No bull, Me and my boys rode out to Arizona bike week for our April Club ride and I could not believe how many speeding cameras there are in the city of Scottsdale. One night we were riding North on the 101 loop, just south of "Westworld" and we kept seeing flashes coming from a freeway overhead light. We actually pulled over to watch this thing. Within approx 2 min. it went off 8-10 times nailing speeders on the Southbound lane. No wonder this area had more cops per mile then I have ever seen before... Soooooooo

How do you guys manage 355 - 614 HP in that town without dropping the hammer and getting the hammer dropped on you. Seriously, I told the Wife that I love the town but I drive and ride way to fast to keep my license in that town...Lol

 

If you had bothered to do a little research before coming to this forum and whining, you would have realized that that section of the heavily-traveled 101 loop has abnormally high occurrances of fatal accidents. This is because of all the idiots out there driving faster than the posted speed limit. So, on behalf of all the local people who use this road on a daily basis - go somewhere else to drop your hammer.

 

Grumpy-good name choice!
Bill-I was also there for bikeweek and noticed the same cameras; the natives know where all the fixed ones are thus slow down. What gets ya though is the mobile vans on the 30 mph side streets. Never know where they're gonna be.

 

Your name is perfect. I guess you and everyone else here research every road you travel. Maybe you have that much time but, I don't think everyone else does. What's up with the hard a** reply? You usually aren't this bad and the guy really didn't deserve that harsh of a reply.

 

Yea no kidding. Route 17 in jersey used to be one of the worst stretches in the country for accidents (might still be , who knows). Even lately there are a ridiculous number of counties on the highway compared to the past. I still wouldnt give that kind of reply and it certainly hasnt stopped anyone from "dropping the hammer" in certain spots. Jeez.

 

You guys are pathetic. Re-read his last sentence. No wait - that would be too much like doing research - I'll quote it for you:
This is not the kind of driver I want sharing the road with my friends and family (some of whom live in that area and use that road, including myself). Diving a fast car that costs big bucks does not entitle you to speed. As the saying goes: there is a time and place for everything - heavily-traveled public roads are not the right place to speed - especially a road that has had so many traffic fatalities. The photo radar cameras are there as a deterrent - not for your nighttime entertainment.

And for those of you who chose to defend his actions and make fun of my screen moniker - grow up. Your immaturity is only exceeded by your ignorance.

 

stupidity and ineptitude. Sorry, there, Grumpy, but I fail to see how or why we should all be forced to dodder about because a relative few are too stupid for their own good and go out in a Darwinistic flame. Time and time again it has been shown that "speed" by and of itself doesn't cause accidents. Instead, it is usually speed inappropriate for conditions then prevailing and excessive variations between vehicles. For example, 80 can be perfectly safe on one day in good weather and light traffic while on the next 60 may be pushing it in heavy rain and even heavier traffic. The one size fits all speed limits we now have are usually set for octegenarians with glaucoma driving a 43 Buick in heavy snow. No wonder we all pretty much blow them off. I am not advocating Mario Andretti level limits, but how about something higher than the lowest common denominator BS we see now?
Think about it-- if on a given road like the one at issue virtually everyone "speeds" to the extent that storm troopers are needed at every lightpole and cameras even closer together then maybe the problem isn't with the drivers, but with an unresaonable law. Remember the 80% rule? Its what speed limits used to be set at and is calculated at what speed 80% of drivers would travel at in the absence of posted limits, the theory being that 10% will dodder about at 50 and 10% fly at 150, even in the rain. Seems that this road has artificially low limits and this needs ridiculous amounts of "enfarcement", which translates into "revenue machine"
And please--no "if we save one life its worth it". No, its not. Not every life can be saved--not unless we all stay home and never do a damed thing.

 

Hmm.....how can you point your finger at fellow forum members as being pathetic, immature, and ignorant when you can't even spell a simple sentence, and then you lob insults at your fellow board members??
That defines ignorant and immature.

 

Interesting name. The first part indicates a state of mind a child is in when they are unwilling awoken. The second part represents the sign of the devil. It puzzles me why someone one claims to ooze maturity and sophistication selected such a nonsense name.

 

Back to the issue at hand, I recently spoke to a police officer friend of mine regarding the speed limits. They are set as the maximum speed a licesened driver can handle and control completely. Traffic fatalities are very tragic and can be avoidable, there is no doubt about that, but this is not the speed limits to blame. It is the driver. An experienced individual driving a vehicle at 120 mph will cause far less harm than a "ricer" idiot doing 70. Refer to the autobahn, where in certain sections, speed limits are nonexistent. Although to Mr. Grumpy this might sound like a nightmare, the traffic fatalities there are far less than the ones occuring here. Why? Because the majority of the drivers there are very experienced and know the limits of their vehicles. Yet here, we have over anxious drivers who feel the need take their spoilered econocars to speeds in which they are unstable and cannot handle. Almost everyone speeds, it is far too difficult not to, especially when you are staying with the flow of traffic.

 

You quote him as saying he drives fast? He didn't say he's street racing, bouncing his car off the speed limiter or anything else like that. He said he speeds, drives fast! That is 99% of the people on this board. Maybe you're in the 1% and if so, good for you Grump. Ignorant is blasting someone the way you did when they didn't deserve it. I was just asking why you were in such a mood to do that and then you come back with "you guys are pathetic, ignorant" or whatever? Give me a break! Go take a pill dude, you obviously forgot your medication.

 

Gotta admit, I am more than a but jaundiced about what "police officers" say as many will say whatever the politicians want and see speeding tickets as a wonderful way to obtain revenue and lord their power over the average person, especially those driving a big $$ German car. To wit:

"I recently spoke to a police officer friend of mine regarding the speed limits. They are set as the maximum speed a licesened (sic) driver can handle and control completely."

My response to this:

Why? Simple- Does anyone actually think 55 is the "maximum speed a licensed driver can handle"?? 55 may be the max. for a comatose, epileptic moron, but it is certainly not so for a reasonably alert and awake person. IMHO, most speed limits are set a good 25-100% too low, which is why just about everyone "speeds". Set the limit too low, as we now have, and 90% refuse to comply, voting with their right feet so to speak. Make it more reasonable and compliance rises dramatically. I, for one, am sick to death if seeing our tax dollars squandered on stupid speed traps, which erodes respect for the law, wastes limited manpower and fails to address the real causes of accidents--driver stupidity and the like which is not seen while hiding behind a bush with a radar gun. For example, look at tailgating, which causes many accidents, but which is kinda hard to see while one is stalking the public from behind a bridge or whatever.

 

 

First off, I'll take his word over yours any day. Obviously you judge him without even knowing the man. Secondly, why would he bull**** me? He is a family friend of mine, and an avid speed lover as well (900 hp drag car for the weekends). This was the guideline when setting the speed limits. Be realistic here, you and I both know there are indviduals out there driving whom we question why and how they obtained a license. There are virtually endless amounts of idiot drivers, all of whom are licensed. A 55 limit is difficult to follow, and 90% of people disregard it, yet it is the maximum amount a barely-made-it driver can handle (or so it was designed to be). So why are you arguing your own point? People speed. I do. You do. I just posted a response sharing some information I learned based on how limits are set.

 

the countless number of soccer moms driving big honking SUVs are a good example of those that can only handle 55 or less. They are usually too busy throwing treats at the kids or talking on the cell phone instead of actually driving.

 

Gotta disagree- I don't see how "A 55 limit is difficult to follow, and 90% of people disregard it, yet it is the maximum amount a barely-made-it driver can handle (or so it was designed to be)." Again, I say:

Even with minimal skill and the like, even a lobotomized moron can drive 65 without incident. Those that can't shouldn't have a license.

But, lets assume what you say is true. Should make no difference. I fail to see why 95+% of us should be help captive to a relative few who are too stupid or unskilled for their own good. If this were so we should all travel at 35mph--max. Another example of the "nanny state" in action and/or "wussification" of our society we increasingly see. I decline to accept a lowest common denominator standard. Isn't it about time we stopped glorifying the special needs crowd and let ordinary people live their lives without undue or excess governmental oppression?

And, l too know several police officers. While I am good friends with a few, I find them to be on the whole arrogant, pompous and more inclined to view motorists as prey than persons to protect. How else do we explain the stupid and dishonest practice of hidden speed traps, especially in places like the bottom of a long grade where people naturally speed up? If they were truly interested in safety they be out patrolling in marked cars and stopping true safety hazards like tailgating, cutting off and weaving, etc. A guy travelling pretty much alone at 80 in good weather and light traffic is, however, a much easier target and requires no effort, even though he presents no danger. And then the police wonder why most of us distrust and dislike them.... Forcing otherwise good officers to mug motorists with a radar gun denigrates an otherwise honorable profession and does squat for safety.

 

[QUOTE=JWS3]Even with minimal skill and the like, even a lobotomized moron can drive 65 without incident. Those that can't shouldn't have a license.

And, l too know several police officers. While I am good friends with a few, I find them to be on the whole arrogant, pompous and more inclined to view motorists as prey than persons to protect.QUOTE]

However, those who shouldn't still manage to obtain licenses. I can understand how some officers are arrogant, but this is my friend and I can vouch that he is nothing like the officers you described. Why do you think I asked him? Do you think I agree with the limit? Hell no. Like I said before, I was sharing the information I learned on how the limits were supposedly set. Those cameras, of course they are a source of income to the state. That is politics, my friend, have a greedy motive and bury it with a righteous sing song. The speed limit should be raised. But to countebalance the safety risk, each and ever idiot driver must be removed from the road. That is impossible. So, the next best thing is to maintain low speed limts. Yet we are the one's paying for other people's blatant stupidity.

 

"So, the next best thing is to maintain low speed limts."

Can't agree with that at all. If a few fools kill themselves then so be it. As for the chance that they "might" kill me, I'll take my chances. An alert driver can spot and avoid these morons nearly all of the time. For the .001% of the time when one can't--oh, well--guess it was my time to go. Like Sammy Hagar said "I can't drive 55". The whole thing is pathetic- I thought those out West didn't have the nanny state mentality so predominate in the East. Is there anywhere in the US where we can still be Americans and not beholden to the lowest levels?

 

I disagree. LOL

But what do I know, I attended the BMW Performance Driving School. And I don't even speed usually.

 

When lawmakers set speed limits, I wonder how much the psychology of: "people will drive 15mph over whatever limit we set, so if we want them driving 70 on the freeway, make the limit 55" enters in to the equation?? At least in Southern CA, it seems like that's the universally acceptable rule-of-thumb that even law enforcement officers seem to look the other way.

 

As good as USA is, it is no place to really enjoy and get to use cars like E55.
You can do it, but you facing quite harsh punishments.
The only fun I get with the E55 is acceleration, some traffic light kills and mountain roads.
But there is no good opportunity to use it for the purpose it was build for.

 

With all the idiot drivers out there, probably not. We take the burden for other's people's stupidity. Sad, but unfortunetely true.

 

I find that the idiot drivers are the ones that are going 65 or slower ALL of the time. I speed to simply avoid the "idiot clusters" of traffic on the freeway. I've tried driving in the "slower" lanes on the freeway and OMG! I feel a lot safer going 80+mph, conditions allowing, in the faster lanes. I know there a lot of people who feel safer going faster than being in slower, idiot-prone crowds.

 

According to Fifth Gear there were 40,000 sets of number plates were stolen last year in the UK to mislead the said speeding cameras and so on.

 

Usually, the clueless, inattentive dolts cluster themselves in groups of slow moving, lumbering vehicles I call "dodders", as in "There goes a dodder of minivans", sort of like a "school of fish".

Stay among those drivers at your own risk. They are oblivious to traffic, weather, road conditions and pretty much everything else. Every wonder why pile ups occur?

I know some say this is harsh, but I fail to see why we need to accomodate them. Why should we all be forced to plod along simply because a relative few lack any semblance of interest in or ability at driving? Thats what the right lane is for. If a few get themselves killed due to their inattentiveness, then oh, well.....