Cop Stories - Personal and Family II

Coffypot left a comment on the blog that triggered a few memories.

If you travel US 287 from Colorado to Texas you will drive about 48 miles in Oklahoma. One day I’m heading South and an Oklahoma trooper passed me Northbound. In my mirror saw him turn around. Shit! At the next wide spot I pulled over. It was me he wanted to talk to. He had me walk back to his cruiser and get in the front passenger seat (to insure the audio/video had the best chance to record everything although the trooper didn’t mention any of that). When in that situation truth can be your friend.

“How fast were you going?”

“I don’t know, I wasn’t paying attention to my speedometer”.

After a few more minutes of chit chat, He said. “Mr. White, it is only eight miles to the Texas line. Do you think you can stay within the limit for eight miles?”

“Yes Officer, I believe I can”. So, on my way with no ticket.

At the time I was driving a green Ford Escort Wagon with numerous dents, bins full of sales material (rear seat removed) and commercial grade red/silver reflective tape on the rear bumper. Noticeable, it was.

Two weeks later I was going from Texas to Colorado on US 287 and stopped in Boise City to use the sanitary facilities and get some coffee. Upon returning to my car I heard someone call my name.

“Mr. White, I am very pleased to see you obeying the speed limit in Oklahoma”.

“Officer, I didn’t see you’.

“We’re sneaky that way”.

To this day I’m very careful on US 287 in Oklahoma.

(That picture of the Escort was taken where CO, WY, and NE meet at Tri Corners)

Meeting the Colorado State Patrol

Had a meeting with a Colorado State Trooper Wednesday night. Small matter of speeding was the reason.

Highway 285 from Evergreen to Fairplay  is one steep hill after another with many wicked curves in the Foothills Southeast of Denver. With all the years of development in the area, there are numerous driveways, feeder roads and county highways along the route. The general speed limit is 55 mph. At night, the road is lousy with deer and an occasional elk.

A fun road on a motorcycle or sporty car, it isn’t much fun in a 1 ton Econoline with weight aboard. The Econoline is to sports cars what Karen Lewis, Chicago Teachers Union President, is to Sports Illustrated swimsuit models.

With the GPS units now in the company vehicles, I’ve  been paying much closer attention to my speed. Climbing a steep hill section, I didn’t get off the throttle as I came over the crest. The trooper was sitting in a driveway just over the crest. Must have been an unmarked car as the reflective tape on most patrol cars can be seen as far away as your lights reach.

Two miles down the road I was totally surprised when his lights came on. Damn, I’m getting old.  After pulling over, I immediately turned on my interior lights, rolled down the window, and had my hands on top of the  steering wheel as he came to the window. After he introduced himself and told me why he stopped me (65 mph), he took a close look at my eyes and took a deep breath through his nose. Seeing I was sober, he said he wasn’t going to cite me. Then he saw the PUC and DOT stuff on the door. Said if he had seen that he wouldn’t have stopped me at all. He had followed me for two miles while I was doing the speed limit. He didn’t say it, but I’m sure he was looking for drunks, not  overage hotshot freight drivers.

With the commercial truck wrinkle, he had about thirty minutes of paperwork to do, log books, bill of ladings, DOT physical card, drivers license, registration, insurance cards, and safety inspection documents to examine and a report to prepare. At the end, no citation and no infractions against the company; just a report to be filed within 15 days.

One thing I noticed was he never had his back to me on all the trips back to his car.  Totally professional, he was courteous and pleasant the entire time (as was I).

I remarked on his accent. Seems he was from England and had been a policeman there, in Bermuda, and elsewhere. He has worked in five countries; his way of getting to see the world.

I really don’t like being stopped by the police. That said, it doesn’t get better than this.