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AUTHOR:
CHRIS LONGHURST DISCLAIMER: I am in no way affiliated with any branch of the motor industry. I am not qualified to give out legal advice on any aspects of motoring covered in these pages, although I exercise my right to express opinions. The information presented here is the result of information-gathering and research. The sources for this information include the equipment manufacturers and the police forces across the UK. Neither myself nor the provider of my pages make any warranties, express or implied, as to the results that might be obtained from the use of this information. Neither myself nor the provider of my pages shall be liable for the misuse of this information, nor any third-party claims or losses of any nature including, but not limited to, lost finances, punitive or consequential damages. COPYRIGHT: ALL MATERIAL ON THESE PAGES IS THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OF CHRIS LONGHURST UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED, AND AS SUCH IS COPYRIGHTED ACCORDINGLY. |
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Anecdotes and funnies.I've been toying with this idea for some time, and a nice email from a chap in Switzerland gave me the deciding vote. Here are a collection of speedtrap-related anecdotes from around the world. I can't vouch for whether or not they're true, or simply urban legends. However, I thought that given all the factual info in the Speedtrap Bible, a collection of the lighter side of speedtraps wouldn't go amiss. Enjoy. Oh, and if you want to contribute, then just email me and I'll add your yarns too.
In the Geneva area there are several fixed radar cameras. A bright young lad (no pun intended) discovered that the flash could be triggered by its beam being broken by a metal object of sufficient size. Normally this object is a motor vehicle. However it was discovered that a metal bucket on the end of a rope being swung around one's head achieved the same results. Nice way of using up the film, don't you think? However, with some of his friends who just happened to be available late one night, they did something slightly different. As the radar flash was triggered, the other eight members of the team were lined up in the middle of the road in a coordinated 'moon'. History doesn't relate if any of them actually asked the local constabulary to see the photo! Source:Richard Minchin
Almost certainly an urban legend, but worthy of inclusion nonetheless: In Wales, the local police had taken delivery of a new minigatso system and set it up on one of their designated 'black spots' up in the mountainous area around Snowdon. The following day, they returned to see how many motorists it had caught, only to find a mess of molten plastic where their expensive piece of kit had been. Not knowing what had happened, and having failed to gain any information through enquiries, the equipment was eventually scrapped. The same day, however, a pilot on extreme low-level RAF maneuvers in his Harrier had reported back to his base that the aircraft's threat systems had detected a radar threat, and that the ECM (electronic counter-measures) had automatically dealt with it. It seems that the Harrier's onboard systems had 'neutralised' what they saw as a threat by jamming the signal with high-intensity radar. The 'threat' was, of course the minigatso, and the result of it's detector receiving a massive burst of return radar was what had caused it to melt. Source:Chris Longhurst
A policeman had a perfect spot to watch for speeders, but wasn't getting too many. Then, he discovered the problem. A 10 year old boy was standing up the road from him with a hand-painted sign which read, "RADAR TRAP AHEAD". The officer then found a younger accomplice down the road with a sign reading "TIPS" and a bucket full of change.
A motorist was mailed a picture of his car speeding through an automated radar. A $40 speeding ticket was included. Being cute, he sent the police department a picture of the $40. The police department responded with another mailed photo of handcuffs.
A young woman was pulled over for speeding. As the motorcycle officer walked to her car window, flipping open his ticket book, she said, "I bet you're going to sell me a ticket to the Highway Patrolmen's Ball". He replied, "Highway Patrolmen don't have balls." There was a moment of silence while she smiled, and he realized what he'd just said. He then silently closed his book, got back on his motorcycle and left. She was laughing too hard to start her car for several minutes.
Caution - low flying ... ducks?Caught on a Gatso in the Netherlands.....
Death by chainsaw.These cameras were vandalised within days of being erected in Lancashire....
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