I commute about thirteen miles along a two-lane road to work. The commute usually isn’t that bad - the speed limit for most of the way is 35 mph (there are enough cops around to make you obey that limit), and there are only 4 traffic lights. The only real problem is when you get a slow-ass driver[sup]TM[/sup] in front of you - the difference between 25 mph and 35 mph is about 5-10 minutes added to the commute. There are places you can pass, but usually there is enough oncoming traffic to prevent that.
So imagine my joy at what happened the other day. I was driving along, stuck (along with about 5 other cars) behind a slow-ass driver[sup]TM[sup]. A cop appeared at a cross-street and pulled out into the line of cars backed up behind the slow fuck, about two cars up from me. Suddenly, the cop turned on his lights and pulled into the oncoming traffic lane (in a no passing zone). I thought he was abusing his authority and just gonna take off ahead of the slow-ass driver[sup]TM[/sup].
But no! The cop pulled back in behind the slow-ass driver[sup]TM[/sup] - and PULLED HIM OVER! The schmuck got a well-deserved ticket for hindering traffic (I’m informed that Florida state law requires you to pull over and let others pass when you are (a) traveling below the speed limit and (b) there are five or more cars behind you).
This was on my list of threads to post, but I may as well add it here:
I was driving home recently sitting behind a police car at a red light on a very straight street. Stopped at a Red light facing us was a guy with his high beams on. No mistaking it - it was an early 80’s Land Cruiser with two rectangular headlights and they were really bright. Lo and behold, the Cop flashes his beams at the guy…no response. The cop does it again…no response. The cop does it one last time, no response, so after the light changes, he turns on his rollers, whips a U-ee, and pulls him over.
The Missus and I were going to Lexington, Kentucky, but had to fly in to Louisville, so we rented a car for the 45-min drive. That 45-minute drive took over 3 hours, thanks to two semi’s traveling side-by-side down our two-lane highway, doing 10mph. Seriously. We crawled all the way down. What’s worse, this long stretch of highway had no exits to speak of, so no one could get off. No crossovers to turn around. No way to escape.
Someone must have contact the state police, but they couldn’t intervene until the next exit ramp. I can’t imagine what would induce anyone to do that sort of thing. A cruel joke? We could see traffic backed up over 2 miles behind us. It was insane…
InkBlot
my favourite are the slow/fast drivers™. They drive twisty hilly bits of the highway at 50 (speed limit is 80kmh), until we finally get to a passing lane, and then I hit the gas, but so do they, so all of a sudden they’re going 110 (speed limit is still 80, mind you…) and I really don’t feel too happy gunning it ot 120 to get around them. So then the passing lane ends, and I’m a couple hundred metres behind them, but I close the gap in about 30 seconds as they slow down to 50 again until the next passing lane.
I’m so happy to hear that cops are occasionally where you need 'em, when you need 'em.
Two days a week I have to drive home at about 9:30 on a twisty, hilly, unlit, two lane highway for about 20 miles or so. Between the idiots driving with their brights (sometimes they’ll actually turn them down, AFTER I’m already blinded) the other idiots tailgating (can I tell you how fun it is to be blinded from both the front and the back?) and the occasional idiot holding up traffic (for some reason there’s a lot more oncoming traffic then traffic on my side at that time of night) I’m lucky to make it home alive more often than not.
