Awareness

Today was a day I had not been looking forward to. 11.30 am found me reclined on a hard couch as the dentist pointed a pint-sized hypodermic in the general direction of my lower jaw. During the infusion of vast quantities of anaesthetic, I meditated upon the Trojan levels of destruction he was about to inflict upon my lower left premolar. It's called crown prep.

My sister was right: although tooth demolition is without pleasure, the alginate moulds upon which one bites while they harden (both before and after drilling) are a considerably less aesthetic experience.

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Fast forward to this afternoon and my attendance at the TTC Speed Awareness Course. There were 23 of us in that bright, modern, anonymous seminar room at the Somer Valley Enterprise Park, 12 women and 11 men. Most of us were quiet, attentive, let's-get-this-over-with types; there were three loudmouths more extravert individuals - thank God - who provided the obligatory degree of audience participation.

The presenters were a genial retirement-age ex-cop (Stan) and a no-nonsense woman of similar age called Kate. To be fair, they were both very professional and often amusing. The general story on these courses is that everyone thinks they're going to be terrible and then ends up being quite impressed; our hosts were clapped at the end of the four hours (this doesn't always happen).

What did we do? It's a coaching exercise. We were told facts about impact injuries at various speeds; we did photo/video based hazard analysis; we group-assessed the consequences and aftermath of car accidents. We were given hints on speed control and some indication that speed limits are not quite so arbitrary as I guess we had all believed. It was manipulation but it was subtle.

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This was the first outing for my windscreen-mounted radar detector, although I did not mention this during the group activity where we were invited to share what behavioural changes we had made as a consequence of getting a speeding ticket.

Driving to the session I encountered no cameras and the device was quiescent. As I turned into a parking bay (I later observed, at the moment the car was facing the automatic doors of Paulton House), a well-modulated female voice announced, "K-band radar has been detected, please check your speed."

On the way home, as we bounced over some rough road, the radar detector fell off.

No more radar lock-on

The road from Wells to Dorchester undulates through rolling countryside and the occasional village. The speed limit flicks irregularly from 30 to 40 to 50 to 60 and back again. I might have been doing 35 through a 30 mile per hour zone when Clare said worryingly, "You just passed a speed camera."

Do they still flash? Was this one of the ones they turned off to save money (but they make money, don't they)?

How does anyone drive around in the UK today without rapidly incurring 12 points and losing their licence (not to mention c. £400 in fines)? After my recent problem (Speed Awareness Course next week) I am determined not to go down that route .. and as always, I look to technology to help me out.

Most camera detectors have very mixed reviews: many seem to break (yes, as in stop working), to not actually detect the cameras (although they seem to do a good job on supermarket automatic doors), or to require complex configuration. This one seemed the best of the bunch.

Aguri Skyway GPS/radar/laser speed trap detector

It's not cheap, but saving one speeding ticket basically pays for it. It's legal in the UK to use a device which directly detects the radar (or laser light) from a speed camera, as well as using a camera GPS location database. People complain that it's a charter for speeding idiots, but I doubt that. Impulsive risk-takers are unlikely to be conscientious enough to go to the trouble of acquiring and regularly using such a detector - they'll be more than outweighed by the rest of us who just need regular hints to be more cautious against these modern automated predators.

I'll let you know how it performs once it arrives.

If I can get it to work.

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Update: Wednesday 27th January 2016. The Aguri Skyway arrived promptly this morning and it's now in the car as shown. Handy that I have a cigar socket doubler.

The Aguri Radar Detector joins the Sat Nav - click on image to make larger

It was not immediately obvious how to attach it to the windscreen - I was googling images to find an example - and configuration is as hard as it always is with multi-mode push buttons.

My advice to Aguri, as to all other vendors of small, configurable electronic devices, would be to add a configuration tool - basically an e-form - to be used when the device is plugged into the PC. It would make all the difference.

I did manage to update the speed camera database. The documentation said that this was unnecessary as the device ships up-to-date but (a) I never believe that, and (b) I wanted to know how it worked.

Whether the device works in the real world I have yet to find out. I guess I'll be doing a drive soon enough which takes me past a speed camera.

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Update: (April 22nd 2016)

Yes, it works well. It picks up the radar from traffic cameras (and garage/supermarket automatic doors) and its database of speed cameras is useful. It's in regular use.

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Update: (May 3rd 2016)

I received an email query from "Ann" and responded as follows.

Hi Ann,

Thanks for your note. Here are some answers,

I have recently had 2 speeding tickets - arrgh!! & would like a device to warn me when I forget or I'm chatting?  

"I have been using it for a while now and it's very useful.

"The built-in camera database warns about speed cameras, usually a verbal warning of the relevant speed limit.

"Most roadside cameras emit "K-band radar" and a polite female voice announces this, also with bleeping. Unfortunately, so do automatic doors at supermarkets and garages, so it's an annoyance you just have to put up with.

"Laser (lidar) is announced with a voice warning and a different tone - I've only had this once."

I would appreciate hearing your view as to its suitability for an older person.  I can use a computer IPad & mobile phone but find more complex things difficult. (Maybe upgrading would be problematic for me?)

"Like most things, it's a bit fiddly when it first arrives. You have to read the documentation carefully. But its default settings don't really have to be altered.

"There's a volume control on the side which is essential to avoid being deafened!

"The two rubber suction pads go on the windscreen and the metal tab is bent around so that the device doesn't slide off. The narrow end with the display faces the driver. The device is powered from a cable leading to the cigar-lighter socket. Worth buying a socket doubler if this is already used, for example for the sat nav.

"So yes, not a gimmick, a very useful tool if you basically drive at the speed limit but occasionally stray a little too fast. It should slow you down again and avoid those three points and a fine."

Regards,

Nigel.

Smoke detectors talk to each other; chirp

When the Council electricians visited my mother's house yesterday to 'stop the smoke detector chirping' I discovered two things.

1. I had previously replaced the battery in the downstairs smoke detector; it still chirped. Reason? The upstairs one also needed its battery replacing. They talk to each other. One has a problem, they both chirp.

2. Both batteries had expiry dates of March 2016. I said to the electrician, "They're mains powered, the batteries are backup. How come they need replacing at all?" He gave me a knowing look, "They draw power just the same."

Anyway, blessed silence till the next time.