Friendly police encounter

This morning at about 9am I was pulled in the park and questioned about
riding on the bike trail, probably b/c I admonished an older lady who
nearly caused me to T-Bone her by making a sudden U turn passing the
opening to the parking lot.

She said she saw me and admitted doing it but felt POed that I had the
nerve. I said "I'm just asking nicely, be more careful".

The officers were very nice. They noted I was wearing my raincoat on a 71
degree morning and mosquito/bug mask/balaclava, and patted me down, while
I straddled my bike, finding a bike tool in the pocket of my jacket.

I stripped off the jacket, and they saw I was wearing a rather flattering
pair of Performance Bike Men's Splice shorts with grey accents, and a Nike
Blue Bike Jersey with a swoosh.

One said 'Oh sweating off the pounds, huh, I can totally get behind that
being a larger guy myself.' The other asked me if I had a bell, since there
was a complaint about me coming around corners. They gave me no
instructions, except for asking if I had a bell. One asked me about the
mask and I said "bugs", they both laughed and said 'boy is that true'.

Feeling great at having been stopped essentially for a 'speeding' issue at
age 53, only ten months after having barely been able to 'Fred' around the
trail at 8 or 9 mph.

I normally tool the trail at 11-12mph, and wait until 0530-0600 to put in a
fast ride - there aren't any kids or anything out at that time.

Ironic since I've been the one harassed and chased by dogs and having to
put on a smiley face - but I'm now gonna be extra sure I smile at everyone
and say good morning - which I do.

-B
Oh, I got their badge numbers and sent an email to the Chief offering a
commendation for their friendly and excellent handling.

To make this even more sweet, three rad bikers on road bikes came by and
looked at me and gave me the thumbs up.

You must be a pretty mild mannered guy to take that incident so lightly, and
that's cool. But, you said the cops actually patted you down? That's not
cool. That's harsh! I'd be seriously ****ed! If the old lady had given you a
ration (even though you were nice about it) do you think they would have
pulled her out of her car and frisked her? I'm thinking not. Maybe you had
to be there... Glad to hear your still upright - Peace

Badger_South wrote in message
...
This morning at about 9am I was pulled in the park and questioned about
riding on the bike trail, probably b/c I admonished an older lady who
nearly caused me to T-Bone her by making a sudden U turn passing the
opening to the parking lot.

She said she saw me and admitted doing it but felt POed that I had the
nerve. I said "I'm just asking nicely, be more careful".

The officers were very nice. They noted I was wearing my raincoat on a 71
degree morning and mosquito/bug mask/balaclava, and patted me down, while
I straddled my bike, finding a bike tool in the pocket of my jacket.

I stripped off the jacket, and they saw I was wearing a rather flattering
pair of Performance Bike Men's Splice shorts with grey accents, and a Nike
Blue Bike Jersey with a swoosh.

One said 'Oh sweating off the pounds, huh, I can totally get behind that
being a larger guy myself.' The other asked me if I had a bell, since
there
was a complaint about me coming around corners. They gave me no
instructions, except for asking if I had a bell. One asked me about the
mask and I said "bugs", they both laughed and said 'boy is that true'.

Feeling great at having been stopped essentially for a 'speeding' issue at
age 53, only ten months after having barely been able to 'Fred' around the
trail at 8 or 9 mph.

I normally tool the trail at 11-12mph, and wait until 0530-0600 to put in
a
fast ride - there aren't any kids or anything out at that time.

Ironic since I've been the one harassed and chased by dogs and having to
put on a smiley face - but I'm now gonna be extra sure I smile at everyone
and say good morning - which I do.

-B
Oh, I got their badge numbers and sent an email to the Chief offering a
commendation for their friendly and excellent handling.

To make this even more sweet, three rad bikers on road bikes came by and
looked at me and gave me the thumbs up.

Badger_South wrote:
:: This morning at about 9am I was pulled in the park and questioned
:: about riding on the bike trail, probably b/c I admonished an older
:: lady who nearly caused me to T-Bone her by making a sudden U turn
:: passing the opening to the parking lot.
::
:: She said she saw me and admitted doing it but felt POed that I had
:: the nerve. I said "I'm just asking nicely, be more careful".
::
:: The officers were very nice. They noted I was wearing my raincoat on
:: a 71 degree morning and mosquito/bug mask/balaclava, and patted me
:: down, while I straddled my bike, finding a bike tool in the pocket
:: of my jacket.

Was it raining? Where do you live that you have such problems with bugs?

::
:: I stripped off the jacket, and they saw I was wearing a rather
:: flattering pair of Performance Bike Men's Splice shorts with grey
:: accents, and a Nike Blue Bike Jersey with a swoosh.
::
:: One said 'Oh sweating off the pounds, huh, I can totally get behind
:: that being a larger guy myself.' The other asked me if I had a bell,
:: since there was a complaint about me coming around corners. They
:: gave me no instructions, except for asking if I had a bell. One
:: asked me about the mask and I said "bugs", they both laughed and
:: said 'boy is that true'.
::
:: Feeling great at having been stopped essentially for a 'speeding'
:: issue at age 53, only ten months after having barely been able to
:: 'Fred' around the trail at 8 or 9 mph.
::
:: I normally tool the trail at 11-12mph, and wait until 0530-0600 to
:: put in a fast ride - there aren't any kids or anything out at that
:: time.
::
:: Ironic since I've been the one harassed and chased by dogs and
:: having to put on a smiley face - but I'm now gonna be extra sure I
:: smile at everyone and say good morning - which I do.
::
:: -B
:: Oh, I got their badge numbers and sent an email to the Chief
:: offering a commendation for their friendly and excellent handling.
::
:: To make this even more sweet, three rad bikers on road bikes came by
:: and looked at me and gave me the thumbs up.

On Sun, 23 May 2004 22:15:29 -0400, "Roger Zoul"
wrote:


Was it raining? Where do you live that you have such problems with bugs?

It was a light weight nylon - lined jacket I often wear, and I had gone out
early to start the ride, and I also had a head cold and was getting a
little extra sweating, raising the body heat makes me feel a little less
achy.

My ride is along a river and we get these dense clouds of gnats that you
run into. I've had them fly right into my eye, down my throad and worst
inhale them, causing me to start coughing and gagging. During the spring
one gets pelted relentlessly with summer mosquitos, gnats, flying beetles,
a various smorgasbord, unexpected, and makes it hard to breathe if you're
riding through them on a bike.

See the 'Bugs' thread, started by Claire - we talked about homemade
mosquito nets, inhaling gnats.

Thanks for your concern.

-B

I have to ask ... is the title of this post sarcastic?

I'm asking because if it was me this happened to I certainly wouldn't be so
happy about it. Perhaps it's because the police around my neck of the woods
are not so nice and I've seen them get away with too much over the years.

Let me just give you a piece of advice that I learned the hard way ...
police officers ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS. They consider you their enemy. They
have to, in order to be safe. However, they look for any excuse to mess
with you and they are looking to bust you for something. That's their job.
Don't trust them, and don't fall for their sickly sweet smiles.

C.Q.C.

"Badger_South" wrote in message
...
This morning at about 9am I was pulled in the park and questioned about
riding on the bike trail, probably b/c I admonished an older lady who
nearly caused me to T-Bone her by making a sudden U turn passing the
opening to the parking lot.

She said she saw me and admitted doing it but felt POed that I had the
nerve. I said "I'm just asking nicely, be more careful".

The officers were very nice. They noted I was wearing my raincoat on a 71
degree morning and mosquito/bug mask/balaclava, and patted me down, while
I straddled my bike, finding a bike tool in the pocket of my jacket.

I stripped off the jacket, and they saw I was wearing a rather flattering
pair of Performance Bike Men's Splice shorts with grey accents, and a Nike
Blue Bike Jersey with a swoosh.

One said 'Oh sweating off the pounds, huh, I can totally get behind that
being a larger guy myself.' The other asked me if I had a bell, since
there
was a complaint about me coming around corners. They gave me no
instructions, except for asking if I had a bell. One asked me about the
mask and I said "bugs", they both laughed and said 'boy is that true'.

Feeling great at having been stopped essentially for a 'speeding' issue at
age 53, only ten months after having barely been able to 'Fred' around the
trail at 8 or 9 mph.

I normally tool the trail at 11-12mph, and wait until 0530-0600 to put in
a
fast ride - there aren't any kids or anything out at that time.

Ironic since I've been the one harassed and chased by dogs and having to
put on a smiley face - but I'm now gonna be extra sure I smile at everyone
and say good morning - which I do.

-B
Oh, I got their badge numbers and sent an email to the Chief offering a
commendation for their friendly and excellent handling.

To make this even more sweet, three rad bikers on road bikes came by and
looked at me and gave me the thumbs up.

On Mon, 24 May 2004 05:33:09 -0400, "Q." LostVideos-AT-hotmail.com wrote:

I have to ask ... is the title of this post sarcastic?

You'd think they'd have something better to do than have three vehicles
tied up sitting in the parking lot of a Park at the far end of town waiting
to 'talk' to a 53y.o. guy on a bike, wouldn't you?

I'm asking because if it was me this happened to I certainly wouldn't be so
happy about it. Perhaps it's because the police around my neck of the woods
are not so nice and I've seen them get away with too much over the years.

Well nothing came of it, but I did talk to the IA supervisor. Basically the
'dog walkers' have had this park to themselves for many years, and act like
they own the trail, dogs running into the water and running out and shaking
on the walkers, running up and jumping on people. Now that it's paved, more
and more bikers and roller bladers are using it and I can only see the
"complaints" getting more frequent.

I'm about to 'graduate' from riding there and go out on the streets now
that I'm more fit, so I'm getting my new bike and heading out soon for
vacation and to ride in Va Beach with my brother. They have a pretty good
path along Great Neck, and other places you can ride, so I'll let the dog
walkers and cranky and inattentive and cranky people annoy each other for a
change.

Let me just give you a piece of advice that I learned the hard way ...
police officers ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS. They consider you their enemy. They
have to, in order to be safe. However, they look for any excuse to mess
with you and they are looking to bust you for something. That's their job.
Don't trust them, and don't fall for their sickly sweet smiles.

They probably weren't looking to mess with me, and as a result, they now
know I'm a good guy, maybe. But I'm not giving them a chance to mess with
me further - I'm outta there. ;-)

-B

C.Q.C.

Q. wrote:
:: I have to ask ... is the title of this post sarcastic?
::
:: I'm asking because if it was me this happened to I certainly
:: wouldn't be so happy about it. Perhaps it's because the police
:: around my neck of the woods are not so nice and I've seen them get
:: away with too much over the years.
::
:: Let me just give you a piece of advice that I learned the hard way
:: ... police officers ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS. They consider you their
:: enemy. They have to, in order to be safe. However, they look for
:: any excuse to mess with you and they are looking to bust you for
:: something. That's their job. Don't trust them, and don't fall for
:: their sickly sweet smiles.

Maybe the police in your neigborhood act this way because too many people
there think as you do?


::
:: C.Q.C.
::
:: "Badger_South" wrote in message
:: ...
::: This morning at about 9am I was pulled in the park and questioned
::: about riding on the bike trail, probably b/c I admonished an older
::: lady who nearly caused me to T-Bone her by making a sudden U turn
::: passing the opening to the parking lot.
:::
::: She said she saw me and admitted doing it but felt POed that I had
::: the nerve. I said "I'm just asking nicely, be more careful".
:::
::: The officers were very nice. They noted I was wearing my raincoat
::: on a 71 degree morning and mosquito/bug mask/balaclava, and patted
::: me down, while I straddled my bike, finding a bike tool in the
::: pocket of my jacket.
:::
::: I stripped off the jacket, and they saw I was wearing a rather
::: flattering pair of Performance Bike Men's Splice shorts with grey
::: accents, and a Nike Blue Bike Jersey with a swoosh.
:::
::: One said 'Oh sweating off the pounds, huh, I can totally get behind
::: that being a larger guy myself.' The other asked me if I had a
::: bell, since there was a complaint about me coming around corners.
::: They gave me no instructions, except for asking if I had a bell.
::: One asked me about the mask and I said "bugs", they both laughed
::: and said 'boy is that true'.
:::
::: Feeling great at having been stopped essentially for a 'speeding'
::: issue at age 53, only ten months after having barely been able to
::: 'Fred' around the trail at 8 or 9 mph.
:::
::: I normally tool the trail at 11-12mph, and wait until 0530-0600 to
::: put in a fast ride - there aren't any kids or anything out at that
::: time.
:::
::: Ironic since I've been the one harassed and chased by dogs and
::: having to put on a smiley face - but I'm now gonna be extra sure I
::: smile at everyone and say good morning - which I do.
:::
::: -B
::: Oh, I got their badge numbers and sent an email to the Chief
::: offering a commendation for their friendly and excellent handling.
:::
::: To make this even more sweet, three rad bikers on road bikes came
::: by and looked at me and gave me the thumbs up.

On Mon, 24 May 2004 00:29:28 +0000, El Calaverada wrote:

You must be a pretty mild mannered guy to take that incident so lightly, and
that's cool. But, you said the cops actually patted you down? That's not
cool. That's harsh! I'd be seriously ****ed!

If you had listened to the news lately, you may have heard that there is
some sort of generalized, panic-inducing warning from the friendly folks
at Homeland Security about the possibility of suicide bombers. We are all
supposed to be on the lookout for people wearing baggy coats on a warm
day, or people disguised as pregnant women.

You probably caught their attention with the raincoat, along with the
skimask. Heck, if you had walked into a convenience store dressed like
that the clerk might well have shot first, asked questions later.

What I really want to know is how the proper authorities will distinguish
between people disguised as pregnant women, and real pregnant women.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all
_`\(,_ | mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so
(_)/ (_) | that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am
nothing. [1 Corinth. 13:2]

"Q." LostVideos-AT-hotmail.com

wrote in part:

Let me just give you a piece of advice that I learned the hard way ...
police officers ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS. They consider you their enemy. They
have to, in order to be safe. However, they look for any excuse to mess
with you and they are looking to bust you for something. That's their job.
Don't trust them, and don't fall for their sickly sweet smiles.

Okay, I'll bite...

No, we are not your friends. Friendship entails both a knowledge of the other
person and a mutual respect/regard for that person so while we can be friendly,
even cordial, simply meeting you does not make us "friends". But you are not
our enemy either. You are a stranger and we meet most strangers in less than
ideal circumstances so of course we are cautious. It's not a police officer's
job to "look for an excuse to mess with you". If as you seem to imply, you've
been busted for something my only question is, did you do it? That's rhetorical
of course because I sincerely doubt that anyone posting anonymously that *did*
break the law has the required cojones to admit they deserved the trouble they
got.

Regards,
Bob Hunt

On Mon, 24 May 2004 09:30:21 -0400, "David L. Johnson"
wrote:

On Mon, 24 May 2004 00:29:28 +0000, El Calaverada wrote:

You must be a pretty mild mannered guy to take that incident so lightly, and
that's cool. But, you said the cops actually patted you down? That's not
cool. That's harsh! I'd be seriously ****ed!

If you had listened to the news lately, you may have heard that there is
some sort of generalized, panic-inducing warning from the friendly folks
at Homeland Security about the possibility of suicide bombers. We are all
supposed to be on the lookout for people wearing baggy coats on a warm
day, or people disguised as pregnant women.

You probably caught their attention with the raincoat, along with the
skimask. Heck, if you had walked into a convenience store dressed like
that the clerk might well have shot first, asked questions later.

Well someone should tell Performance Bike Shop that they have a Terrorist
on their web pages (lol):

http://www.performancebike.com/shop/...538&Store=Bike

-B