Speed awareness shenanigans
Discussion
The one I went on - an entire group of people decided that the best thing to do when being tailgated was to "brake erratically" to "try and shake him off".
"I do that all the time", says Vectra driver. "I'm doing 70 in the fast lane, why should I let someone past who's breaking the law?"
It actually took an ex-Army driver, me, and the two traffic-plod running the course to persuade them that it was the wrong thing to do.
As an aside - at the beginning of the course, the trafpol said one of their objectives for the day was to "make sure we know that the speeds we were caught doing were not acceptable and could be very dangerous". At the end of the day, I was asked and said that it re-inforced my opinion that 30 limits are there for a reason, but as I was caught doing 80mph, downhill, on a completely clear motorway at 6am on a sunny Summer Sunday morning (on the way to Goodwood, as it happens), there was nothing on the course that showed me that what I was doing was dangerous. I admit, of course, that it is technically illegal (the best kind of illegal) but not that it was in any way dangerous. They agreed, and told me not to do it again.
"I do that all the time", says Vectra driver. "I'm doing 70 in the fast lane, why should I let someone past who's breaking the law?"
It actually took an ex-Army driver, me, and the two traffic-plod running the course to persuade them that it was the wrong thing to do.
As an aside - at the beginning of the course, the trafpol said one of their objectives for the day was to "make sure we know that the speeds we were caught doing were not acceptable and could be very dangerous". At the end of the day, I was asked and said that it re-inforced my opinion that 30 limits are there for a reason, but as I was caught doing 80mph, downhill, on a completely clear motorway at 6am on a sunny Summer Sunday morning (on the way to Goodwood, as it happens), there was nothing on the course that showed me that what I was doing was dangerous. I admit, of course, that it is technically illegal (the best kind of illegal) but not that it was in any way dangerous. They agreed, and told me not to do it again.
Rude-boy said:
Sheepshanks said:
I take what you've written at face value, but I've never heard of anything like that before - why would people get to that point, and then "confess" when a general question was asked?
Because they are stupid and incompetent or possibly both. But at least they aren't the liars.HereBeMonsters said:
"I do that all the time", says Vectra driver. "I'm doing 70 in the fast lane, why should I let someone past who's breaking the law?"
It actually took an ex-Army driver, me, and the two traffic-plod running the course to persuade them that it was the wrong thing to do.
It's certainly be the wrong thing to do as far as the ex-plod earning beer money to top up their massive pensions are concerned - if these self-appointed guardians of the speed limits prevailed then there would be no-one to go on the courses.It actually took an ex-Army driver, me, and the two traffic-plod running the course to persuade them that it was the wrong thing to do.
HereBeMonsters said:
As an aside - at the beginning of the course, the trafpol said one of their objectives for the day was to "make sure we know that the speeds we were caught doing were not acceptable and could be very dangerous". At the end of the day, I was asked and said that it re-inforced my opinion that 30 limits are there for a reason, but as I was caught doing 80mph, downhill, on a completely clear motorway at 6am on a sunny Summer Sunday morning (on the way to Goodwood, as it happens), there was nothing on the course that showed me that what I was doing was dangerous. I admit, of course, that it is technically illegal (the best kind of illegal) but not that it was in any way dangerous. They agreed, and told me not to do it again.
A colleague of mine did one after being caught at 46 when the M42 variable was set to 40 (in fairly clear traffic). Half the people on the course he went on had been caught in the same way.To be fair, he took the course fairly well - even arguing that it's about awareness of your speed, not just safety. I'm still not sure I'd have been able to sit quietly through it.
Sheepshanks said:
Rude-boy said:
Sheepshanks said:
I take what you've written at face value, but I've never heard of anything like that before - why would people get to that point, and then "confess" when a general question was asked?
Because they are stupid and incompetent or possibly both. But at least they aren't the liars.Rude-boy said:
Sheepshanks said:
Rude-boy said:
Sheepshanks said:
I take what you've written at face value, but I've never heard of anything like that before - why would people get to that point, and then "confess" when a general question was asked?
Because they are stupid and incompetent or possibly both. But at least they aren't the liars.I've no idea what happened to them. I suppose it's like they never attended the course/walked out in the middle/told the instructor he was a tw@'t- they just get the points.
Phil303 said:
I'm attending one of these in a couple of weeks. Will now swot up on what constitues a dual carriageway...
I was caught at 80 on the A14 just past Newmarket at 9.15am. I was keeping up with the flow of traffic so they must have nabbed every single one of us in the outside lane.
On the slip road just after Newmarket going towards Bury? They love that spot, almost always a police car on there or the camera van.I was caught at 80 on the A14 just past Newmarket at 9.15am. I was keeping up with the flow of traffic so they must have nabbed every single one of us in the outside lane.
BertBert said:
You don't actually think it's a rule do you?
I always thought the 2 second rule was this:When pressing on a bit (preferably doing a ton on a night rally), you pick out a corner rapidly approaching. Rather than just brake like a wimp, wait for 2 seconds and THEN brake. You'll nearly always get round the corner...
I said it once to an advanced driving instructor, he was totally confused, more so when I insisted it did actually work.
was where I first heard this abbreviation. HereBeMonsters said:
The one I went on - an entire group of people decided that the best thing to do when being tailgated was to "brake erratically" to "try and shake him off".
"I do that all the time", says Vectra driver. "I'm doing 70 in the fast lane, why should I let someone past who's breaking the law?"
It actually took an ex-Army driver, me, and the two traffic-plod running the course to persuade them that it was the wrong thing to do.
As an aside - at the beginning of the course, the trafpol said one of their objectives for the day was to "make sure we know that the speeds we were caught doing were not acceptable and could be very dangerous". At the end of the day, I was asked and said that it re-inforced my opinion that 30 limits are there for a reason, but as I was caught doing 80mph, downhill, on a completely clear motorway at 6am on a sunny Summer Sunday morning (on the way to Goodwood, as it happens), there was nothing on the course that showed me that what I was doing was dangerous. I admit, of course, that it is technically illegal (the best kind of illegal) but not that it was in any way dangerous. They agreed, and told me not to do it again.
How did the trafpol running the course justify breaking the speed limit? It might be useful to quote the justification in the future."I do that all the time", says Vectra driver. "I'm doing 70 in the fast lane, why should I let someone past who's breaking the law?"
It actually took an ex-Army driver, me, and the two traffic-plod running the course to persuade them that it was the wrong thing to do.
As an aside - at the beginning of the course, the trafpol said one of their objectives for the day was to "make sure we know that the speeds we were caught doing were not acceptable and could be very dangerous". At the end of the day, I was asked and said that it re-inforced my opinion that 30 limits are there for a reason, but as I was caught doing 80mph, downhill, on a completely clear motorway at 6am on a sunny Summer Sunday morning (on the way to Goodwood, as it happens), there was nothing on the course that showed me that what I was doing was dangerous. I admit, of course, that it is technically illegal (the best kind of illegal) but not that it was in any way dangerous. They agreed, and told me not to do it again.
9mm said:
HereBeMonsters said:
The one I went on - an entire group of people decided that the best thing to do when being tailgated was to "brake erratically" to "try and shake him off".
"I do that all the time", says Vectra driver. "I'm doing 70 in the fast lane, why should I let someone past who's breaking the law?"
It actually took an ex-Army driver, me, and the two traffic-plod running the course to persuade them that it was the wrong thing to do.
As an aside - at the beginning of the course, the trafpol said one of their objectives for the day was to "make sure we know that the speeds we were caught doing were not acceptable and could be very dangerous". At the end of the day, I was asked and said that it re-inforced my opinion that 30 limits are there for a reason, but as I was caught doing 80mph, downhill, on a completely clear motorway at 6am on a sunny Summer Sunday morning (on the way to Goodwood, as it happens), there was nothing on the course that showed me that what I was doing was dangerous. I admit, of course, that it is technically illegal (the best kind of illegal) but not that it was in any way dangerous. They agreed, and told me not to do it again.
How did the trafpol running the course justify breaking the speed limit? It might be useful to quote the justification in the future."I do that all the time", says Vectra driver. "I'm doing 70 in the fast lane, why should I let someone past who's breaking the law?"
It actually took an ex-Army driver, me, and the two traffic-plod running the course to persuade them that it was the wrong thing to do.
As an aside - at the beginning of the course, the trafpol said one of their objectives for the day was to "make sure we know that the speeds we were caught doing were not acceptable and could be very dangerous". At the end of the day, I was asked and said that it re-inforced my opinion that 30 limits are there for a reason, but as I was caught doing 80mph, downhill, on a completely clear motorway at 6am on a sunny Summer Sunday morning (on the way to Goodwood, as it happens), there was nothing on the course that showed me that what I was doing was dangerous. I admit, of course, that it is technically illegal (the best kind of illegal) but not that it was in any way dangerous. They agreed, and told me not to do it again.
Vipers said:
If you think people's basic knoweldge of the HC is poor (as I do), just ask some colleagues at work or mates to explain a box junction.
The majority say "You can't enter The box unless your exit is clear.", that is their concept of using a box junctions, which explains why where I live 9 times out of 10 only see one car on the box waiting to turn right, the others wait at, usually just before the yellow diagonal but far enough forward to block the crossing, and when the lights change we have people walking around these pillocks.
Highway Code rule 174 states:-
Box junctions. These have criss-cross yellow lines painted on the road (see ‘Road markings’). You MUST NOT enter the box until your exit road or lane is clear. However, you may enter the box and wait when you want to turn right, and are only stopped from doing so by oncoming traffic, or by other vehicles waiting to turn right. At signalled roundabouts you MUST NOT enter the box unless you can cross over it completely without stopping.
I only quoted rule 174 and the bold because I found the first three Web sites on how to pass your test does NOT mention the bit it in bold
But the majority get it right then. The majority say "You can't enter The box unless your exit is clear.", that is their concept of using a box junctions, which explains why where I live 9 times out of 10 only see one car on the box waiting to turn right, the others wait at, usually just before the yellow diagonal but far enough forward to block the crossing, and when the lights change we have people walking around these pillocks.
Highway Code rule 174 states:-
Box junctions. These have criss-cross yellow lines painted on the road (see ‘Road markings’). You MUST NOT enter the box until your exit road or lane is clear. However, you may enter the box and wait when you want to turn right, and are only stopped from doing so by oncoming traffic, or by other vehicles waiting to turn right. At signalled roundabouts you MUST NOT enter the box unless you can cross over it completely without stopping.
I only quoted rule 174 and the bold because I found the first three Web sites on how to pass your test does NOT mention the bit it in bold
"Unless the exit is clear" covers the queueing to turn right.
Whether
9mm said:
How did the trafpol running the course justify breaking the speed limit? It might be useful to quote the justification in the future.
I didn't think the police ran the course - in fact far from it. Driving instructor and out of work actor ran the one I was on.The course also runs to a time, its not a question of how fast can they get through the content, so you might as well join in an bate them a little.
The one tutor (driving instructor) was a real pedant yet incorrect I later found out on the spacing of street lighting to indicate a 30 limit - he maintained there was no minimum distance just regular spacing (I believe from PH thats its 200 yards)
He also showed a picture of an overhead gantry 100m ahead on the motorway saying 60 and asked what the speed limit was. I said it could not be determined form the picture. We argued... as it was fun.. I said its almost certain that you're already in a zone of variable speed limits, there is no sign to indicate the start of variable speed limits and as the size of gantry speed limits don't change with a large one to show the start and smaller repeater ones thereafter they were no help.. so I maintained the current speed on the specific part of the road could only be realistically determined by the previous gantry sign. He started by saving it was 60, then changed to 70 then in the end conceded which got a cheer!
The other tutor (actor) on the course was actually very good. Down to earth, reasonable, and much better at communication.
EFA thanks to following post
Edited by Jon1967x on Tuesday 18th November 13:21
Jon1967x said:
he maintained there was no minimum distance
You mean maximum spacing.Highway Code said:
The 30 mph limit usually applies to all traffic on all roads with street lighting unless signs show otherwise.
(My italics) Which is a bit ambiguous.Wikipedia offers 200 yards as a maximum spacing for a system of street lighting, Wikipedia link, with links to the relevant legislation.
Edited by speedking31 on Tuesday 18th November 13:27
Hackney said:
Vipers said:
If you think people's basic knoweldge of the HC is poor (as I do), just ask some colleagues at work or mates to explain a box junction.
The majority say "You can't enter The box unless your exit is clear.", that is their concept of using a box junctions, which explains why where I live 9 times out of 10 only see one car on the box waiting to turn right, the others wait at, usually just before the yellow diagonal but far enough forward to block the crossing, and when the lights change we have people walking around these pillocks.
Highway Code rule 174 states:-
Box junctions. These have criss-cross yellow lines painted on the road (see â??Road markingsâ??). You MUST NOT enter the box until your exit road or lane is clear. However, you may enter the box and wait when you want to turn right, and are only stopped from doing so by oncoming traffic, or by other vehicles waiting to turn right. At signalled roundabouts you MUST NOT enter the box unless you can cross over it completely without stopping.
I only quoted rule 174 and the bold because I found the first three Web sites on how to pass your test does NOT mention the bit it in bold
But the majority get it right then. The majority say "You can't enter The box unless your exit is clear.", that is their concept of using a box junctions, which explains why where I live 9 times out of 10 only see one car on the box waiting to turn right, the others wait at, usually just before the yellow diagonal but far enough forward to block the crossing, and when the lights change we have people walking around these pillocks.
Highway Code rule 174 states:-
Box junctions. These have criss-cross yellow lines painted on the road (see â??Road markingsâ??). You MUST NOT enter the box until your exit road or lane is clear. However, you may enter the box and wait when you want to turn right, and are only stopped from doing so by oncoming traffic, or by other vehicles waiting to turn right. At signalled roundabouts you MUST NOT enter the box unless you can cross over it completely without stopping.
I only quoted rule 174 and the bold because I found the first three Web sites on how to pass your test does NOT mention the bit it in bold
"Unless the exit is clear" covers the queueing to turn right.
Whether
The answer he was expecting which I didn't get (although I still passed)...
When directed to do so by a uniformed police officer directing traffic.
Even today I think it was an unfair question but I wonder if he thought I was a bit too confident and just wanted to show me that I didn't know everything.
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