Forgive me for I have sinned in cave country . . .

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11-01-2005 10:45 AM
aw

Forgive me for I have sinned in cave country . . .

:oops: I must confess before my fellow cave divers that I have sinned against the Cave Diving Gods while in cave country. I must find the nearest sinkhole and sacrifice 2 sets of doubles (preferably overpumped with nitrox) and a set of regs for my sins by tossing them over the edge to the depths.

Got me an ole speeding ticket returning to Ga via Madison, Fl after leaving cave diving and hanging out at Renn****'s party. I was coming out of the town of Madison heading north (after just having left I-10) and began accelerating to cruising altitude (I mean, speed). You know those areas of little towns that have 600 miles of 45 MPH before a town so you have plenty of time to slow down? Well, I was coming out of town and was apparently still in one of those 45 MPH zones when I passed a cop hiding over next to the bushes at a church. He pulled me over. He says I was doing 64. Had he asked me what I thought the speed limit was, I would have said 55. I mean, I was beyond all the congestion of town.

I never batted an eye, never tried to justify myself or anything. If I was guilty, then I was guilty. He said he was going to have to give me a citation and I said OK. My first one ever. 16 years of driving and never a ticket. And the first one has to be in cave country.

I sat there as I waited reminding myself of all the times I had slipped down to Madison for some cave diving. He knew I was a diver of some sort. I had 2 sets of doubles and a stage bottle with other gear sitting in the back of the truck. Guess he thought I had lots of money since I had all the neat toys.

Anyway, I say all this to remind you guys to be careful. The very places you go to get away from it all can turn into a source of stress. No biggie. I'll ship out my payment to the City of Madison via USPS and move on with bigger issues in life (like getting set up for a guided dive in Alachua). :wink:
11-01-2005 11:01 AM
Jordan

Well, after 16 yrs of driving, that is pretty darned good. Think cave diving: If you slow down, you can go further.

Citations stink, it feels like throwing money down the toilet, doesn't it? Kind of like buying a Halcyon light, right? :P

Ha, now that I've got my cheap shot in for the day I will stop.
11-01-2005 11:05 AM
Walter Pickel

And the guy we were traveling with up north this weekend got one for 97 in a 70 on 75 near Sumpterville...OUCH!
11-01-2005 11:10 AM
Angie Reim

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeepSea

And the guy we were traveling with up north this weekend got one for 97 in a 70 on 75 near Sumpterville...OUCH!

Wow! You guys got balls. I get scared at about 84.......'fraid I'll sneeze and never make it home that day. :lol:
11-01-2005 11:13 AM
normblitch

THAT is VERY close to "willful and Wanton"...

did they cuff him??

nhb

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeepSea

And the guy we were traveling with up north this weekend got one for 97 in a 70 on 75 near Sumpterville...OUCH!
11-01-2005 11:47 AM
OFG-1

Re: Forgive me for I have sinned in cave country . . .

Quote:

Originally Posted by aw

:oops: I must confess before my fellow cave divers that I have sinned against the Cave Diving Gods :wink:

It is good that you have confessed to your sins. As pennance, you must:
Say 10 "Hail Exley's"
Bow three times toward High Springs, the home of the most wise JJ.
Wear a multi colored necklace of line arrows for a week.
and finally
Perform the grand tour at Peacock wearing only a 3mm shorty wetsuit.
11-01-2005 11:50 AM
Walter Pickel

Quote:

Originally Posted by normblitch

THAT is VERY close to "willful and Wanton"...

did they cuff him??

nhb

Luckily no...
11-01-2005 12:03 PM
normblitch

Re: Forgive me for I have sinned in cave country . . .

Quote:

Originally Posted by OFG-1

Quote:

Originally Posted by aw

:oops: I must confess before my fellow cave divers that I have sinned against the Cave Diving Gods :wink:

It is good that you have confessed to your sins. As pennance, you must:
Say 10 "Hail Exley's"
Bow three times toward High Springs, the home of the most wise JJ.
Wear a multi colored necklace of line arrows for a week.
and finally
Perform the grand tour at Peacock wearing only a 3mm shorty wetsuit.

3mm shorty? When did it get reduced??...it WAS au natural...

nhb
11-01-2005 12:28 PM
Rich

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeepSea

And the guy we were traveling with up north this weekend got one for 97 in a 70 on 75 near Sumpterville...OUCH!

With all the nice toys he already has, why not spring for a radar detector/jammer? Mine's saved my bacon quite a few times....and yes, the ambulance does 90, although having a blowout at 70 one day made me reconsider the whole speed thing.... :-D

Safe diving,

Rich
11-01-2005 12:36 PM
Genesis

Two Words: Valentine One
11-01-2005 12:44 PM
MikeH

Speaking of radar detectors/jammers to help prevent tickets....what do you guys recommend? I'm still using my 5-6 year old radar/laser detector....and it's saved my bacon many times...but it must be retired now, because it only works when it wants...and that's not often.. :-D

Mike
11-01-2005 12:45 PM
Walter Pickel

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rich

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeepSea

And the guy we were traveling with up north this weekend got one for 97 in a 70 on 75 near Sumpterville...OUCH!

With all the nice toys he already has, why not spring for a radar detector/jammer? Mine's saved my bacon quite a few times....and yes, the ambulance does 90, although having a blowout at 70 one day made me reconsider the whole speed thing.... :-D

Safe diving,

Rich

Worst thing about it...He has a radar detector. He got zapped with Laser. Firday night he was trying to talk to one of the Staties at Ginnie about it...
11-01-2005 12:46 PM
Genesis

See above.

Note that radar jammers are bigtime illegal - don't get caught with one.

LASER jammers, however, are NOT illegal... :twisted:
11-01-2005 12:58 PM
Webmaster

RE: Speedin'

First step to redemption, let me know where the sacrifice will be held so I can come get you if you collapse in misery and self-loathing. Yeah, that's it.

If you put out a strong enough EM it won't matter what they use. Or you could of course just slow down. Or fake a seizure like Donny Baker.
11-01-2005 01:18 PM
amphipod06

Quote:

Originally Posted by Genesis

Two Words: Valentine One

Ditto: http://www.valentine1.com/

and if you're serious about sacrificing gear, I'll come get it in the name of the cave gods.... :-D (I am after all a high priestess in the universal life church...)

Dive safe, drive safe,

Celia
11-01-2005 01:47 PM
DeWayne

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jordan

Well, after 16 yrs of driving, that is pretty darned good. Think cave diving: If you slow down, you can go further.

Citations stink, it feels like throwing money down the toilet, doesn't it? Kind of like buying a Halcyon light, right? :P

Ha, now that I've got my cheap shot in for the day I will stop.

Touche Jordan :lol:
11-01-2005 02:01 PM
Jordan

Oh my god DeWayne - your little line arrow on your sig turns into a handicapped parking sign! Too funny!

I wouldn't have hijacked the thread but it does kind of fit in. Good thing the guy was only speeding, and not parking in any handicapped spot or else they would have to EAT DeWayne's HICKORY!
11-01-2005 02:34 PM

Speaking of radar jammers - Motorcycle Consumer News once did a study to see if they worked. They ended up making several hundred passes, with every model of jammer available, in every conceivable mounting position, at every conceivable speed, with every conceivable vehicle, and they ended up with ZERO instances of any jammer making any difference whatsoever to a radar's reading. Of course, I'm not saying they don't actually work ...

Russell
11-01-2005 03:00 PM
Dave

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jordan

Citations stink, it feels like throwing money down the toilet, doesn't it? Kind of like buying a Halcyon light, right? :P

Ha, now that I've got my cheap shot in for the day I will stop.

As opposed to buying one of your Dive-Rite boomerang lights huh?
11-01-2005 03:46 PM
Jordan

That's right Dave - If anyone would like to know how to keep them from smacking your dive buddy in the forehead first, pm me and I will let you know.
11-01-2005 03:49 PM
DeWayne

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jordan

Oh my god DeWayne - your little line arrow on your sig turns into a handicapped parking sign! Too funny!

I wouldn't have hijacked the thread but it does kind of fit in. Good thing the guy was only speeding, and not parking in any handicapped spot or else they would have to EAT DeWayne's HICKORY!

I think TJ was behind that after the incident at JB; I liked it and have not wanted to see it go. I prefer Blackthorn to hickory, much more of a class beating.
11-01-2005 03:51 PM
MikeH

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jordan

Citations stink, it feels like throwing money down the toilet, doesn't it? Kind of like buying a Halcyon light, right? :P

Kinda like placing a deposit almost a year ago on an Hoopsmama....no, that's not it...Oopstima....no, that's not it either...Otooptima....dammit.... well, you know, that fancy new Dive Rite regulator! :-D :bart2

(not serious, just had to get my cheap shot in)

Mike
11-01-2005 04:03 PM
Jordan

I want a Hoopsmama! She sounds athletic and that turns me on....I betcha her thies could squeeze the nitrogen right out of ya!
11-01-2005 04:14 PM
Dave

http://www.geocities.com/totallyauss...ntcomeback.wav
11-01-2005 08:49 PM
SeaPlusPlus

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sludge

Speaking of radar jammers - Motorcycle Consumer News once did a study to see if they worked. They ended up making several hundred passes, with every model of jammer available, in every conceivable mounting position, at every conceivable speed, with every conceivable vehicle, and they ended up with ZERO instances of any jammer making any difference whatsoever to a radar's reading. Of course, I'm not saying they don't actually work ...

Russell

Well, to shed a bit more light on this: If you can buy a jammer off the shelf, then it doesn't work. I have designs for building one that does work, but I don't dare to actually build one. (Even though it's only about $50 of parts at most). Mainly because it would jam *all* spectrums of radar within the radius of the signal, including planes flying overhead. The designs I've read have a jamming radius of more than 2 miles. Dangerous stuff. There's a reason why they're illegal.

Wil
(computer geek and former EE wannabe)
11-01-2005 10:01 PM
MikeH

Quote:

Originally Posted by SeaPlusPlus

Well, to shed a bit more light on this: If you can buy a jammer off the shelf, then it doesn't work. I have designs for building one that does work, but I don't dare to actually build one. (Even though it's only about $50 of parts at most). Mainly because it would jam *all* spectrums of radar within the radius of the signal, including planes flying overhead. The designs I've read have a jamming radius of more than 2 miles. Dangerous stuff. There's a reason why they're illegal.

Trust me....airplane radar(and the ONLY radar that civilian airplanes have is WEATHER RADAR, such as Doppler type radar) is MUCH higher strength than police radar, and your "jammer" will not jam such radar at any great distance. BTW, a 2 mile radius is NOTHING when it comes to airplanes....considering that certain other aircraft radar can "jam" ours at a distance much greather than 2 miles.

Mike
11-01-2005 11:46 PM
Rich

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sludge

Speaking of radar jammers - Motorcycle Consumer News once did a study to see if they worked. They ended up making several hundred passes, with every model of jammer available, in every conceivable mounting position, at every conceivable speed, with every conceivable vehicle, and they ended up with ZERO instances of any jammer making any difference whatsoever to a radar's reading. Of course, I'm not saying they don't actually work ...

Russell

I blew by a trooper a while back accidentally and got away with it....

Safe diving,

Rich
11-03-2005 04:45 PM
Genesis

Yep.

The "you can buy them" jammers - radar and laser - are worthless.

However, it is not difficult at all to build a jammer that absolutely WILL work. The laser ones are legal to build and use. Radar ones are ILLEGAL (as in Federal Offense, go straight to jail) and the cop WILL know you have one when he points his fancy gun at you and it comes back with all dashes.

(BTW, he'll also know you have one for laser for the same reason, but in that case there's nothing he can do about it, other than pull you over and claim he smells dope, then call the K9 unit and make you wait for an hour until it gets there, plus do a VERY thorough search. Hope your "best friend" didn't leave a seed in your ashtray a few years back..... if you know what I mean!)

A Valentine One, properly used, will save you nearly all of the time. "Properly used" does not including doing 90 in a 30 mph zone when you're the only car on the road...... :D
11-05-2005 05:13 PM
IowaCaveDiver

I gotcha Beat!

About the time I completed my full cave training, i think it was summer of 2003, I was headed back to Gainesville from Peacock and got clocked doing something like 78 in a 50 zone... or soemthing to that degree. I got a huge ticket, almost $200. I could tell that the sheriff probably didn't like my type as he spit his chew on the ground next to my 87 mercury grand marquis loaded down with dive gear. I think the rear bumper had mere inches of clearance to the pavement. It is my belief that people such as this officer see guys like me with very expensive dive gear vacationing in their backyards, diving their springs, and all just for pleasure, while they may not have the financial means to do anything even close to cave diving, and sticking us with tickets is their only way of telling us we are not welcome, especially if we're not playing by their rules. Ok, so here is the best part. 6 months later I'm back in cave country, same crappy car loaded with twice as much gear since I brought my buddy down with me from iowa. We had four sets of doubles on the back leather seats along with all the other gear we needed for our week of diving. he brought along his lazer radar detector so we wouldn't have the same issue. No crap, driving back to gainesville from peacock, same stretch of road, same speed and same speed trap, I come up over a hill and hear the "beeeeeepppp!!!" of the radar detector just in time for the cop to clock me doing better than 70 mph. Same sheriff, same ticket, and this time i was pissed, so we turned around and headed to the Mayo County court house to argue the ticket. I think it was on Oprah that I heard you can request the documentation on the calibration of a radar detector and the officer's certificattion to use it, and if they can't produce that you can get off. Upon arriving at the court house we learned that this girl who was interning there got a ticket not 20 minutes earlier by the same cop and she thought she was going a lot slower that he claimed she was, so we thought we'd have the same arguement. Turns out I got a court date with the county judge set for about a month later. I've also heard that the cops/sheriff has to be present in court for the ticket to go through, so I was hoping he might not show. Instead, about an hour before the hearing (via telephone since i'm in iowa now) I get a phone call. Waking up in my college dorm room, hung over from the previous nights activities I wake and answer the phone in a groggy voice... "hello". "this is Judge Blah Blah Blah from the Mayo County Court House and am calling to address the issue of this speeding ticket issued on January XXth..." Sitting there in my underpants with last nights "visitor" rolling over in my bunk bed, I tell him the story of my ticket and how the clerk at the court had the same ticket, and long story short he dropped the speed of the ticket so that it wouldn't effect my insurance and the price of the ticket went down to under $100. Apparently the officer who wrote the ticket was due in court in Georgia that same day on some murder trial believe it or not. So, I no longer use radar detectors, nor do I stay in Gainesville (what a drive every day!). And I sold the Mercury Grand Marquis, some of you may remember me posting it in the gear section as a joke and I actually got a call from a guy, and i stay at my buddies in Lake City.
-Matt
11-07-2005 03:50 PM
Rob_M

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rich

I blew a trooper a while back accidentally and got away with it....

Safe diving,

Rich

Did you ever get rid of the taste??? :o
Sorry, coudn't resist :smt109
11-07-2005 04:00 PM
jammer

Well now you know how to get out of a ticket. (Blow the Trooper)
11-07-2005 05:50 PM
DeWayne

Damn, I must be getting old to have let that one slip by.
11-07-2005 06:04 PM

It didn't slip by. You'll notice he modified the "quote."

And it was just a tad this side of being moderated. Unless another moderator is less forgiving.

Russell
11-08-2005 02:02 PM
BobK

[quote="Rich"]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeepSea

and yes, the ambulance does 90, although having a blowout at 70 one day made me reconsider the whole speed thing.... :-D

Safe diving,

Rich

Had a blowout on my motorcycle at 80 MPH once. That was somewhat exciting :)
11-11-2005 08:35 AM
Bishop

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rich

I blew a trooper a while back accidentally and got away with it....

Safe diving,

Rich

That's how I read it. Then I read it again a second time.

:)

Ok, Rob, get out of my head. It's already full.