Saved by an idiot: Part III, The Reformation

I thought I was a changed man.  Having two instances in two weeks where the only things between me and really nasty speeding ticket were two drivers whose transgressions and timing were much worse than mine. 

 

This morning on the way into the office, I'm just going with the flow of traffic.  I'm doing around 55mph -- the same speed as everyone else.  I'm about 3rd or 4th in a line of cars and I'm not tailgating.  There are folks all around me and we're all just making our way to work. 

 

A stop light splits our group in two.  I'm the first in the line to not make the light.  I'm sitting there minding my own business when it dawns on me that this is a golden opportunity to enjoy the wonders of boost.  It is in the low 40s outside.  That is perfect for performance cars because they like the cold, dense air.  This is especially true for cars with turbos.  The light turns green and I accelerate away.  I didn't squeak the tires, but I did move away from the light rather quickly.  I shift into second and chirp the wheels a little.  I let off not long after because I'm approaching 55mph.  I shift form 2nd to 5th and just tool along in the low 50s.  I'm out in front of everyone by 100 meters or so, but I'm not speeding like a madman or anthing.  Officer Bob doesn't really see it that way though.  He pulls out from his hiding place in the trees on the frontage road and begins to accelerate. 

 

Now I'm not really sure that he's after me or anything, but after two instances, I'm assuming he is.  I really didn't do anything illegal except for speeding.  If he clocked me, he might have gotten me at 52 or 53, but I don't think it would have been anything more.  It isn't great that I accelerated hard away form the light, but as long as I didn't swerve or smoke the tires or anything and there was no-one in the lane next to me doing the same thing, I can't see that I've done anything extremely criminal.

 

I back it down to 45 and move to the right lane in case he wants to nab me.  I'm not really pulling to the side like I was getting ready to in Parts I and II -- I'm just being law abiding and making it easy for him to pull me over if he wants to.  Basically I'm behaving like I'm guilty. ;)

 

That's when my third miracle of the month happens.  Some chick in a minivan doesn't realize that the guy that just pulled out in front of her is a cop.  He didn't pull RIGHT out in front of her, but she probably had to have her day inconvenienced a bit by having to take her foot off the stupid pedal in order to tap the brakes.  She then proceeds to flash her lights on and off and honk her horn long and loud.  She accelerates onto the cop's back bumper and flashes her lights... tailgating him --- still leaning on her horn in a long, continuous blast.  That's when the lights came on.  All I saw was her and the cop getting smaller in my rear view mirror as I tool off down Rt. 50 on my way to work -- Saved by an idiot again.

 

Kinda makes you wonder what tomorrow's drive is going to be like, Eh?  ;)

 

Pete

 

Saved by an idiot: Part II, The Awakening.

Last week I had a rude awakening.  My morning commute usually starts a little before 6am and I'm usually in the office by 6:10.  That is the only way that I can beat traffic and not have my commute take 45 minutes each way.  I really like having the extra time to work on car projects or go for a mountain bike ride in the afternoons.  Getting off work at 3pm is definitely a plus. 

 

The other added benefit has been the lack of police patrolling on Rt. 50 through Arlington.  At 6am, there's a few cars on the road, but I've never seen a cop.  I don't mean never in the figurative way... like you see one now and then, but mostly you don't.  I mean that I had literally NEVER seen a police officer out at that hour of the morning. 

 

Can you tell where this story is leading? 

 

Rt. 50 is a 45mph zone from my house all the way to DC.  The flow of traffic is usually going 55 if the stop lights aren't making us slow down.  As usual, I'm blending with traffic and slowly working my way up to the front of the lines.  JUST as I pull to the left lane to make my way past a guy in a pickup truck that must be sleepy because he's barely keeping it between the lines, BLAMMO!  There's a cop in front of me and I swear he's just nailed me.  I'm kicking myself for doing almost the same damn thing that I talked about in Part I.  I slow down a bit and pull to the right.  The cop is pulling out as I'm JUST getting to a spot to pull into the right lane.  His lights are about to go on when this guy in a Dodge Magnum decides to prove that his car indeed has a hemi in it.  He's too impatient to be behind me as I slow down to get pulled over.  The Magnum flies out of the right lane and flies across the middle lane into the right and absolutely guns it.  He's got to be doing over 70 by the time the cop flips his lights on. 

 

Mana from heaven.... I'm forgotten again.  I'm now much wiser.  I'm not going to let anything like this happen again.  Right????

 

Pete

 

 

 

Saved by an idiot: Part 1, The Enlightening.

It has been almost two weeks since I had this experience.  I just haven't had the time or mood to write. 

 

It is really hard to keep either of my two cars at or under the speed limit.  I tend to go with the flow and maybe work my way through traffic by going a little faster than the general flow.  I don't zip around like a loonie most of the time.  Using this technique has managed to keep me from getting a single speeding ticket in the last 7 or 8 years.  Driving something as audibly loud as the Corrado or visibly loud as the GTI, that is a small wonder.

 

I honestly thought that the instance I'm about to describe was the end of this small wonder. 

 

I was driving East on I-66 on my way back to DC from Front Royal, Virginia.  It was an area that is rarely patrolled by police officers and everyone is driving at least 80mph.  As usual, I'm going along with the flow... not much faster.  Some people slow down, so I accellerate a little and pull around them.  That's when I see WHY they slowed down.  There was a cop right there with his radar gun hanging out the window.  He was behind a bridge abuttment and was zapping people from behind.  I saw him flip the lights on and pull out into traffic.  I slowed down and moved to the right lane... I knew I was nabbed.  I was probably doing 82 or 83 in a 65 mph zone.  It wasn't THAT bad, because everyone else was doing 80, but it wasn't good either. 

 

Something truly amazing happend.  As I'm slowing down, getting myself mentally ready for a HUGE ticket and all the joy that comes with it, a guy in a BMW gets impatient with everyone slowing down, downshifts and floors it.  He zips across 2 lanes of traffic onto the left side shoulder and passes us all between traffic and the jersey wall doing at least 90.  His timing couldn't have been more perfect.  The cop took one look at him and completely forgot about me. :D

 

I kept it below 75mph the rest of the way home. I considered myself damn lucky that I didn't get nailed. 

 

As the subject implies... there is more to come in this saga. 

 

Tune in later.

 

Pete

 

 

Bike content....

From interbike last month, someone posted up a bunch of stuff that I thought was pretty dang amazing. 

 

Craig Calfee has been making some of the most amazing carbon fiber bikes I've ever seen.  A few years ago, he started playing with bamboo.  Scottie and I bounced a few photos and comments about them after last year's framebuilding seminar that Scottie went to.  Well Mr. Calfee has built a bike that is close to my heart....  A bamboo mountain bike tandem. 

 

HERE is the photo.

 

HERE is the article. 

 

Pretty freaking amazing if you ask me.  I just want to know where to order one.  And better yet, what the winning lotto numbers are for me to afford the damn thing. ;) 

 

Love,

 

PEte

A different kind of benefit...

Okay, i was reading the Beer.com mailer (they've got a new beer.com girl!!!)  and this part of it struck me as funny.  

 

Boobs for Bourbon Street

Help Hurricane Katrina victims by looking at boobs -- a win-win situation.
GO!

 

I just thought you'd want to know.  

 

Pete

I won the Portuguese Lotto AGAIN!!!!

I just received an e-mail telling me that I won the Portuguese Lotto.  This is the third time I've won and I've never even entered!!!  I'm still working out how to collect my winnings. 

 

Hoopie!

 

Pete

Finally back on the bike for a tougher ride.

After touristing and car show geeking Saturday, I needed a long, technical mountain bike ride to round out the weekend. 

 

Elizabeth Furnace was the ride of choice.  I went with the MORE group and had fun going back and forth photographing folks as they bounced off the rocks and switchbacks.  I'll get that stuff posted up tonight.  It was definitely a fun ride. 

 

Thanks for leading, Chris.  It was fun lunching at the Apple House with y'all.  After eating 3 entrees, I wasn't ready for dinner till almost 9pm.  ;)

 

Pete

 

Mid-Atlantic Mega Meet: The Benefit for Hurricane Victims

Greetings. 

 

As you read below, Saturday started out in a mellow, historical way.  It ended with a bit more excitement.  Mega Meet is put on each month by a group that supports the sport compact car community.  It does a bunch of things.  On one level it gives kids a place to hang out where they won't be chased off.  It gives them an alternative to street racing or loitering somewhere where they will be chased off.  More importantly it gives people a chance to see some amazing cars and meet people who enjoy wrenching, customizing and driving as much as the next guy.  There are reps from different manufacturers and tuners there as well as a boatload of unique and interesting cars.  Did I mention the girls?  Shame on me.  They have plenty of those too. ;)

 

It was a target-rich environment for a photographer that enjoys a lively car scene. 

 

 

There are highlights to every meet.  The Mega Meets tend to bring out some amazing cars that you don't often see around here.  Amongst the Nissan Skylines, Toyota Soarers, Hachi Roku and even an Ultima GTR there was a little, white Datsun 510 that got my eye.  Click on the photo above.  You'll scroll through and find the photos of my favorite cars. 

 

Thanks to Aya for her patience as I photographed her.  She looked beautiful while I'm sure she was getting really cold.  Thanks to all the sponsors and organizers of the Mega Meets.  I'll be out again next month.

 

Pete

 

 

Working on becoming a REAL Southerner.

La and I needed a day out.  We grabbed a map, picked a historic site that had a place to eat and hit the road.  We ended up at Stratford Plantation, birthplace of Robert E. Lee on the Northern Neck of Virginia.  We'd been there before, but the place was half closed up since we were there in January. 

 

We toured the museum and walked the grounds and made our way to the dining room.  We were the first ones there to dig into the lunch buffet.  It was made up of good, southern cooking.  Corn pudding, bisquits and country ham, baked beans and fried chicken.  All of the food was made on site and it was delicious!!!  We ate like it was Thanksgiving Day. 

 

We walked down to the old mill on the banks of the Potomac to work off some lunch.  The mill wasn't open, but it still made for some great photos.  I'll post them up soon. 

 

We walked back past the Spring House.  It is a small brick building in the woods that has water circulating through it to create a primative form of air conditioning.  It was designed to help preserve food.  We walked in and it was definitely cool in there. 

 

Up at the Grand House they were preparing for a wedding.  We walked the gardens, said "Hi" to the goat that stands on top of its house, then hit the road heading for home. 

 

It was a fun and historic day.  It was nice to slow down and smell the flowers for a change.

 

Pete