.... is no excuse for non-compliance, as the police are fond of telling us.
So I'm trundling back along the A40 dual carriageway just outside Carmarthen tonight, coming back from a VMCC meeting on the 45; that's a 1942-built Harley side-valve by the way. See a car in my mirrors and it stays behind me for a while; guessed it was a copper as I'm only doing 50, sure enough after a minute or so on come the blue lights , so I acknowledge and pull into the next lay-by. First though, dammit me rear bulb's gone.
Stop bike, take lid off, check rear light, it's OK. So I politely ask the two young coppers what the problem is and why he's pulled me over.
Plod;"You bike hasn't got a current MOT certificate, sir"
Me; "Correct; did you check its year of manufacture?"
Plod; "What's that got to do with it?"
Me; "Didn't you know that pre-1960 vehicles are exempt from MOT?"
Clearly he didn't; so I enlightened him, then asked him, quite seriously, if they got updated on the law regularly.
Plod; (getting a bit cheesed off by now and starting to wish he hadn't bothered) "It's a few years since I was at police college sir"
Me; "As it happens it was about two years ago that the law changed; I was involved in the consultation process with the federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs."
Plod looks even more fed up, and I can see where this one's heading.
So he changed tack came out with some other waffle about the bike weaving a bit. I pointed out the lack of rear suspension and drew his notice to the stretch of uneven road surface (signposted) that we'd just gone over about a mile or so back. Two-nil to me so his mate plays the joker.
"Have you had a drink this evening sir?"
Yes I had, one pint of bitter at the meeting; told him that I was quite happy for him to breathalyse me if he wanted to. He goes back to the car, rummages in the boot, has a quick muttered word with his mate then gets on the radio; comes back to me and says I'll just have to wait a few minutes. It transpires that they haven't got a breathalyser with them and their other mate's bringing one over.
Five minutes pass, during which time I take their numbers and inform them that whilst they may be doing their job I'm not particularly impressed with either their knowledge of current traffic law nor their standard of preparation, and I'll be writing to their gaffer; another cop car pulls up; WPC gets out and hands the young sprog a breathalyser kit. We do the routine and it comes up nigh on zero as I already knew it would.
Put lid on, start bike; 45 obligingly backfires sending sheet of flame and cloud of soot up copper's trouser leg. Serve him right for standing too close. He jumps in his car and drives off with his blues on.
Now on the one hand, you could say that they're only doing their job. On the other, as I mentioned in the title, if they're going to expect us to follow the law they should damn well know it themselves. Do I let it pass; or write a snotty e-mail to their boss?
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