[Bungleau]

Nice story. Years ago, I developed three rules for border crossings and being pulled over. Interesting to see they're referenced in the article for the most part.

Rule 1: Keep your hands in plain sight. The nice officer has a gun. You don't (at least I don't). Don't make them nervous about whether you have one or not.

Rule 2: Be polite. Yessir, no sir, yes ma'am, no ma'am. See rule #1 about the gun. They'll be more likely to give you a break if you're nice and polite than if you're obnoxious and rude.

Rule 3: Sunglasses and head coverings are off, no matter how uncomfortable you might be for the moment. See rule #1 about the gun [img]smile.gif[/img] You don't want to make them nervous, do you? At the least, you might spend an hour or two in the back seat of the officer's car while they make sure there's nothing illegal in yours.

I tend to keep around 10 miles over the limit, and I haven't had a problem in years. I have had an occasional exciting moment, though...

BTW, true story: Years ago, two friends of mine (age 19 or so at the time) were crossing into Canada from the US. When asked the usual questions (any alcohol? tobacco? firearms?) my one friend turned to the other and asked (out loud),

"Do you think that includes the M-16 broken down in the trunk?

Needless to say, the customs agent wasn't amused, and sent my friends over to the special inspection station, where they were instructed to find that M-16 in the trunk. They practically dismantled the car looking for it, and gave my friends a nasty warning.