The brother in-law and I were cited tickets yesterday. We went for a ride as it had been a week for me and a few for him. So we head out and hit up the local mountains. I was worried about making it back home for dinner with the wife (date night) and wanted to get back home at 5pm as she told me to. So after we do a loop in the mountains we hit Road 9 north to US24 which then will take us east to Colorado Springs. We had a little fun on 9 north, only passed a truck on the dotted yellow so no big deal. Then we get on US24 and start to head east. Just to let you know there is nothing out there. A little more traffic then norm on US24 but nothing special and this road is one lane each way. I always make good time here as do most because of how flat it is and how empty it is. It would have seemed that we passed an officer going the other way. Really did not know at the time for sure, I saw break lights but heck it was a Dodge suv so I did not think much about it. I kept going passing a few vehicles on dotted yellow lines only, even slowed down to make a legal pass. So not like I’m the monster the officer acts like I am later on. We get to the mountains and I slow down, I think about if it is a cop I should haul *** around the two vehicles in front of me. But being the goody-goody I am I figure nah probably nothing and I did not want to pass the vehicles on double yellow lines. So we go up the mountain taking it now easy and the speed limit. Brother in-law pulls up to my right and does the circle in the air hand and points backwards I then know it was a cop. We pull into the Visitor center at the top and park the bikes. That was when the cop came screeching into the lot. By this point we are off the bikes, and she comes up and I'm like "let me take my helmet off I can not hear you"...she says okay. I then ask to set it down, she says "okay". Then she explains that she clocked us at 132mph in a 65mph zone. I said nothing. She then said she saw us weave in and out of traffic. My nature is when lied to I get defensive and said; "No, I never weaved", she was then like "I saw you weave around traffic". I then said, "No, I passed a few vehicles legally in dotted yellow areas. They were legal passes". She then dropped that BS. She takes our license and registrations. Goes back and does the usual lookup of our records and what have you. She comes back and for whatever reason calls me over to her and tells Brian to stay put. She gives me the norm lecture on how she would hate to call our families and how it is the worst part about her job and she has to take that home nightly with her. I then tell her I can understand that as I have been taking pictures of riders in the mountains and helping them and I got to take what I see home nightly because of their errors. She also stated that she rather see us pay a "BUTT LOAD OF MONEY" then to see us dead. So as it comes down to it, it is about the money and she was already predetermined to make us pay a huge fine. She then tells me she wrote both of us the same ticket "Careless Driving" and 132mph in a 65mph zone speeding ticket. She claimed to have clocked us, but I guess in CO they do not have to write that on there (what type of radar and what not). She also did report at first she was called because of our driving (which be amazing because no ones cell phones work out there) and second we only just got onto the roadway from 9 and that only had one truck and he was hauling butt too so I doubt it was him that called. The Officer then said I’ll explain this again to the both of you lets go talk to your brother in-law. So we walk back over and she hands each of us the tickets gives the lecture again and again repeats how she wants us to pay a “BUTT LOAD OF MONEY”. But obviously our driving was not that bad because she did not stuff and cuff us. Although she did point out how she could have taken us to jail (I’m sorry but if you think a person is a danger to others then cuff me, obviously she felt we were safe and safe enough to ride 70 miles back to Springs and a total of 100 miles back home…hmmmm So she is right it will cost money, first quote in from a Lawyer in Denver is $1,500 each, or because he handles both it be $1,250 each (I haggled). If we go with him, which so far I like how the phone interview went…I might do the old how about $2,000 for both ($1,000 each) in cash. Otherwise I’ll dump it on VISA let them pay the 5% fee to VISA. We are waiting to hear back from the other Law firms I called today. Summons (which the lawyer said we would not have to appear is 9-23-2008). He also thought it was interesting that the Officer was concerned with making us PAY “BUTT LOAD OF MONEY” comments she made. He also said they tend to profile (not the word he used but I can not remember it right now). With a clean record he said that will help me, I also asked about Probation, Traffic School or whatever and he said that is something they would try to work out with that court. I bet I’m looking at $2,000 when said and done each of us. I guess it is a lesson learned…although I be more apt to learn it if I was a danger to others, my life my choices. Not sure why the state feels they should decide what is safe or is not safe to me. So I hate to say it, but truthfully I probably did not learn my lesson other then, Don’t get Caught…and slow down for other oncoming vehicles. Oh, I will not sell the FZ1 over this, but I might pick up a Dual Sport sooner after this is settled.
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