries his best to "shit me up" with tales of coming down the station but I just laugh, while he keeps on telling me the light will go to red any minute but I still scoff.

 

.....20 minutes later - the light not having moved at all, they tell me I'm very lucky indeed and they will let me go on my way but they will be keeping an eye on me.

 

Oh lucky me...I actually got stopped 3 times in 2 weeks in that AE86...

[theorganist]

A look of glee appears on plods face and asks how much I've had to drink, "two pints of shandy since around 7pm" (it's now about 11pm) - miranda warning given and breathalyser produced.

 

When I used to work behind the bar at a local pub I was often pulled over in the early hours on the morning. The one night I had a pint of very weak Mild, I got pulled over due to having a rear tail light not working. They also questioned on me why I was driving so slowly. I was doing just under thirty and Stourbridge Ring Road IS a thirty limit. It was also a very cold January night and was getting icy. I explained that I was worried about the icy conditions.

 

When the copper questioning me smelt alchohol on my breath he could barely contain his excitment. Of course I didn't even light up any lights on the tester and they were actually quite nice to me in the end, even saying that I was obviously a careful driver! I didn't even get a producer over the non working light!

[dollywobbler]

First time I got pulled over by the Police, I was doing 50mph in a 30 zone in a battered green Citroen Dyane with a striped roof and purple wheels. She let me off with a warning and was very nice about my stupid speed. And the fact that I overtook her. I've pretty much behaved myself since then and don't think I've ever been pulled over since. Did have the Police around once to complain about me stripping the same Dyane at the roadside. I'd got the entire front end off to make it easier to access an exhaust clamp. A local arsehole didn't take kindly to this and reported me. Police come around, but it's pretty clear that they can't make me stop (especially as I'd finished the job by this stage) so there was a bit of an awkward moment and off they toddled.

[scooters]

I got told off last summer by young fuzz about my lack of reversing lights on my SHERPAZ.....when I explained the road traffic act to him he called it in and spoke to his sarge who was suitably withering......kids these days!

[Torsten2001]

When I was 18 (1982) I rode my CB250 home after a party, I got halfway home and realised I had forgotten my crash helmet but then I had drunk a bottle of vodka. I popped back to the party and collected it.

Inevitably I was stopped, not for any driving offence but because they were stopping people generally as they were looking for a villain. I was very, very pissed but the nice copper let me off, he asked me where I lived, I lied and said about half a mile away and he told me to be on my way but be careful. I've never done it again.

[ashmicro]

I got told off last summer by young fuzz about my lack of reversing lights on my SHERPAZ.....when I explained the road traffic act to him he called it in and spoke to his sarge who was suitably withering......kids these days!

 

I've done that too. Just be sure you're right, though!

 

One night me and a mate were standing waiting for a taxi, and the police pulled up in a Mondeo, got out and said they wanted to search us. We'd heard earlier in the night that a number of people had been stopped and searched in the town for drugs. Since we didn't have any, we were unconcerned. Having searched us, the peelers both looked disappointed and a bit embarrassed (we'd had to remove our shoes). I wasn't happy with the attitude they had, so I said: "Which one of you is driving the Mondeo?". Cop says "Me. Why?" I said "That vehicle has a defective headlamp" and rattled off the bit about it being contrary to C & U regs, and that as the driver he should have checked the car before taking it out. He went a bit red round the ears, and then offered us a lift home (which we took).

 

One other time when we were in Belfast, we got lost coming from a club, and approached a police Land Rover to get directions. Cop said "Lads, bounce in and we'll take you to the train station"

[andrew e]

I'm pretty sure the Old bill are taught to brake with the brakes, not the transmission, so I guess thats why they might question it. But this is from 1992 when they let me take my SWALLOWTAIL OLD SKOOL GOLF 1 on Essex's skidpan, followed by a run as a passenger in an un-marked Scorpio, which was a masterclass of driving.

 

The IT department have portacabins on the skid pan now