First time pulled over (Speeding) while carrying, Plano, TX!

[2up1down]

Laser/Radar detectors: I drive a chemical tanker from Houston to Dallas, unload, and return to Houston every week day. That's a total of over 520 miles, enduring Houston morning rush and Houston evening rush hour every day. As far as radar/laser detectors go,, I'm old school, my cheap $49 CB out reaches any radar/laser gun out there, plus I know about wrecks and construction soon enough to usually evade them.

Speeding: After spending many years driving Fire Trucks and Ambulances as a Volunteer Fire Captain, I have seen my fair share of what happens when motorist fail to realize that they are not more important than the other folks sharing the road.

Speed isn't necessarily the issue, it's how attentive and courteous you are.

When you are hauling 6500 gallons of liquid hazardous material (Flammables, Acids, Poisons) you appreciate those who actually pay attention to what they are doing while propelling a 2000lb + projectile down the road. If you feel that your time is so much more important than everyone else, then go ahead and recklessly weave in and out of traffic, read a book, TEXT, or TALK ON YOUR PHONE! You may as well fire your weapon up in the air at a packed football stadium, you are risking just as many lives. (DOT survey, 45000 vehicles travel I-45 daily). A little known secret, those of us who leave are families and put ourselves in the way of the harm you pose because of your a fore mentioned driving behaviors, to simply do our job, often will not hesitate letting the nearest Full Grown Bear, County Monty, or local PoPo, know you are headed their way acting like a fool.

Just remember that next ticket you may receive may be courtesy of a Professional Truck Driver who values your life and everyone else on the road more than you do. I make no apologies for doing everything I can to insure the safety of ALL who use our roadways. Amateur race car drivers need to leave it to their video games.

[LAYGO]

2up1down, I'm very much aware of those around me. I'm one of those folks that signal truckers with my lights when they've got space and or slow down, pull in halfway behind them to show them (since my new headlights take like 3 seconds to come on). I'm also one that still flashes lights when I've seen a speed trap set up.

Just because I'm driving faster, doesn't mean I'm not paying attention. I of course can only speak of myself. When I do do the silly things like try to merge into someone, I'm sure to wave the "my bad" gesture vs one finger salute. I can count on one hand the number of one finger salutes I've given.

One incident while my step dad was driving drives this home for me. We're on our way to a Rockets game, some guy a compact truck either cuts off my step dad or whatever & my step quickly honks and gives him the finger. Out of the open sliding rear window, the dude throws the peace sign & my step dad instantly cools off & we're laughing. I've taken that to heart.

I just wish people would follow the rules of the road (hypocritical coming from a notorious speeder?):
- slower traffic keep right
- pass on the left only
- signal
etc etc.

I'm one that passes a car, back to the right lane. Pass on left, back to the right, even if it's for just 10 seconds until I pass someone.

[PUCKER]

Ah yes...the CB, there's a reason why I have a nice portable one (nice for offroading and then finding out what's going on when you're on the road, easy to switch vehicles, etc., no, not as good as hard mount/permanent antenna set-up though). Just listen for the chatter about "a slicktop at yardstick 179 with a customer" and the like!

[gemini]

Edited 10-14-10. Post was not intended to offend anyone.

[Keith B]

2up1down: "Just remember that next ticket you may receive may be courtesy of a Professional Truck Driver who values your life and everyone else on the road more than you do. I make no apologies for doing everything I can to insure the safety of ALL who use our roadways. Amateur race car drivers need to leave it to their video games."

If you're suggesting that all Professional Truck Drivers are safe motorists, values everyone elses life more than their
own..... surely you jest.

I will agree with 2up1down. He said 'professional' truck driver. There are truck drivers, and there are people who drive trucks. I come from a family of professional truck drivers. Had 2 uncles that drove for over 30 years each; one had a 4 million mile safe driving record, and the other had a 3.5 million mile record. That means no accidents that were their fault. These guys were PROFESSIONAL drivers. There were the bad ones on the roads even back in their days, but they usually didn't last long. Today, when you see a driver doing something dumb, especially in a large trucking company truck, is call it in. The dispatchers will immediately contact that driver and have them pull off the road and asses their demeanor before allowing them to return to the road, and then write up the call/report for a supervisor to review.

[LAYGO]

Well, I know my laser jammer works. I was side by side with a full size pickup doing 70ish in a 65. It was also in a spot I figured they would laser, but I didn't expect it southbound in the morning.

The truck was passing me, but a Northlake officer was stationary on an overpass above us. All the sudden I got a new tone from my Qi45 I hadn't heard. I looked down to see "SHIFTING" . . . meaning jamming the laser. There was no one in front of us & when I looked up is when I saw the officer tucking away the gun & quickly getting turned around. As I was exiting the freeway (at my exit), I slowed down a lil to see if he would slow down trying to get me. He just hauled butt to get the truck.

There wasn't any other vehicles around us either.

I figured I'd be lasered by Denton PD first. They like to setup a lil speed trap with an officer standing on the side of the road with a laser gun on a tripod. Then on the feeder there is a line of about 15 officers in cars/trucks/motorcycles! They'll do it south & north bound. I see it about twice a month on my 40 mile commute.

In fact, there are a lot of different patrols I see on my commute which is what motivated me to upgrade my detector.