Cheap Ass Radar Detectors
For years I’ve been warning consumers about the dangers of purchasing radar detectors from unscrupulous dealers and distributors lurking on Ebay, Amazon and other fly by night websites that sell counterfeit radar detectors and jammers manufactured in Korea and China.
There have been countless times where I was contacted by a misinformed consumer who purchased what was advertised as being an Escort, Beltronics or Blinder product for half price and received a “knock off” packaged in fancy box with a fake operators manual with the manufactures name and product proudly displayed.
Then several days or months later they get pulled over for speeding because their counterfeited device didn’t alert or the product totally failed and then they call for warranty repair and find out they’ve been taken.
During this year’s CES show I scanned the outer fringes of the floor to seek out one of these manufactures and to my surprise found Tommy Chen from Rayee Technologies in China, who had an entire display booth filled to capacity with his counterfeit wares.
As I began questioning Tommy about his products he recognized the word “Radar” on my id tag and asked me if I sold radar detectors. Jokingly I replied that I used to, but I never sold “Cheap Ass Radar Detectors”. Tommy replied “Yes, we make cheap ass radar detectors”.
At this time I waved over to my partner and asked him to begin taping an interview with Tommy and asked him about his products.
As Tommy introduced his products to me in the video I glanced over into the display and to my amazement observed products clearly labeled as “Blinder” (Blinder is a registered trademark in the USA for Blinder USA who manufactures and sells laser jammers and is not affiliated with Rayee Technologies)
On another shelf I observed knock offs of Escort’s/Beltronics GPS based radar detectors such as the Escort 9500i, Escort 9500ix and the GX65. (Beltronics owns the patent for Radar Detectors equipped with internal GPS and Rayee Technologies is clearly violating this patent).
Then on another shelf I observed knock off’s of the Cheetah GPS Mirror and their new C-50 Speed Camera Alert system.
Then in my amazement in another display they had knock off’s of Rocky Mountains Phaser – C-450 scramblers (Mike Churchman would had been proud).
During my interview with Tommy and in literature he later provided from the company, the radar detectors are advertised as all being able to defeat the Spectre III radar detector detector, along with being X, K, Ka and Ku band and POP equiped.
During the second half of the video Tommy hands me an Escort 9500ix knock off and I flip it over to see the FCC type acceptance tag. With none being affixed (as required by law) I ask if his products were FCC type accepted and he related that they were.
At the closing of my interview I asked Tommy if he would be willing to send me samples of his products for testing and he related he would.
After my taped interview with Tommy I pressed for more information as where you would download the database for the GPS features, who made the database or if it was a “hack”, and if he was aware of his products infringing on trademarks and patents of US companies.
Tommy related that you had to go to their website in China to download the firmware/gps upgrades and yes that he knew that his 9500ix was infringing on Escort’s patent (however in all honesty, I cannot say that he understood a word I said, he would often say yes and repeat my question)
During this entire process I watched as other dealers/distributors who were making deals with other reps from the company making commitments for orders. Who these dealers/distributors were I have no idea, but I’m sure that you’ll be seeing these same knock off’s soon being sold on Ebay/Amazon and some of the rip off websites that target the uneducated consumer!
Buyer beware…..
Cheap Ass Radar Detectors
SEMA 2008 – The Radar Detector Experience
A love for cars, trucks or anything else automotive is the founding principles for the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) trade association. For over forty years, this organization brings a diverse group of manufacturers, distributors, retailers, publishing companies, car clubs and automotive enthusiasts together each year for the world’s largest automotive trade show.
Several of the speed counter measure manufactures attend this week long event to show off their new wares and to network with others in the automotive industry.
Yesterday was opening day for the 2008 event and I felt that this would be a great opportunity to interview the CEO’s and/or engineers of the various radar detector and jammer companies to discuss their various products and their commitments to the industry and customer.
I first met with John Larson, the CEO of Escort Radar Incorporated. Over the past year Escort/Beltronics released three new GPS based radar detectors to the market, the Escort 9500ci which is high performance remote mounted radar detector and laser jammer combo; the 9500ix which is their dash mounted version; the Bel GX65 radar detector and their updated ZR4 laser defense system.
During our interview John stressed Escort’s commitment to the customer saying that they consider “the customer their boss” that they consistently seek input from the radar detector user to improve and develop new products. John revealed some of the new products that they are now working on saying they have several products in the works that will tie other automotive electronic devices into one central unit.
Next I interviewed Leon Gruner aka “Blinder Dude” the CEO from Blinder USA. Leon discussed their updated J16 version of the Blinder M-25 and M-45 laser jammer and their ability to remain strong in the speed counter measure market place for over eight years while others have failed. We also discussed our exploits during the Fireball Cross Country Rally and next year’s run from the west coast to east on Route 66.
Just prior to this year’s show, Don Norton the CEO from Cheetah USA gave me one of their new GPS based photo radar and red light camera alert units, the C100. I had an opportunity to test and review this unit in the Phoenix metro area just as the Arizona Department of Public Safety and Redflex activated sixty new speed enforcement cameras. Don and I discuss this new unit and how during a short eight mile trip it saved me from four of these new cameras and $600.00 in fines.
Cobra Electronics has also embraced GPS technology into their line of radar detectors. Tony, one of the lead engineers of Cobra introduces me to their 2009 line up. Tony who is a long time participant at the annual “Radar Detector Shoot Out” in El Paso, discusses their improvements in processing the incoming radar threats with their detectors and the free GPS update plan they offer.
Notably absent from this year’s show was both Michael Churchman, CEO of Rocky Mountain Radar and Raul Elguea their head engineer. At previous SEMA and CES (Consumer Electronics Show) I approached Raul with cash in hand and television news cameras rolling challenging Raul to demonstrate to me one of his radar jammer products in action in the parking lot of the Las Vegas Convention Center . During this interview Raul backed down saying “Our product will not work in a parking lot”.
During last year’s SEMA event Michael Churchman also was a “no show” at his company’s booth. However I did find him at a Las Vegas bar where we sat down to discuss my $50,000.00 reward that I offer to anyone that could show me a Rocky Mountain Radar jammer/scrambler that worked. When I asked why he and his company had refused to take me up on my challenge he first replied saying that my test was rigged. I reminded Michael that it wasn’t my test, that I (we) would higher off duty police officers to perform the test and if his product worked, he would receive $50,000.00. Again Michael refused to take me up on my challenge.
This video recapping Rocky Mountain Radar’s history in the radar jammer/radar detector marketplace was shot directly in front of their booth and their staff was invited to participate, but they refused.
Blinder M-25 Rev J15 Test
After Saturday’s “official” testing at SML, Leon the owner of Blinder USA and I met up so I could review Blinder’s new software and system now included in the J15 version of the Blinder M25/M45.
Leon explained that the J15 update included newer LED’s and software that were developed specifically for the newer police laser guns used in Europe.
Leon’s test car was a white Impala with no front license plate and the jammer heads were mounted on the front bumper. Runs 1 and 2 were center of mass, run 3 was the drivers side headlamp.
Run 1
Run 2
Run 3
Laser Atlanta
JTG
JTG
JTG
Laser Atlanta Stealth Mode
JTG
JTG
JTG
LTI 100LR
JTG
JTG
JTG
LTI 20/20 LR
JTG
JTG
JTG
Kustom UltraLite
JTG
JTG
JTG
Stalker
494/294
365/110
281/177
During this test I did see a significant improvement with the J15 revision then with earlier revisions that I’ve tested.
Hats off to Leon and Blinder International for following through with this improvement with their system!!!
SML Day Two – Radar and Laser Testing
This morning I started out the day with Carl’s photo crew, Aaron from Legal Speeding and the crew from Adaptiv with a BMW, Bussa, and two Harley’s to do a photo shoot. We left the SML test site and headed out to the Trans Mountain Highway and put our motorcycle radar detectors through the twisties.
We returned to the testing site five hours later as the El Paso officers were finishing up the POP radar testing.
After a short nap, I was able to test Blinder’s new M25 J15 version against the Stalker, Laser Atlanta, the LTI 20/20, the LTI LR and the Ultra Lite from Kustom Radar.
Its after 10:30 PM now and we have not had a chance to eat dinner or empty the desert sand from our boots. Tomorrow night after I return to my office, I’ll publish the results of my testing of the M25, along with closing comments on this year’s SML event…….
Counterfeit Blinders Hit the US Market
M100 Laser Jammers Sting US Customers
It never ceases to amaze me the crookedness within the radar jammer and scrambler industry.
Back in 2005 Carl Fors from Speed Measurement Laboratories and I tested a what was then a new “wireless” laser jammer called the First Strike that was manufactured by Dongen Electronics, a divison of Attowave Electronics (who also manufacture the Rocky Mountain Radar Crap) both based in Korea.
The manual for these jammers were basically a photocopy of the Blinder M-20 Extreme with the Blinder references removed.
When we inspected the laser heads, we found them to be of similar design of the Blinder Xtreme heads, minus a few laser diodes.
The “wireless” laser jammer controller plugged directly into your cigarette lighter and the laser jammer heads plug into a controller mounted under your hood or under your seat if mounted on a motorcycle.
During our testing of this cheap and blatant Blinder knock off, the device failed to jam any of our laser jamming equipment! Carl and I both wrote up our reviews for this product and respectable dealers in the US decided not to carry them. We later found that the only websites foolish enough to carry these jammers were all based in the United Kingdom.
The UK SpeedTrap Guide then did a follow-up and published their own review of the First Strike and their findings: “The testing results were very poor and we would suggest that you NOT consider this product”
After all our published reports slammed the First Stike, most of the UK dealers stopped selling them after angry customers sent them back for refunds while including our test reports on the device.
Tonight I was surfing the web and found numerous websites that are selling these same counterfeit Blinder Laser Jammers in the US Market now being marketed as the M100 Laser Jammer and the M100 Motorcycle Laser Jammer and immediately recognized them as the same device that Carl and I tested!
To even make matters worse the following websites; RadarScramblers.com, e-radar-detectors.com, radar-jammers-detectors.net, jammerstore.com, radarjammers.tv are all using images “Stolen” from my StealthHog.com website depicting the Blinder laser jammers installed on my own Harley Davidson motorcycle (with my Arizona license plate “MC1MAZ”), as their own M-100!
Being a retired cop, I don’t like it when thieves steal my own copy written content material, so I’m in the process of filing a DMCA notice against RadarScramblers.com and the other websites in question, while also notifying their hosting company, Yahoo and Google requesting that their services be shut down until they remove my material!
My second wave of attack will include a letter to the Cheif Enforcement Officer of the Federal Communications Commission, notifying them that these websites in question are also selling Rocky Mountain Radar products that were found to be in type 15 violation of their rules.
My third wave if the images are not removed within 48 hours is filling a suit for DMCA violations.
In the meantime, buyer beware. If you’re considering purchasing a laser jammer or radar detector please do your homework and purchase these products from legitimate companies and not from some shyster that sells counterfeit products and/or those Rocky Mountain Radar products that don’t work either.
If it’s too late, consider doing what customers in the UK did when they found out that they were ripped off. Contact your credit card company and request a full refund for being defrauded!
Fireball Run Recap – It’s not the Destination, it’s the Journey.
It’s been over a week since I’ve completed the Fireball Run so I have had time to decompress and get back to the normal grind. After replaying the adventure of a life time in my head and catching up on all the rest I missed, I now feel it’s time to review my coast to coast journey.
First off my co-driver Bob and I both felt that it was quite an honor to be one of the select few that were invited to participate in the Fireball Run’s “Race to Recover America’s Missing Children.”
Event organizers J. Sanchez and Martin Blake did an unbelievable job in putting such an event together; starting with getting national sponsorship from such companies as FedEx, GM, Clear Channel, RadarBusters and the Insurance Office of America, getting communities along the rally together as participants, planning out the rally from coast to coast, and putting together business professionals as participants in this event. My hats off to both!
The overall mission for the Fireball Rally was to bring national exposure in locating missing children with the Child Rescue Network and the assignment for each team was to place as many recovery posters out for each team’s sponsored child along the 3500 journey. Our child was four year old Francisco Rios – Carriere who was abducted on March 3, 2004 by his non custodial father.
At each stop Bob and I made along the trip, we took the time to speak with people passing out Francisco’s poster. In Beaumont Texas, my co-driver “The Veil Guy” even went that extra mile. While I was inside the local Walmart shopping for supplies, Bob stood outside and handed out over 300 posters to shoppers!
From day one at our starting point in Orlando, to the finish line seven days later in Hollywood Bob and I logged in over 3700 miles.
During our journey we logged 28 Ka band, 7 K band and 1 X band radar hits and one laser hit.
Even with all our high tech speed counter measure equipment that we had installed, we were not immune. On I-10 in Florida we were traveling well above the posted speed limit, when we spotted a trooper traveling on the opposite side of the highway after clearing a row of trees in the median. Bob reacted immediately in breaking as the officer simultaneously activated his instant on Ka radar gun. We were pulled over and given a good “butt chewing”, but it could have been worse if we were not paying attention to the road ahead.
Other drivers in the event were not as fortunate, even though it was stressed by event organizers not to be “stupid”.
One driver was arrested after being clocked at 145 in his Vett, and one team received three separate citations for speed all above 90!
Bob and I took the advice of a long time Cannonballer who placed third in the event after he related “I like 70, love 85 but never go above 90, that speed is jail territory!”
Our success in safely navigating the rally ticket free came down to a number of factors
First and foremost we applied a formula that I began using when I started teaching defensive driving over 20 years ago, my “Radar Roy’s Rules of the Road”
1: Know the exact location and speed of surrounding vehicles
2: Constantly scan the road ahead, as far as your eyes can see
3: Pay attention to the road surface
4: Watch oncoming traffic from as far away as possible
5: And lastly “watch out for stupid” who is stupid? Every driver on the road INCLUDING YOURSELF!
Secondly we applied all the techniques that I’ve developed in “How to Maximize Your Radar Detector” from proper mounting of the detector(s), properly interpreting the alerts of our detectors, paying attention to “clues” to other methods of speed enforcement devices such as the painted lines indicating Vascar or aircraft speed enforcement, keeping the detector in Highway mode for best sensitivity, and lastly reacting immediately and properly when an alert is given.
Third, Bob and I worked together as a TEAM! I’m not going to deny that The Veil Guy and I had our moments after being in the same car for seven days and driving over 3500 miles, but for the most part we worked together as a team. The number one responsibility for the navigator was watching out for the driver. These meant watching ahead for hidden troopers and tell tale signs of speed enforcement, figuring out solutions to our clues for the rally and navigation.
The bottom line, you have to have trust in each other’s abilities, mainly their driving abilities. This was echoed by other Cannonballers who related if you’re with a driver that you cannot trust, you’ll be stressed and never rest between navigating and driving.
Speed Counter Measure Review
During our journey we tested the top radar detectors made today that included; The Beltronics STi, the Escort 8500 X50, the Valentine One and the RX65. I had also planned on testing the new Escort 9500i, however this unit was lent to another team that I sponsored and they had mechanical problems that left them at the starting line.
All the top radar detector’s performed well as expected, but early on I took I took favor to the STi’s ability to sniff out Ka band faster than the other detectors that were in our arsenal and used it as the main unit throughout the rally.
The Whistler Pro 78 also did a superb job during day four and when compared to the STi was just a little slower in reacting to alerts and only falsed one time.
The only radar detector that I felt was a disappointment was the Cobra XRS R7 as I found its falsing annoying and it totally missed a Ka alert of one trooper in La.
In New Mexico the STi and the Blinder M-27 both alerted to a laser hit, however we never could figure out where the officer was hiding. When both units alerted, we were 25 miles over the posted speed limit, which would had easily justified a very expensive citation. However after slowing down we were never given chase, so I can safely assume that our Blinder Laser Jamming system and the Veil stealth coating saved us in this encounter.
After being on both sides of this industry for over 30 years, I did find it surprising that the Mississippi State Police still used X band. I have often recommend to clients to turn off X band on their detectors unless they were driving in NJ or the southern parts of Indiana. I’m glad that I didn’t follow my own advice in this encounter, even though the patrol car was unoccupied.
Next Year’s Plans
Bob and I have been invited back to participate in next year’s rally therefore I have been thinking of devices that we would include with our radar detector arsenal along with plans to improve our scoring.
CB Radio: Just like the original “Smoky and the Bandit” several of the Fireballers used CB radios to communicate with truckers of impeding speed traps.
Beartracker Scanner: Several of the Cannonballers were also using the Beartracker Scanners that would alert of trunk mounted transmissions in the police radio spectrum.
iPhone: I had brought my iPhone and laptop computer that was equipped with a cell card to access the Internet to help solve clues while on the road. For all instances I found it much easier and more dependable (at least on this trip) to use my iPhone. Therefore next year, I’m leaving the laptop behind.
Over the last 15 years, I had received extensive training in defensive driving techniques along with high performance driving techniques from Bob Bondurant’s driving school and executive protection driving by the US Secret Service. However I admit that when I got on the track this year, I was very rusty. Therefore prior to next year’s rally, I’m going back to Bondurant to freshen my track skills and hopefully pull down some better times.
I’m also a diehard Harley Davidson enthusiast. No, I’m not thinking of running my Screamin Eagle coast to coast in next year’s rally, but would like to figure out a way to include it for some of the events. So I’m considering using my Harley Davidson Edition F-250 with my Screamin Eagle in the bed, and then perhaps run the bike on the track!
See you Fireballers Next Year!!!
Fireball Day Six – Home Court Advantage
Albuquerque to Henderson
This weekend kicks off the Albuquerque Hot Air Balloon Festival and as we were leaving the hotel we saw dozens of balloons already in today’s morning sky. Breakfast and starting line was at Saint Pius High School on Coors Blvd and Saint Joseph’s way. The morning school schedule was arranged to allow the students time to come out to see cars and crew.
The official count of entries for this years rally was at seventy five the evening of the pre-race. However eight cars, including my sponsored TransCon Ambulance dropped out from the starting line because of mechanical difficulties. Starting this morning leg we had forty eight cars left in the rally.
After we pulled into the parking lot, a group of students escorted us to their cafeteria where they served us a hot scrambled egg and bacon breakfast. After eating we came out to the lot just as the students were being released from their classes.
Once they laid eyes on the Bat Mobile, students twenty deep circled. Neil the owner and driver of the Bat Mobile fired up the rear jet engine (a large propane burner) and a four foot blue and yellow flame blew out of the rear. Neil then loaded up the rocket launcher and shot a projectile across the parking lot. All the students applauded and cheered.
The Albuquerque police department began mobilizing for their escort of our group while the Arch Bishop led the drivers and crew in prayer. The mayor of Albuquerque then gave a short speech and then started the race by waving the green flag.
The Albuquerque police had shut down northbound traffic on Coors Blvd. and all west bound traffic on I-40 (during morning rush hour) and we had clear sailing to the outskirts of town.
Being from Arizona I was very familiar with today’s route and even had a pretty good idea what today’s challenges laid ahead. At the New Mexico and Arizona state line I knew of several Indian souvenir shops that included the Chief Sitting Bull’s store and the Tee Pee Cigar store. I had commented to Bob and to the Blinder Xtreme team the evening before that I would expected one clue would be to find the chief and have a seat next to him.
I also figured that about lunch time we would be pulling into Winslow Arizona and commented that we would be standing on a corner in Winslow Arizona eating lunch.
As I was the designated driver for today’s leg, Bob as my navigator had the privilege to open the sealed envelope with today’s clues;
Clue One: find the big tee pee, put on a head dress and strip down to your skivvies and sit Indian style in front of the doorway.
Clue Two’s clue was on a prerecorded CD. Bob stuck the CD into his player and the Eagles song “Take It Easy” began playing.
We made a beeline for the state line while other Fireballers were trying to obtain clues on their laptops before they got out of range of the Albuquerque cell network.
I had hoped to do a comparison test of the 9500i during this trip; however my only Escort 9500ix radar detector was sitting on the dash of the TransCon Ambulance that had broken down outside of Orlando.
Also over the past several days, other Fireballers that were using some of those “cheaper brands” were impressed with our arsenal of the high end units and begged us to borrow them as over one third of the group during yesterday’s run were pulled over and cited.
So today our arsenal was whittled down to our old trusty Bel STi and the Cobra remote. We plugged in the STi hoping that we wouldn’t have another 33.8 encounter as we had the evening earlier, pledging that we would send the unit in after our return for the firmware upgrade.
It wasn’t far outside of Albuquerque when we received our first hit on 24.1 K band. A half mile later we observed a white Sheriff’s car east bound on I-40 moving in our direction.
At mp 48 on I-40 we received our first laser hit during the rally when the Blinder laser jammer and the STi went full alert as we approached an overpass. We slowed down and looked over, under and around the overpass and never saw a trooper, false alert?
At 11:40 MST we arrived at the Arizona New Mexico border pulled off the exit and drove to the Tee Pee Cigar store. Bob stripped down to his under ware, put on his cowboy boots and head dress and sat at the front door for his picture.
We then drove next door and picked up the Navaho Times published in Window Rock Arizona and took off for the Arizona welcome sign on the highway.
After snapping the welcome sign we headed for the corner in Winslow Arizona.
A few minutes after arriving into my home state, we received a text message that an Arizona DPS officer was sitting in the median at mp 305 running 35.5 Ka. At mp 307 the Bel STi gave a short alert of 35.5 and then again as we neared mp 306. The detector then remained silent as we approached, giving us a good indication that the trooper was using radar in instant on mode.
We entered Winslow at and I drove to the corner of 2nd and Kinsley and located the Fireball Staff tent. Before we could receive our stamp, we were told that someone from our car had to sing the tune that put Winslow on the map. I started signing and a member of the Winslow Chamber asked me to stop because if anyone heard me, they would take the town off the map, she then gave us our sticker.
We had a quick lunch and were then handed an envelope containing the location of the finish line of today’s leg, the MonteLago Resort in Henderson Nevada.
The evening prior my daughter Erin called me saying that she had broken her leg and was in the emergency room. She expected to be released later that night, but the doctor told her she would have to remain in bed until she could be looked at by a specialist on Monday. She now lives in Flagstaff, so I thought that I would quickly stop in for a visit.
Also while in Flagstaff I figured that we could stop by the DPS Northern Command Center to get our trooper scooper photo.
Just after leaving Winslow, at mp 130 our Beltronics STi alerted to 34.1 and a short time later observed a white Sheriff’s Office vehicle parked in the median. Then at mp 148 we received our second 34.1 and a mile later observed an Arizona Trooper parked in the median.
After arriving in Flagstaff we got on Old Route 66 and drove to the Arizona DPS center. A few minutes after arriving we spotted a trooper. I badged him requesting a photo and he obliged.
We then drove to the west end of Flagstaff to my daughter’s townhouse and paid a visit. She was glad to see us and we spent a few precious minutes relating the events of the past several days.
Heading back onto the freeway and Bob and I began discussing plans on how we could make up lost time, as now we were at the rear of the pack. As we were going to cross into Nevada at Boulder Dam, I knew that there were no stores in the area of the dam to purchase a Nevada newspaper for our state sign assignment. I called Bill, a friend of mine in Kingman and asked him to call around the area to find a store that sold any Nevada newspapers. He called back in a few minutes relating that the Flying J Truck Stop in Kingman had a pile of Nevada newspapers. I asked if he could call back and ask the clerk to put one on hold for me, as I knew that any Fireballer ahead would take the entire stack.
We had clear sailing on I-40 leaving Flagstaff. We did get a text message after leaving the town limits that there was a DPS trooper at mp 65, but we figured that he would be long gone before we closed the 100 mile gap. However at mp 66 the STi alerted 35.4 and there at mp 65 we spotted the officer.
We flew into the Flying J for our newspaper and surprised the clerk when we gave her a five dollar tip as we had the last Nevada newspaper left in the store.
At this point in the today’s run I commented to Bob that my legs were beginning to cramp from sitting behind the wheel the last five hours and asked if he would drive the remainder of the trip. He jumped behind the wheel and I took over navigation.
I knew the location of the report from prior trips into Vegas, but I was interested in seeing what our GPS would estimate our arrival time at based upon our location. I was surprised to see that my recently […]
Fireball Day Five – A Reception Awaits Us
Oklahoma City to Albuquerque
This morning after packing up the 540i “The Veil Guy” and I headed to the memorial site of the Farley Federal Building to pay our respects to the victims and the families of the Oklahoma City bombing. We parked just outside the memorial entrance and took time to read many of the hand held inscriptions that mourners have taped on the front fence, along with flowers and other tokens of respect.
We then drove back to yesterday’s finish line at Brick Yard Stadium, which today also served as the starting point. Lined up in front of the Fireballer vehicles were numerous motorcycle officers from the Oklahoma City Police Department and two local area news station remote trucks that were performing live interviews with other contestants.
After lining up our car, Bob and I walked up to the motorcycle officers and introduced ourselves. Being a retired officer and a Harley enthusiast myself, we quickly began swapping war stories. Mounted on each officer’s bike was the new Stalker 2 hand held radar gun. The officers also told me that they also use the Stalker laser guns, but because of the portability and small size of the Stalker 2, that this was their main weapon of choice.
The officers also confided with us to be careful heading into Elk City, as they heard that the Oklahoma State Patrol was setting up a large welcoming reception for us.
Oklahoma City’s Mayor gave led a morning prayer for the safe passage of the Fireballers, waved the green flag and we were off.
The motor officers provided a rolling escort for us to the on ramp of I-40, right smack into morning rush hour traffic.
Bob was the designated driver for this leg while I was the designated navigator. The detector selection today included the Bel STi and an Escort 8500 X50.
Once on the Highway I opened our sealed FedEx envelope for today’s clues.
Clue One: Get your lunch from the legendary “Big Texan” in Amarillo. Here you’ll need to kiss a cow, swim from Laredo to Amarillo, then convince Bobbie Lee to stamp your route book.
Clue Two: Built by the Swiss in 1966, it rises to 10,000 feet above Albuquerque and spans over 2.7 miles – it is the longest of it’s kind built anywhere in the world. Here we would be handed the location of the finish line.
Rules for this run were that we could not enter the town of Albuquerque prior to 5:00 pm (the start of rush hour)
Clue two was easy as I’ve been to Albuquerque many times before and immediately recognized this clue as being the Sandia Tramway. I fired up my iPhone for clue two and found Big Texan restaurant in Amarillo on Google.
After traveling about 30 minutes, we started receiving a solid hit of 35.5 on both the Bel STi radar detector and the Escort 8500 X50. About a mile later we saw three Oklahoma State Trooper cars setting up in the west bound lane.
One mile later we passed another trooper who was hidden, parked behind a bridge embankment. Our welcoming reception was forming….
An hour later, as we started entering into Elk City, both the Beltronics STi and the Escort 8500 indicated a 34.7 Ka alert, a half mile later we saw an Oklahoma Trooper parked in the median facing our direction. Then a few seconds later, the detectors began alarming 34.7 Ka. A mile further we observed an unmarked Dodge Charger parked in the median.
A mile after the Charger we then started receiving 34.7 alerts on both detectors and about a minute later we saw our third trooper in Elk City parked in the median.
Leon from team Blinder Xtreme then called us and said that an unmarked Crown Vic had just pulled out from ticketing another Fireballer and was ahead of us turning into the median. Just as we were getting the details, both detectors alerted again, this time to a 35.5 and we saw the Crown Vic ahead.
Leon also related that he had spotted a east bound trooper about three miles ahead of us that was not running radar and a silver Sheriff’s car running K band four miles ahead.
A couple of minutes later both detectors alerted 24.1 K band and then we observed an approaching Trooper eastbound on the horizon. A mile after this encounter the detectors lit up 24.7 and we saw the silver Sheriff’s car parked in the median.
Text messages were flying back and forth between Fireballers; five cars stopped at mp 109, Black BMW stopped at mp 38, white Audi stopped at mp 37. Bob and I thought at this point it was wise to pull off and get some gas and a cold soda. As we exited the interstate, we observed a white marked pick-up truck hidden on the side of the overpass.
After pulling into the station, the white marked pick-up pulled in behind us. We struck up a conversation as I peaked inside the car, I observed a VASCAR unit on the transmission hump. I commented “You’re still using those old VASCAR units” and the officer replied “We use everything we can.” The pick-up left and we headed back to the den of Troopers.
We were receiving text messages that the black BMW that was ticketed in Elk City was closing the gap behind us, a few minutes later we received another message that they were again pulled over at mp 89.
As we approached mp 51, we saw the flashing overhead lights of a trooper. Passing, we saw that they had the blue vet with “We brake for Ka” sticker on the side of the road with a trooper.
At mp 50 we received a K alert at 24.7 and as we crested a hill, we spotted another trooper parked in the median facing our direction.
At 10:20 am, Bob and I crossed back into Texas and we found a new welcoming committee was forming. We were using a white Audi that ahead of us for our “rabbit.” At mp 165 the Escort and Beltronics unit alarmed 34.7 and almost immediately we saw a black and white Texas DPS trooper car pull out from behind a row of trees and giving chase to the Audi.
Team Blinder Xtreme called us again telling us that the Texas troopers had the Bentley and the SRT pulled over three miles ahead of us.
As we approached mp 0 in Texas both detectors alerted 34.7 and just ahead we saw a Texas trooper with a black car parked behind traffic cones.
Our first project after arriving into New Mexico was to find a New Mexico trooper for our photograph and a New Mexico newspaper for our state sign photograph.
Five miles into New Mexico we saw a trooper off the side of the road with a disabled motorist. We pulled safety off the road, parking a safe distance away from the officer and stepped out of our car showing my badge. I first asked if we could be of any assistance to him or the motorist and he thanked us saying that everything was under control. I then asked if he would allow me to photograph him and his patrol car, he gave he related that this was fine. Bob stood next to the officer and we got our shot.
We traveled another 25 miles until we came across our first gas station. We gassed up and got our New Mexico newspaper and headed back to the state line for our sign shot and then headed west for Albuquerque.
At mp 357 the detectors made their first alert in New Mexico on 24.1 K band. A mile ahead we observed a silver unmarked patrol car in the median.
As we entered the town limits of Albuquerque the Escort 8500 X50 alerted 38.8 while the Bel STi remained silent. Behind us was the Blinder Xtreme team using a STi and a Valentine One and reported a 38.8 alert.
A few seconds later we noticed an east bound Albuquerque Police Department vehicle.
A few months ago the Beltronics had a software revision that addressed this 33.8 issue when earlier models would sometimes block out alerts on 33.8 frequency based upon the threshold, filtering the alert as a false alert. The unit that we were using in our car did not have the 33.8 software revision, the Blinder Xtreme team had.
Being familiar with the layout of Albuquerque, we drove to the area of the Sandia Tram via county roads that were outside of the city limits. We then parked a few miles away from the check in location at 4:30 pm.
At 4:55 we drove to the lift area and took our photograph with the lift person and provided the location of the finish line, the Albuquerque Art Museum.
We snaked our way through rush hour traffic south on I-25 then west on I-40 to our exit and then processed to the finish line.
Today we ranked 14 out of the 65 cars running today’s leg, finishing 15th in overall points and 3rd in class.
Fireball – Pre Ride Check In
Today was the first meeting of all the racing contestants and getting the cars decaled, inspected and checked in. I took this as an opportunity to checkout all the cars while my teammate the “Veil Guy” made last minute tune ups to our BMW 540i sport.
My first project was checking out all the speed countermeasure equipment that many of the cars were using and I was shocked and somewhat disappointed in what I saw.
First off entry into this race is not cheap, it costs over $10,000.00 for the full entry. The cars are not cheap either. There is an Aston Martin, a couple of Bentleys, a few Lambos, a Ford GT40, and couple of Ferrari to boot. But when it came to radar detectors I was shocked to see that some of these drivers really skimped in this area, counting six Cobra’s, one RMR C-450, and even a KAT!
I chuckled when I passed the car with the Rocky Mountain Radar jammer as he was bragging to another driver how his unit was able to jam out all police radar and laser thinking to myself “I wonder how many miles he is going to make it before he gets his first ticket and finds out what a POS detector he really had.”
There were many drivers however that did do their homework and two even mentioned that they had been reading my blog and forum prior to the race and did make some smart buys.
On the high end of the radar detector spectrum I counted four Bel RX65’s, four Escort 8500 X50’s, two Valentine One’s, one Bel STi and one Escort 9500i. One Aston Martin driver that identified himself as a Radar Detector net forum member took me to his ride to show off his Blinder M47, his Veiled headlamps and a SR7.
I then met with the owner of the “Bat Mobile” while he was in the process of installing his Escort 8500 X50 to the dual cockpit style curved windshields. It was certainly a challenge installing the unit above the rocket launcher and booster rocket switches.
Tomorrow at 7:00 am we line up and depart for our first leg of the race, Baton Rouge LA.
Check in tomorrow night for more updates.
Test Drive – Need For Speed
This past Friday, I had the pleasure to work with Screaming Flea productions in Seattle Washington, who are taping a new series called “Test Drive” that will air this fall on the MOJO HD Cable Television Network and other automotive related cable TV channels such as the Speed Channel.
One of the episodes on this new series is called “Need For Speed” where I outfit two high performance cars with the latest in speed counter measure technology in an attempt to outwit an officer from the Washington State Patrol.
First up, we each explain the different types of technology police departments use, and give hands on demonstration of laser and radar guns.
I then discuss the various types of speed countermeasure equipment that is available to the driver, discussing the various types of radar detectors and laser jammers, Veil stealth coating, and provide tips in selecting the right radar detector for your car and driving habits.
Next up, we perform some testing of various radar detectors and laser jammers and make several runs with and without the equipment. In one segment, the driver (really) forgot to plug in his Escort 9500i and found himself pulled over by a trooper on the busy highway.
During the taping of the episode, the Escort 9500i (when plugged in) detected the officers K and Ka band radar guns two miles away on this busy highway, giving our test driver ample time to slow down to avoid the speed trap.
We were also successful in jamming the new Laser Pro-Lite with a new Blinder M-27 that was installed on a black Audi. In five runs we had two jam to guns with Veil and three “punch through strikes” under 275 feet without Veil.
This episode is scheduled to air first on Mojo HD in mid October. When I’m advised of date and time I’ll pass on to our readers….
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