NEOhio ADV & TAG!

Dude, when I was still living in Mt Gilead but driving to Uhrichsville for work (93 miles) every day, I took a nap quite often on my way home. On quite a few instances I would awaken with a start and realize I was behind the wheel, and start ripping it one way or the other while screaming. In the winter it was worse because I would leave the car running and that really made me think I was still motoring down the road since the gauges and lights were on. I'm pretty sure I took a few years of use off my heart from the subsequent blood pressure spikes and pulse quickening.

Allow me to retort.

I've been a police officer for 18 years, and an EMT for 19.

As a municipal police officer, I see a fair number of DUI crashes although none has been fatal, due mostly to the lower speeds involved with 'in town' driving.

As an EMT - and I should stress as a part time EMT, meaning I do this about one day a week on average - I have seen probably 15 fatal DUI crashes and maybe 40-50 more severe injury DUI crashes over the years (my EMS agencies covering a larger area with more rural routes, interstates, etc). It's so many fatal and serious crashes that I can't give you an exact number, isn't that terrible? I have literally had to lie to patients as I treated and transported them to the hospital, when they would plead with me to tell them how their husband or girlfriend who had been sitting in the car next to them was doing. I knew damn well their loved one was dead, but how do you tell that to someone who is already in the middle of a major medical emergency of their own? "I don't know" became the best answer I could muster.

It got to become a relief when the only person killed was the drunk, because even if they had a family and were an otherwise decent person, they did it to themselves and by nature of that, they had it coming. Their families, if they had any grasp on reality, already had thought about the possibility of dad getting croaked in a crash of his own causing and had kind of come to terms with the event despite it not having happened yet. On many instances while we'd be waiting on the coroner to arrive, family would show up, obviously distraught; but always with some innate sense of understanding that "this was bound to happen".

When I got hit by a drunk driver on duty in 2012, she ended up testing over 0.20. Her family and co-workers were all like: "Well, this has been a long time coming, surprised it hasn't happened sooner".

On the law enforcement side of the coin, I make a fair number of DUI arrests, mostly from traffic stops and not from crashes. I wold bet that 90% of the drunks I arrest think of it as an inconvenience and not a life lesson. They have no intention of modifying their behavior, except maybe next time they will do a walk around inspection on their car before they leave the bar, to make sure the cops can't pull them over because of a broken headlight.

In Tusc County, we can't even jail DUI drivers when we arrest them; we process them and issue a citation, and release them to a sober party.

There's also a overwhelming sense within the court system that DUI is somehow a minor traffic infraction, and not a major criminal violation. It's at minimum a first degree misdemeanor, which carries 6 months in jail, but DUIs never get that. Suspended jail time, a license suspension, and a fine are typical sentences. Oh, and "probation" for a year or two, where they have to agree not to drink, yet when we catch them in a bar, the court does nothing with them and does not impose any of the previously suspended sanctions.

The court's interpretation of the law is also skewered dramatically in favor of the DUI driver. Sit down and read the NHTSA manual that spells out how to conduct a field sobriety test. Now, go and do that, exactly, verbatim, no deviation from it at all... while you are on the side of the road at 2:00 am, dealing with a belligerent asshole and his 3 drunk friends, by yourself. You better do it exactly, because if you don't, your tests get thrown out and the DUI most likely will not be convicted. I recently had nystagmus test (the pen / eye test, basically) thrown out as evidence because I moved the pen 1/2 second too quickly. 1/2 second, I shit you not. I had to sit in court and watch the video 20 times over and over while the defense attorney held a stopwatch up and timed my actions depicted in the video. End result, the guy was not convicted of DUI, despite his breath test of over 0.15. When I worked in Morrow County, the judge would dismiss DUI violations that started as an equipment defect stop. In other words, if I stopped a guy for speeding and he was drunk, the case would fly with the judge because the speed was corroborating evidence of the drunkeness. If I stopped a guy for one headlight and he was drunk, the headlight violation, though illegal, did not help sustain the suspicion that the driver was DUI and so, even with great field sobriety tests and a solid breath test, the judge would often dismiss.

In summary, then, Quince; let me say this: Drunk driving is a menace, and innocent people are killed by drunk drivers. The court system seems unwilling to put the hammer down, and even the families of these drunks recognize that some form of ultimate justice will prevail eventually. So, I ask, who the fuck are you to question my thought process or my personal experience in dealing with DUIs, or the collective opinion of the rest of the NEO thread that has responded thus far? (Answer: you're nobody)

Yeah, well, maybe... Who knows. It fogged so much that it would have been useless w/out the pin lock. Of course the pin lock did keep it from fogging w/ the visor closed in 25 degree weather w/ only the tail vent open. Pretty impressive. The problem I had was if you wanted to crack the visor the first notch was almost a half inch up and you were looking through the rim on the insert. It worked great and I would have been all over it had it fit right and had a tinted visor available. I could take or leave the flip down sun visor. It's a good idea but the fact that it fogged and marked all up when not in use was the deal breaker. Who wants to wipe the thing down after every cold ride? My RF1000 didn't fog that much and would clear up immediately if cracked open. I think the thing was just sealed too tight. It was quiet!

Wow...My statement had absolutely NOTHING to do with DUI, drunk driving or anything relating to the matter. My initial statement was really intended as a light-hearted jab at yours. I dont disagree with anything you say above, or your opinion. There is no reason to think that I am countering you on any statement.

I make fun of people as much as the next guy, and I condemn others actions, but I do not condemn the person, for an instant, nor for the rest of his life. This is my only point. Sorry for any confusion. I feel really bad that people may have taken this the wrong way...like I was supporting the guy's actions. Can we move on to motorcycles now?
Nobody????? Wow......tell that to the IRS!

Yeah, so far the only thing I dislike about the helmet (aside from the $$$)
is the first detent for cracking the visor is too far open.

So... Anyone on this thread headed to the Romney WV adventure rally thing the first weekend of May? I was thinking of heading down. Sounds like it could be a good weekend w/ a large gathering and lots of different ride options. Free camping and some free food? If it's not your thing I understand. Was just wondering. Sometimes these things w/ other people are fun. Sometimes they're not. Thought I'd give it a shot. Looks like it could be a good time. There is apparently a thread on here about it and there is the one on Stromtrooper where I discovered it. Anyone? Probably leave Friday May 2nd early sometime.

I'm okay with moving on. Just to clarify, though, I got your point. I recognize you were not defending the drunk, only saying that wishing them ill was evidence of poor character on my part. My point was that the drunk is making a conscius decision and by doing so is essentially wishing everyone else ill, so why not throw some hate back at him? I despise drunk drivers and I have no problem with them taking themselves out, nor do I think that my lack of giving a shit about their death (or paralysis) makes me a monster.

Haven't done that one yet. I pissed a friend off once because I parked it on the way back from pataskala. I was working nights and Sat we went to pick up a couple FAL receivers. I had 2 hours of sleep since 4pm the day before and by 9pm my body wasn't having anymore of that being awake shit. He drove back and got over it.

I did have a few "oh shit" moments when I drove OTR. I woke up once in a good wind storm thinking I forgot to set the brakes on the truck,ripped through the sleeper curtain and ripped the knob off the dash.

Again,with Meef. I've drove OTR and otherwise for about 10 years now. I can't count the fatal accidents I've seen or came up on firsthand. I tried to help a few.. meef can probably relate here.. but when you find a car of what used to be 4 people no thicker than a foot with limbs and beer cans laying around,you tend to lose sympathy along with your lunch for the asshat that drove drunk. That shit sticks with you. That one wasn't even the worst I've seen either. While I won't wish these idiots harm,I don't have any sympathy for them either.

Ha!

A fun trick with sleepy friends is to get in behind one of those semi tractors towing another semi tractor backwards, and then slam on the brakes and start screaming. They wake up, hear you screaming, see a semi heading right at them, and hilarity ensues.

Sort of related, I had an auxiliary guy with me several years ago who kept dozing off in the passenger seat at like 2am, which is fine, he's not getting paid anyway- though it is a little dangerous for both of us. I drove to the empty fairgrounds and suddenly slammed on the brakes and leapt out of the car, ran around the corner of a building, screaming: "Stop! Drop the fucking gun!" A few seconds later here comes the auxiliary guy, gun out, running around the corner after me, totally bewildered as to where he was and what was going on. I give him props for snapping into alertness so fast, though if it had been a legitimate situation he would have had no idea where he was to call for help. He found me just around the corner, laughing my ass of at him. He stayed awake the rest of the shift.

I did that before in a parking lot. Head right at a semi and slam on the brakes screaming. They were not amused..

Ever see a semi autocross before? That was pretty fun. Worst bit was I placed middle of the line up for times at the end.

I about fell off my bike freaking out one night last fall riding home from Atlanta. Pulled off on 71 at a rest stop and put my head on the tank and went to sleep. A gust of wind woke me up and for a split second i thought i was still riding down the road.

I use to nod off in the mornings when I was touring with a bunch of guys. Every damn morning I would be fighting it and fighting it. Every now and then my eyes would close and then open and being scared out of my skin. I drank coffee and high energy drinks with no help at all. Eventually I would get out of that funk and it would be okay from then on, but that first leg in the mornings would be terrible.

Green Leaf Park, Medina Line, Sharon Township,Medina County.

Glad you like it. It really is an awesome lid. One of the nicest helmets available anywhere that's for sure. What color did you get? I would have gone for the HiVis. Go figure.

I have lost track of the number in your garage.

jeeze man, how many bikes do you have now?

Jon, i hope you are riding out to get the Farnsy tag next! Been sitting there all week and with no action.

Not quite all of them yet.

This one probably won't be staying too long though. It was sitting neglected in a parking lot for, from what I am told, over a year when I rescued it.

Boring ride to get it......