That’s the Ticket!

I got an iTrip over the weekend, and I was going to post a rant today about how ridiculous it is that I have to spend $85 just to play my iPod in my brand-new car when all that should already be taken care of because Acura is a luxury brand and how do they expect to compete in the “pocket-rocket” segment if they can’t even make an iPod work and they offer no options to upgrade the stereo system and you can’t buy aftermarket speakers for an Acura and you can’t even play MP3 CD’s so why didn’t I buy a GTI instead, but then something more interesting happened.

So I was driving through Ontario on my way home from my parents’ house last night, when a late-model Chevy truck pulled onto the highway behind me. He gained on me quickly, but then “hovered” nervously behind me at about four or five car-lengths, like he wanted to pass but thought maybe I’d throw a houseplant or something out the window if he did.

This tension built all the way through the town of Ontario, so by the time I got to Webster I was eager to add a few car-lengths between me and the menacer. As we crossed the county line, safely out of reach of the notoriously unforgiving Wayne County Sheriffs’ department, I tapped the plus button on the cruise a couple of times.

The headlights in my rearview mirror got smaller for awhile, but soon he was gaining on me again. He came closer and closer, and just as I thought the nut was finally going to pass, the lights came on. It was a New York State Trooper Chevy Blazer. The joke’s on me: he clocked me going 71 in a 55. (Nice to know my speedometer is dead-on accurate.)

Whether he targeted me because of my car or not, I’d like to congratulate Trooper Lostracco for a game well-played. I’ve had cops tailgate me. I’ve seen them go 10 mph under the speed limit in front of me. But the reward goes to the patient player of mind games. So today, a little wiser and a little poorer, I learned a valuable lesson: don’t speed in the dark. And always carry a houseplant.