matty01

[insane rant]...and these people saying ..."it's plain dangerous ,what if...."
"ban him for life ,he's dangerous etc" you display your lack of driving skill, observation of risk factors,and understanding of the theory of safe and defensive driving by thinking that if you can't drive at those speeds because you cannot process the road situation ahead then no-one can,basically saying..."i'm so crap at driving that i could never drive at those speeds safely anywhere,therefore no-one can as i'm.... 1)The best driver in the world. 2)Stupid 3)the guy who instructs the instructors" [/insane rant]

wazza2770

Good to see he got dealt with appropriatly. Nobody is above the law

Sbradley

Jesus, how long does it take you to look at the speedo? 30mph is 44 feet/second. Let's assume that it takes half a second to check the speedo. Then let's assume that you're actually Mr Magoo and it takes you a full second. That's an awfully long time to have your head in the office, by the way.

So. 200/44 to give you the seconds and then *30 to give you the speed in mph.

You make a habit of reading the maker's address off your speedo at 136mph, do you?

SB

cw42

iTrader: (1)

Just to go back to the original post, and the article that prompted it, this to me sounds like this:
he was going to use that particular the next day on the course, not the day before, so didn't have authority to use it?
sounds like the above, in that he wasn't supposed to be in the car on that particular day, so therefore wasn't insured?
a blatant lie, obviously!
since when has football training trips been the best time, when on duty, to test drive the car your going to use the next day???
that does it for me, instant ban for life. total abuse of his driving skills in my opinion, and no matter how well trained, an accident waiting to happen.
nuff said, good call sheriff.
so, in summary, top driving copper in uk, match on, offers mate lift to game, running late, takes the fastest car in the garage, uninsured, bombs his way to the game, gets nicked by a fellow officer, none of his mates back him up, stuffed. Loses job.

chris

akshay67

All this PC bullsh1t!

You get illegal immigrants driving around without licenses and all they get is a bloody warning.

CavT

Thought I'd 'muck' in. I don't speed in villages or towns, but on the 'open road' and motorways, I do put my foot down. Its not unusual for me to be doing near the 120mph mark, I do it all the time. I'm not bragging about it, just stating what I do.... when its safe to do so.

Is 120mph fast? Not really. I dont feel that at any second that my car is going to buckle under the strain and obliterate itself, nor do I expect to see any grannies/school children/or the infirm trying to cross a motorway either!


The problems with the 70mph speed limit, is that it was set back in the fifties, when it would take the average car of the time two decades to brake to a halt!! The majority of 'sh1tbox' cars are dwindling at a huge rate, and whilst the cars on the road become safer, and better handling, the speed limit is set at an archaic limit that has no relevance to the capabilities of our cars.

I'm not suggesting we should adopt autobahn speeds, but I can hover around the 100mph mark all day and I don't feel dangerous, because invariably, I've got people still going past me even at that speed.

If the copper in question was being an idiot on a carriageway totally unfit for those kinds of speeds, then yes he does deserve to get done, but the fact he is a copper isn't my problem here. If he is an advanced driver who on one given day can go at that speed, but on another day can't, other than not being on duty, what is he doing differently that makes him 'dangerous'?

As for blues and sirens blaring, not so. If its an unmarked car that doesn't want to give its location away until the last moment, they invariably don't 'light up'.

Before you all go condemning the copper (who obviously is in a minority in that he must be the only one on here to do in excess of 100mph on the queens highway?!?), remember that story about 5 months ago when the Ambulance driver and a Donor organ vehicle driver were going to be hauled up in front of court for speeding?

In the dead of the morning, when no-one else is around, someone saw fit to try and prosecute them. When it comes down to it that the patient or donor recipient could die because the driver can't put his foot down, you know the law is a load of ****!

Driving at 120mph shouldn't automatically qualify anyone for dangerous driving unless of course he was doing powerslides, weaving in and out of traffic, etc, etc.



He broke the law, he got done..... personally, I think he got done quite a bit harsher than he deserved.

[Edited by CavT - 1/25/2004 9:47:37 PM]

worley

Tonight, I did 120 mph on the A50, I passed one car (he was doing close on 100 mph). At no point in time did I feel dangerous.

My only concern was the thought of a police car parked-up on the side of the road waiting for someone like me. The thought that he could charge me with dangerous driving for being of no danger to anyone made me drop down to a 'careless' 85 mph. Why 85? because people perceive the police will not prosecute at this level above the 'limit'.

This lottery we all participate in on a daily level does not make Britains roads a lot safer, than say increasing the age of taking your test. If the government were serious and the perceived risk was equally serious, they would ban everyone who exceeded the speed limit.

At the end of the day the general majority want rules, they feel comfortable with these rules and it allows them to feel safe that someone else is taking responsibilty for their safety - misguided or not.

ADP

Soldiers dont try out guns in public before going to war do they, so he has no reason to test drive cars at that speed in his own time.

CavT

Bad analogy there mate.

If I was going to purchase a firearm, I WOULD test it first!

Mick

iTrader: (1)

Mercedes Taxis in Germany happily cruise at 120 mph to get you to and from the airport - If they did it here they would be banned for 1 1/2 years for dangerous driving

A few years ago the police here wanted the speed limit increased on motorways to 85 mph I believe, more recently they wanted it increased to 80 mph & the government still refused! - The major reason being given as far as I could see was that 'everybody drives at 10 - 15 mph over the speed limit already - so there is no point raising it as they will end up driving at 90 - 100 mph' - What an utterly stupid premise to start from! - Makes my blood boil!

AND no I don't think the police driver should have been banned!

Mick

Leslie

As Andy C said-he is authorised to exceed the speed limit if he is on a duty call and the circumstances justify the added risk to himself and others. It does not matter who you are or how well trained, those sorts of speeds will always have more risk attached to them. That is an undeniable fact.

His action in driving at those speeds was particularly stupid since he was not on a duty call, and as Burr said he might also be a civilian instructor. He broke the law fair and square and it will doubtless cost him his job. Was it really worth it? I bet he doesn't think so now!

Scoobynutta555, you doubtless think it is incredibly manly to deliberately flout the law and to tell us all about it. Don't forget to let us know what happens when you get caught as you surely will do. Hope you don't kill someone first though. Don't look for sympathy!

Les

homer lawtey

He was unlucky, and his "mates and colleages" didn't help!!!

I cruise at 105 - 120 MPH on most motorways, it doesn't feel fast. I would rather be doing 120 with a set of race brakes, ABS, $WD and 4 wheel steering to help me stop, than be doing 70 MPH in a 1.1 fiesta.

I have been down a motorway at over 170, and it felt very fast. 150 feels fast. 120 feels ok, but it all depends on the conditions.

Steve

Spoon

Leslie- Reading the article before commenting would be a help and as already mentioned in the thread, the chap in question was a cop.

CW42- Summed it up the best and to be honest I think the speed actually had less to do with the case than his lying, mis-use of a force vehicle and the fact he was uninsured.

Leslie

Spoon

You are quite right of course, I have read the article now and was mistaken.

The basic points I made are not changed by that of course, and I agree with your statement as well except that the speeds he reached must have had a significant effect on the sentence.

Homer lawtey,

You are being extremely stupid and selfish, both by doing those sorts of speeds on a public highway and also for telling about it on an open forum!

Les

[Edited by Leslie - 1/26/2004 12:16:40 PM]

Spoon

Leslie- I emphazised the speed issue incorrectly in so much that the title of the report and reason for this thread appeared to be solely speed related and it clearly isn't the case.

Had everything else been in order then I would say he was unlucky.

Taking into account the abuse of his privileged position, he has nobody but himself to blame though.

[Edited by Spoon - 1/26/2004 12:19:33 PM]

Leslie

quite right Spoon

Les

cw42

iTrader: (1)

here here, I think that lays this one to rest, and we can stop b4 anyone else feels the need to brag about how fast they can go on the public roads!

chris

Mungo

If he was uninsured, and had taken the care without consent, he should have been done for those offences rather than for dangerous driving.
He was stupid and got caught, and should face the music as much as anyone caught at that speed.
The idea of worsening the offence because of its severity so as to warrant a greater sentence seems daft. Unless the conditions (visibility and road surface) were poor, or he did something else inherently dangerous, that charge seems mis-placed. He could have been done for wasting police time for his apparent attempts to get off before owning up.

scoobynutta555

Scoobynutta555, you doubtless think it is incredibly manly to deliberately flout the law and to tell us all about it. Don't forget to let us know what happens when you get caught as you surely will do. Hope you don't kill someone first though. Don't look for sympathy!

Manly to do 120+, not really, maybe for somebody like you it would be manly. Anyway I have been caught doing over 100 on an empty motorway and received 6 points and a £100 fine, as I have stated on here many times since August last year, I guess the many times I have mentioned it slipped through the Mary Whitehouse filter on your pc. Has that conviction slowed me down? No. I see many examples of bad driving, most of which are under the speed limit and more likely to lead to death rather than going over a 70 limit on an empty motorway. And I dont care who i tell.

And "deliberately flout the law". No skeletons in your cupboard are there Mr Perfect.

Leslie

Nutta555,

I am well used to driving at very much greater speeds than that, but on racing tracks so 120 would not overexcite me at all. The whole point is that you consider yourself so important that you can deliberately break the law and drive at speeds on a public road which are grossly in excess of the speed limit and also produce a large relative speed between you and cars which are not driving at excessive speeds. As well as the undeniable extra risk that that poses, you also will alarm other motorists which is totally unfair to them. In today's crowded traffic conditions no one can complain at the national speed limit.

If you want to drive fast then generate a bit more bottle and do some track days where you are entitled to use the performnce of your car. With a bit of practice you might even be able to keep up with the others, eventually!

Les