patrickg
Veteran Member
bgott (and Bird et al) Wheelie in a post office Jeep van. Whoodathunkit? Never wheelied one. Everyone I got started, ran, and didn't have a major malfunction. Did have to clean a couple radiators to avoid overheating.
One evening I was cruising down the freeway from Carlsbad toward San Diego in one of the Jeep vans, way past midnight. A CHP passed me real slow and looked me over real close then sped off. Apparently he took an off ramp and then came back on because a few minutes later he pulls up behind me and lights me up with his light display. I stop, really puzzled as to what I could possibly have done wrong. I was doing about 45-50 in the rightmost lane with hardly any traffic on the road. The CHP has some kind of "Police cadet/scout/youngster/teenager in uniform" with him and apparently is geting off on an ego trip showing him how to handle us public enemies. He writes me up for obstructing traffic and says I went as slow as 45 mph. I sign the ticket AND try to not telegraph my true feelings about this incredibly stupid traffic stop. I went to court to make my plea (NOT GUILTY) and get a date for the trial. I went to the deputy DA'a office and told him my story and commented on how I found it difficult to think this was a "good bust". He agreed, pending checking my record and asking the cop if there were any "special circumstances", dropped the charge.
Another time I am driving a Post Office Van and am 1/2 block from home with a passenger sitting in a lawn chair to my left. A San Diego PD squad car lights me up and pulls me over. My buddy and I get out and walk back to the back of the van and the cop asks my buddy for his lisc. My buddy reaches for his wallet but I say, "Hey, I was driving!" to which the cop says to not interfere and continues to check out my bud and begins to write him a ticket. I step back around the corner of the van calling the cop to come take a look. He takes the thumb strap off his pistol , gets a grip on it and peeks around the corner. I motion him over and show him that the steering wheel is on the right (wrong?) side and he immediately demands to see my lisc and starts to write me a ticket. I ask what the ticket is for and he says for only having one stop light. I remind him that a vehicle manufactured in 1959 or earlier was not required to have but one stop light so he quit writing and after we chatted amicably he "fessed up" why he really stopped me. He had busted a guy with a van like mine but he got off on a technicality so he was just going to harrass him a bit. Imagine that, this cretin making a mistake and the guy getting off and then being lame enough to tell me what he was doing!
I regret not letting him ticket my bud. It would have been fun in court embarrasing this "trained observer" with pictures of the van showing the drivers controls on the other side, especially after getting the cop to swear under oath that my bud was driving. And oh by the way, I sort of "made up" the 1959 tail light law. Actually if a vehicle manufactured in '59 or earlier was originaly equipped with only one then it was legal but the vans came with them on both sides and it would have been a legitimate fixit ticket had he written it but the buy just ticked me off so I "spoofed" him.
I don't know how fast they were designed to cruise but 50-55 was winding the lil 4 banger tight enough for me.
Please, no hate mail because I "dissed" a cop. I have great respect for the rule of law and most folks out there with their lives on the line enforcing the laws but there are always a few bozos.
Patrick
One evening I was cruising down the freeway from Carlsbad toward San Diego in one of the Jeep vans, way past midnight. A CHP passed me real slow and looked me over real close then sped off. Apparently he took an off ramp and then came back on because a few minutes later he pulls up behind me and lights me up with his light display. I stop, really puzzled as to what I could possibly have done wrong. I was doing about 45-50 in the rightmost lane with hardly any traffic on the road. The CHP has some kind of "Police cadet/scout/youngster/teenager in uniform" with him and apparently is geting off on an ego trip showing him how to handle us public enemies. He writes me up for obstructing traffic and says I went as slow as 45 mph. I sign the ticket AND try to not telegraph my true feelings about this incredibly stupid traffic stop. I went to court to make my plea (NOT GUILTY) and get a date for the trial. I went to the deputy DA'a office and told him my story and commented on how I found it difficult to think this was a "good bust". He agreed, pending checking my record and asking the cop if there were any "special circumstances", dropped the charge.
Another time I am driving a Post Office Van and am 1/2 block from home with a passenger sitting in a lawn chair to my left. A San Diego PD squad car lights me up and pulls me over. My buddy and I get out and walk back to the back of the van and the cop asks my buddy for his lisc. My buddy reaches for his wallet but I say, "Hey, I was driving!" to which the cop says to not interfere and continues to check out my bud and begins to write him a ticket. I step back around the corner of the van calling the cop to come take a look. He takes the thumb strap off his pistol , gets a grip on it and peeks around the corner. I motion him over and show him that the steering wheel is on the right (wrong?) side and he immediately demands to see my lisc and starts to write me a ticket. I ask what the ticket is for and he says for only having one stop light. I remind him that a vehicle manufactured in 1959 or earlier was not required to have but one stop light so he quit writing and after we chatted amicably he "fessed up" why he really stopped me. He had busted a guy with a van like mine but he got off on a technicality so he was just going to harrass him a bit. Imagine that, this cretin making a mistake and the guy getting off and then being lame enough to tell me what he was doing!
I regret not letting him ticket my bud. It would have been fun in court embarrasing this "trained observer" with pictures of the van showing the drivers controls on the other side, especially after getting the cop to swear under oath that my bud was driving. And oh by the way, I sort of "made up" the 1959 tail light law. Actually if a vehicle manufactured in '59 or earlier was originaly equipped with only one then it was legal but the vans came with them on both sides and it would have been a legitimate fixit ticket had he written it but the buy just ticked me off so I "spoofed" him.
I don't know how fast they were designed to cruise but 50-55 was winding the lil 4 banger tight enough for me.
Please, no hate mail because I "dissed" a cop. I have great respect for the rule of law and most folks out there with their lives on the line enforcing the laws but there are always a few bozos.
Patrick
