Xoutpost.com - View Single Post - 1st "speeding" ticket after 13 years -- opinions?

crosvs · #1 10-06-2008, 06:16 PM

Hey everyone-

So I'm 29 now, and finally got my first "speeding" ticket. But the where, why, and how I got it is ridiculous, in my opinion, and hence my asking for your opinions here, if you please!

I went to UCLA and lived in Westwood area for almost 8 years. Suffice to say, then, that Sunset Blvd was basically my backyard all that time. Not only am I familiar with nearly every bump and pothole on the road lol, but I've also grown accustomed to the tolerated speed along different portions of the road.

You can imagine my surprise, then, when I got flagged down by a motorcycle cop as I was headed east on Sunset, coming down the slight decline by the UCLA intramural field parking lot (i think it's like 2 stoplights before hilgard).

The funny thing is, I wasn't even TRYING to go fast. I wasn't even in my "spirited" driving mode like I so often am! It was a beautiful day; the top was down; I had my left elbow on the door, my hand resting on the A-pillar; had some chill flamenco music playing lol ...... I wasn't even thinking "ooooooh yeah time to have some fun on sunset" lol ... I was just out for a leisurely drive, en route to beverly hills to sit and read a book while sipping a latte at il trem lol

Long story short, he got me for 49 in that 35 MPH zone. I reminded him I had a perfect record, and whether he'd consider giving me a break. Here's what he said, almost verbatim:

"Look, we know that nobody actually goes 35 here. So we generally give a 10 mph buffer. In fact, I probably wouldn't ordinarily have stopped you for doing 49 either. The only reason I did was because it was a downhill portion of the road, and it was around a bend. Since this made it more dangerous, I have to give you a ticket."

So what do you guys think? Should I bother fighting the ticket? It's "only" $159 and of course I can just do a quick traffic school online to delete it from my (otherwise!) perfect record.

Thanks for your advice!

--Marc

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