Valentine One Radar Detector Moment of the Month
April 2009: Innocent, Whatever That's Worth
I was headed down a local freeway when V1 sounded. First thing, I checked my speed.
As the signal ramped up, I took preemptive action—over one lane and slowed down a bit
more. As I passed an on-ramp, V1 screamed! I looked in my side mirror and saw a CHP
unit sitting back up the ramp. I smirked a little; I wasn't speeding but it's still
nice knowing what lurks.
I continueed another two miles to my exit, maintaining the same slow pace. As I got
close, V1 started chirping, and the arrow behind lights up. I think to myself, "that
Chippy must be coming my way, but he's not after me, no way." He came up behind
just as I exit, and hit his lights. “What the …!" I'm trying to think if there
was anything I did wrong, because I definitely wasn’t speeding.
The officer walks up and hits me with those eight famous words; "Do you know how
fast you were going?"
“It couldn't have been more than 65.”
"I clocked you at 81 miles per hour,” he said. “License, registration and proof
of insurance please."
Wow, I was almost speechless. Keep in mind, my V1 is tucked nice and neat above my
rear view mirror so, at that moment, the officer had no idea I even knew he was sitting
on the ramp. He then lied to me, said he saw me speeding as he was getting on the freeway,
had a tough time catching up to me, and that I shouldn't argue with him. He explained
to me how he could gauge my speed within 3 miles per hour, and how he uses his radar
to confirm the speed.
By this time, I had enough. As I explained that I knew he was there before I even passed
the ramp, I pointed up at the V1. “Why would I speed past a trap at 81 mph, when my
detector is screaming Ka band?”
He paused, rolled his eyes, and walked back to his car with my license. Maybe he needed
time out to straighten his story. He came back with a string of excuses. He said he
was trained to do his job, and how well he did it. "But I will let you off with
a warning this time."
So, we're wrapping things up and just because I'm a nice guy, I thanked him. That’s
when he informed me he was ticketing me for my tinted windows.
The guy just couldn't help himself. It was his way of having the last word. I have
since sold my Subaru WRX Sti in favor of something a little bigger and less eye grabbing,
a Jeep Grand Cherokee. But no matter what I drive, I will always have my V1 with me.
Doug Hopkins
Moorpark, CA
