Speed trap

I've been pulled several times in the last few years up there. I have seen police in most of the locations mentioned in this thread at one time or other.

Heading North on 93, I tend go with the flow of traffic up to Concord, then use caution between Exits 15-20, and after exit 20, I put on the cruise control at something between 65-70 since I am done with the speeding up there. I would say I see troopers mostly in the middle near exit 20, in Plymouth and Thornton, but never much in the notch.
I have seen on, say, 3 or 4 occasions in a few years troopers on Route 3, either at the first trail head closer to Cannon or in the Beaver Brook X-C ski area.

I've even seen them hide down side bankings traveling south on 93 near Exits 18 through 16 on a busy weekend. Another caution is that I was nabbed one time on Route 153 in Eaton by a cop that was hiding behind a wooden billboard at winding spot in the road around 5:30am, likely eating his donuts. This was just as you would picture the cop behind the billboard in a oldie film or something being alerted by a car zooming past . I remember that day so well because after getting the ticket, 3 minutes later I had 3 black bears cross the road in front of me, then I nearly got lost on the side of Jackson in melting May snow and I lost my camera.

Good tips from all those who chimed in.

I've had numerous run ins with police over the years, with one strange stop in Thornton on 93 by a young State trooper. I suspect someone called in saying I was swerving or something, he pulled 3 of us over, let the one in front of me go and the one behind me go, made me get out of my truck and started asking me bizarre questions like "is there a warrant out for my arrest?" Am I sure??? Why am I so nervous? when was the last time I was pulled over?? umm like 10 years ago???!!!! Where am I going, why am I going there, what do I do for work?? I wasn't even speeding when he pulled me over. He made me stand in front of his cruiser while he checked my license, but then when he saw I was clean let me go without so much as an explanation. I was pissed and confused.

LIke today coming to work I saw a 4 state troopers between Exit 23 and 25.. Really???

A woman I know had an officer with a radar gun jump out from hiding on the side of the road, she was going to complain to the chief that such a surprise could cause her to hit a tree or run over a kid.

I said a better idea was to say that in a personal protection course you would learn that the best response to such a shooter was to drive right over them to frustrate their aim, that would keep any officers from doing it

Is it me or is this turning into a complaining about the NH State Police thread? (or apparently threatening them if I read the last poster right) I thought this was a hiking forum?

Without law enforcement, there is no law and ultimately no civilization. Why can't the police enforce existing laws? Everyone driving between 70-72 on 93 north of Concord seems to roll by the police just fine. That's 5-7 mph over the existing limit. The police can sit every mile if they want. All this outcry from the same crowd that complains if the slightest bit of LNT (not even a law) gets broken, even by those with good intentions like honoring fallen soldier or bombing victims.

hiking lady said:

I've had numerous run ins with police over the years, with one strange stop in Thornton on 93 by a young State trooper. I suspect someone called in saying I was swerving or something, he pulled 3 of us over, let the one in front of me go and the one behind me go, made me get out of my truck and started asking me bizarre questions like "is there a warrant out for my arrest?" Am I sure??? Why am I so nervous? when was the last time I was pulled over?? umm like 10 years ago???!!!! Where am I going, why am I going there, what do I do for work?? I wasn't even speeding when he pulled me over. He made me stand in front of his cruiser while he checked my license, but then when he saw I was clean let me go without so much as an explanation. I was pissed and confused.

LIke today coming to work I saw a 4 state troopers between Exit 23 and 25.. Really???

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I had a funny run in with a local cop a little while back. He pulled me over for speeding, which I denied doing. Then he say's to me " Sir, I smell marajuana coming from your truck", to which I replied " Wow you got a great nose, I havent smoked pot in over 10 years! " He then asked to search my truck, to which I replied absolutely no way unless you arrest me. He seemed flustered, then let he me go without a ticket or a warning, Bizarre.

John in NH said:

Is it me or is this turning into a complaining about the NH State Police thread? (or apparently threatening them if I read the last poster right) I thought this was a hiking forum? ...

this outcry from the same crowd that complains if the slightest bit of LNT (not even a law) gets broken, even by those with good intentions like honoring fallen soldier or bombing victims.

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Very well said,

Tim

John in NH said:

Is it me or is this turning into a complaining about the NH State Police thread? (or apparently threatening them if I read the last poster right) I thought this was a hiking forum?

Without law enforcement, there is no law and ultimately no civilization. Why can't the police enforce existing laws? Everyone driving between 70-72 on 93 north of Concord seems to roll by the police just fine. That's 5-7 mph over the existing limit. The police can sit every mile if they want. All this outcry from the same crowd that complains if the slightest bit of LNT (not even a law) gets broken, even by those with good intentions like honoring fallen soldier or bombing victims.

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I guess it is a matter of philosophy. Some people go by the letter of the law (65mph and anything over is in violation of the law and everyone doing so should be punished to the fullest extent dictacted by the law) and others go by the spirit of the law (in order to reduce the chance of a fatal accident, you should limit your speed to 65mph).

Hmmm... My first post - almost a waste of time and effort. Thread was interesting... sort of. Anyway, I love speeding. It's a curse that seems to have loosened its grasp a little. Now I almost always speed at 7-10 mph over the speed limit, with it locked in cruise control. I've passed many of the areas mentioned here as i drive back and forth from RI to NH (and VT, and ME...). Even if I'm the only one driving past them, the cops seem to let me be as long as I'm not more than 10mph above. In towns (not I-something), I typically do the speed limit or maybe five over. Of course, it does not hurt that I traded in my Miata for a Rubicon and have vet plates on it.

Now I think I need to go look at some of the climbing discussions. Want to start my WM winter 4K's a bit more seriously this year. Hope I don't get pulled over.

I've had the chance to talk to a fair amount of state troopers and I have the upmost respect for them. A trooper is not like a regular cop, they set the bar much higher, they are the top cops in the state. I have always found them to be very interesting and impressive, that is no cake walk of a job. I got stopped during the construction on Fran. Notch and told the cop I knew it was a construction zone, but I didn't even get to the zone yet and I intended to slow down. He saw my pack and gear and asked what I had done that day. I told him and he said sounds like fun, get out of here your fine. I drive 72 mph and fly by them, that's good enough for me. Law abiding citizens have nothing to fear and everything to gain by police presence, you want to bend the rules, don't bitch when you get busted.

I recently received a speeding ticket in MA on 91 at exit 24 to 26. My first in about 15 years. I was doing about 84mph.
On 91, with little or no traffic, I do usually cruise at about 78 and have never gotten a ticket at that speed.
He was a young State Trooper and only asked me where I was going and for the lic & reg.
I apologized to him "for the trouble" and he clocked the ticket at like 74, which is a whole lesser category.
I did not feel "trapped".
There are "traps", like that one on RT 2 in Randolph. There should be "step-down" speed limits in that type of area.
IMHO.

Kevin Rooney said:

To me, an example of an obvious speed trap is the first mile of so southbound on I93 below the last exit on the single lane section. From that point on, the road increases to two lanes, and yet the speed limit is held artifically low

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Actually, that's rational. The road there is two lanes but does not have sufficient breakdown lanes and shoulders to receive a 65mph limit. It is suitable for 55, however, and I remember when it was 45 all the way to where it now goes to 65 and have to wonder if they ticketed the wrong person who fought it and got the speed limit corrected for the road.

are those big bad police picking on speeders again? horrors. i have a mind blowing idea. when your coming down a hill where its 55, and there is a sign at the bottom of the hill, that says 30 mph, slow down to 30 and you dont have a problem.

A year ago last October I was heading west on Rt. 302 between Bridgton ME and the Cog. Anyone who has driven 302 from Portland west to Conway knows that that the speed limit goes up and down like a yo yo. It was early morning and pitch black. I had very faithfully obeyed every speed limit through Fryeburg. However, coming into Center Conway there is a wide sweeping curve over a river with no houses or anything to warn you that you are coming into town. Yes, there is a warning sign on the bridge but in the dark it is easily missed and I missed it. When I came to the 30 MPH sign my GPS gave a verbal warning "caution" and I hit the brakes hard. The sign is outside the city limits sign and well before the city limits I was down to 30, but a local Conway police car was sitting there in the dark with the radar pointed at the sign. The officer pulled me over. He came up and asked if I knew why he pulled me over. I said, yes, I didn't get slowed down before the sign. I thought he would let me continue to explain myself but he refused to let me say anything else. He wrote up the ticket and told me it would only be $50. My eye. When you get done paying three years of insurance mark ups you are into way more than that. After giving me the ticket, he drove off into Conway. I went to court over that one. It took three months to get a hearing. In court they let me have my say. When I mentioned that it was 6:00 AM and that the officer was sitting out there beyond the city limits in the dark, the look on the prosecutor's face was priceless. She said that since I had a clean record she would let me go for that one but not to let it happen again. The term speed trap was never used by either one of us but I think it was mutually understood that that was what it was.

Use the Waze app and collect kharma for reporting roadkill, obstructions, bad weather, vehicles parked on the shoulder, icy road conditions, and, oh yah, police cars.