Speed Trap in the middle of nowhere

Energy One

Brent Herridge

Active Member
On Good Friday I had the day off and great weather, so I head to one of my favorite trails - an open road with no traffice, nearly 2 hours from Austin, and even 20 miles from Fredericksburg......... and I top a hill and a state highway patrol is waiting for me.

He pulls me over on the only paved driveway in the region, so thankfully he planned ahead and I was able to actually pull over.

I asked what possessed him to waste a day waiting to catch one biker, and he admitted "Somebody called to complain about the motorcycles."

I was infuriated !!! One blue-haired whiner gets their own private task force, and I get caught for breaking an artificially low 55 mph speed limit. I turned around and he was still there when I came back. Thankfully my speedo worked for the first time on that leg of the trip.

It just ain't right........the only thing funny about it was the cop was named Bacon. Officer Bacon....:)

Fredburg Ticket_small.JPG ticket_map.jpg
 
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41bigdawg

Let the Big Dawg eat !
Supporting Member
What a bunch of crap :chopper:

Thank you Officer Bacon...oink

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Rottweiler

Well-Known Member
I bet the complaint came from someone that knows someone on the force. Hello it's spring time ever one with a bike has to open it up a little.


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Minuteman

Well-Known Member
Supporting Member
Probably some kid with a crotch rocket has been zipping up and down that stretch of rode and you just happen to come by at the wrong time.
 

Nukeranger

Nukeranger
Supporting Member
I thought the normal speed limit for Texas was at least 70mph. I remember once going through a school zone that said to slow down to 70 mph and I laughed my ass off.
 

Th3InfamousI

Administrator
Staff member
Brent I wouldnt consider that middle of nowhere! Highway 16 and that willow city loop is pretty heavy MC traffic! That's why the cop was there

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badyellowvette

Active Member
My last stop for speeding was 80 in a 55 in the Corvette. He asked me when my last speeding ticket was, I told him I didn't know. He came back to the car and said your last ticket was !988, he ticketed me for 60 in a 55. This whole County is in the middle of nowhere.
 

Brent Herridge

Active Member
Yes 70 is the norm, which is another reason this is so infuriating. No visible reason to reduce it to 55 in the middle of nowhere. Of course its prime biker country. The cop was honest - he was there specifically for bikes.

Yes we have defensive driving. Because of that the additional tax I'll have to pay for this ride will be about $150. It'll be more interesting next time if it happens in less than a year. Hopefully he's filled his quota and they can honestly tell the whiner they busted a few bikers and won't actually do it again. I hope not to find out the hard way..........
 

Ray

Well-Known Member
round here you ain't really speeding unless you are doing at least double the suggested posted speed limit, but I have slowed my ole azz down after talking my way out of a few ,, I do try to do the suggested posted speed limit now days,, every once in a while,, I might lay into it,, :) 70 in a 55 I'd whined my way out off that,,, if that didn't work,, I feel sure I'd piss him off worst,,:)
 

Badpit

Member
I doubt they were targeting motorcycles in actuality motorcycles get pulled over much less than cars/trucks I’m gonna say you got a ticket because you were exceeding the speed limit signs that are posted.
 

Brent Herridge

Active Member
I was not kidding. I point blank asked the cop why he was in the middle of nowhere and he honestly (not jokingly) replied "People called to complain about the motorcycles.".

And like I said, he thankfully was operating from the only place within 30 miles that I could actually pull off the road.

Thanks for small favors.......
 

Ed U. Cator

Higher Ed.
Many years ago I had a state boy stand in the middle of the highway & flag me over for doing 115 in a 55mph zone. I was in my '55 Chevy Sedan Delivery street rod w/ 427 RAT motor. He had me pull in behind another motorist he stopped. When it was my turn he cited me for no reverse lights, too high of a rear bumper, no factory front bumper, too short of an exhaust system & speeding. I explained that it's licensed as a 1/2-ton truck and exempt from all of his charges other than speeding. He got nasty with the language at that point. I had to take it to state inspection garage whereby the mechanic verified in writing the state inspection code for trucks, and '55 chevy reverse lights were a factory option back then. Bumpers weren't required for that "truck" and air suspension was legal. I had drag push bars on it. I paid a $72 fine in the end & 2 points. After too many speeding tickets I sold it and got a boat!
 

Dispatch

Active Member
In all fairness when I first started, I worked traffic on a motorcycle for many years in my department, I have to say you would be shocked at how many drivers (yes bikers too), that rocket through residential neighborhoods on a daily basis at deadly speeds without any concern for the safety and welfare of its residents, these are the same roads where children walk to and from school. In doing what we do we can prevent deaths and serious injuries on those roads, not to mention how many drivers that are under the influence especially during community events.

As with year round tourist related events down here, when people are on vacation in addition to being in a rental vehicle, they think they can throw care to the wind and act totally different than they do at home.

Yes, I can understand how some might think road policing is sneaky but it is not.

The proof is in the numbers. People are still crashing, they are just safer doing so.

What we do lowers speed along the entire corridor and further reduces the likelihood of a deadly or serious injury crash.

If you have sustained, saturated enforcement, consistently over time, it will effectively change behavior. Random enforcement doesn't do anything but just issue tickets.

Driving speeds around speed enforcement zones drop by 40 to 60 percent.

If you get a speeding ticket when passing one of these speed enforcements, you simply got caught. Entrapment, on the other hand, is when someone creates a set of circumstances to get you to commit a crime you would otherwise not commit...
 
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