I went to Lost Wage, NV for the Thanksgiving Holiday and got a speeding ticket. I was crusinging at 115 MPH. Just as I came over a big hill, I saw a CHP officer pulled over the side of the road. I immediately slammed on the brakes but got caught anyway. He pulled me over and i was polite thought the whole process. I had my license, insurance papers, all ready before he even came up to me. He came over and asked me the question "how fast did you think you were going?" I said..."uh..95?". He said i know you slowed down but i got you at 108. Ouch!!

Here is the FYI part. In California, there's two types of violations. One is your typical speeding ticket. It covers tickets from 70+ to 99 MPH. It runs about $200-400 (i hope). THe other type is any thing above 100MPH. It's "reckless driving" and its a serious violation. The officer explained to me that 100 MPH ticket STARTS at $1600, it also means 2 points on your driving record, and you can't go though Traffic School to remove it from your record, and it also means 30 day suspension of your license, not to mention higher insurance cost. ON TOP OF THAT, the $1600 ticket goes up significantly for each MPH over 100. He said for each MPH over 100, the ticket goes up by $400. So 101 MPH => $1600 plus $400, 102 MPH => $1600 + $800, etc. So had been caught at 115 MPH, the ticket would have cost me $1600 + $6000 (15MPH x $400) or $7,600 plus court costs. If he wrote me up for 108 MPH, my ticket would have cost me $4800.

He was very courteous and told me that he would write me up for 95. He said if i was a jerk about the ticket, disputed it and argued with him, he would have written it up for 108MPH. Before this ticket I've had 2 tickets in 20 years! I drive fast but i didn't get caught in the past. Maybe the odds caught up with me.

Lesson: Next time you consider driving fast, keep it below 100. And should you get caught, be courteous. If you are a jerk to the officer, then he could make you life (and pocket book) miserable.

Teriyaki

PS- The car handled great. I had it up to 135 before and it awesome. I felt i was in complete control and was very confident behind the wheel. I probably wouldn't drive that fast on other highways but the Highway 15 from SD/LA to Las Vegas is very flat and very straight in long stretches.

Now thats lucky! Well done. :thumbsup:

Buy a radar detector if you're going to drive at that speed, even infrequently.

Lucky :thumbsup: maybe time for a Valentine1 :whistle:

Valentine One helps alot... saved me at least 5 times. Being courteous to the cops helps ALOT!!!! Whenever I get pulled over, I always lower my windows, switch interior lights on, switch off radio and put both hands on steering wheel where he can easily see them. Makes the cops feel safer and I actually was given breaks before.
I really wonder if adding laser jammer would help also....

Your a lucky man :thumbsup: thanks for the info.

Sounds like a complete BS to me. Here in NJ anything above 30 mph over the limit is 5 points. New York - 8 points. Reckless driving is 5 points. I do not believe $1,600 fine and 2 points! Please be aware that not every drive in this country is as rich as you. $6,000 fine would mean no license and no work for many people.

Yeah, that seems outrageously high. Most people would not pay that and opt for community service instead...if it was an option.

But I do believe the 2 points. The 5 or 8 pts in the other states seem also ridiculous...maybe they have different point systems.

I also thought you could be arrested for reckless driving above a certain speed.

The point may be intepreted differently in California. Someone can chime in.

Even with V1, you still can get caught if you're the only one on the road.

I don't think the fine is BS. Its intended to keep the speed down. The average speed in the desert between CA and NV is 85, even for a slowpoke. THat includes Trucks, RV's, etc. The CHP looks the other way if you keep up with the going rate of other motorists. If you are "way" over the going rate, they will nail you. In my cas I was way over.

Teriyaki