Day One
March 1, 2010
Los Angeles, California to El Paso, Texas
13.5 hours of driving time
821 miles
4 states
The day started with a quick oil change/tire check/general check to make sure my car would make the 3,000 mile trek across country, then off we started, around 10 to 10am. And what a long way we had.
We stopped first at the California-Arizona border, where we snapped pictures of the sign, then doubled back to get the California welcome sign, which we missed on the first cross-country roadtrip we did almost two years ago. It's a sneaky little devil. I guess California doesn't care that much... it knows it's there, and doesn't need any grandeur.
We stopped at a podunk town to turn around in, where Hither posed with a tractor and the general deserted nature of the town was only foreshadowing of our journey through Texas the next day.
Then Onward, through all of Arizona, where we stopped in Phoenix for gas, and then later where Hither posed with a cactus, and then we pushed through all of New Mexico. But it was mile 355 in Arizona where our trip almost ended.
The speed limit in Arizona is 75mph, but in the dark, desolate nights of empty roads and tired minds and eyes, it's easy to slip into the 80's and 90's, despite my best efforts at not speeding. It was one such moment when the bright blue and red lights started flashing behind me. The odd thing is, I'd had a weird feeling all day that I would be pulled over during this trip. There's just no way I could make two cross-country roadtrips without being pulled over at least once. The odds are just way too great. And so when those lights lit up behind me, I wasn't too surprised, though it didn't stop my heart from thumping a little too quickly.
I pulled over, scrambled to find my registration (which we never did find), and had my 8 year old license ready to present. The older gentleman of a cop came over to my rolled-down window and informed I was driving at a rate of 87mph, 12 over the legal limit. Whoops. I played dumb, looked super innocent, and dropped my southern accent in hopes that it would help. He then told me that in Arizona, they're forced to pull you at 6 over the limit, and that 10 over qualifies as a criminal offense, with over $1000 in fines and possible jail time.
Holy shit.
But the kind cop took pity, seeing my over-stocked car, Virginia plates (I never did get them changed), and weariness. He told me to slow down, be careful, and was on his way.
Thank God. I almost spent a night in jail, y'all!
Heart still thumping, I eased back on I-10 and kept to the speed limit through all of New Mexico and just past the border into Texas, where we rested the night in El Paso.
What a grueling day, and only the first of many.
photo credit me and my SLR and blackberry
I'm glad you're posting your trip, I was hoping you would.
ReplyDeleteI got a near $800 ticket when going through AZ at 92MPH a few years ago. Makes me sad, because that highway was meant for excess speed and I wasn't even taking advantage of it.
@Poetry of Flesh - Yay! I'm happy to oblige! :)
ReplyDeleteArizona sucks. In fact, the entire southern part of this country sucks. There's literally nothing on the roads and yet they force you to go so slowly. Texas at least had an 80mph limit... but it's like they're taunting you. But $800... ouch.