Episode #17: That Day I Out Ran a DPS Trooper

The year was 1978, I was 20 years old, I was the assistant manager at the Gainesville Firestone store,  and had the best car I ever owned, a 1970 Pontiac LeMans. I bought it the year before in the summer of 1977. It was originally sold at Brown Pontiac in Gainesville so it was a local car, I was the second owner and paid $850 for it. It was completely stock with a 350 engine, automatic transmission, 2 bbl carburetor and single exhaust, but it registered 140 mph on the speedometer, though I hadn't tested that, yet.

I wish I would have never sold it but I was young and dumb and I did. I cannot believe I do not have a good picture of it but I have searched all my photo albums and this is the only one I could find. This picture was taken in April 1983. I was 25 years old and apparently forgot my shirt as I was putting together a swing set for my 3 year old son.

A guy I worked with a few years earlier was going to paint it for me and we got the got the hood sanded and primed. That job ended and I moved on and moved away for a while and never finished the paint job.

Back to my story in 1978. My boss who was the store manager, had to have hip replacement surgery and has been off work for 5 weeks. The store is open 6 days a week 7:30 - 5:00 and as the assistant manager, I had to be there to open and close the store plus go to the bank each evening and make the daily deposit and get home about 6:00 pm. 

Each Thursday after I finish the day's business, I had to drive to Lewisville where my boss lived to bring him paperwork and corporate correspondence he needed. This is about 110 miles round trip and I get home late on these days. I am on salary and am putting in almost 60 hours a week and am getting pretty tire of these hours, keep in mind I am 20 years old and feel like I am being taken advantage of with all of this.

One night I am heading home from Lewisville and I am just south of Gainesville a few miles, it is getting dark and I am ready to be home. If you remember in 1978 the national maximum speed limit was 55 mph. I think to myself, I have had enough of this and jump up to 75. After a mile or so I meet a southbound Highway Patrol, I glance in my review mirror and see him hit his brakes, turn around in the highway median and flip on his lights. 

My first thought is I cannot afford this speeding ticket and I am already northbound at 75 mph, he has to slowdown to turn around and get up to speed. I am only a 2 miles from the next FM road exit and decide me and this Pontiac can make it. I stomp on it and never look back. 

I look down at the speedometer and it has pegged well past 140 mph, and am coming up on the exit. I slow down and take the ramp at 100 mph. I have only a second to decide if I go left over the interstate overpass then the back way to town or go right which is a gravel road that I have never been on before.

I fear the cop would see me exit and go over the overpass so I turn right, head down this gravel road at about 80 mph and decide to turn off my headlights so I won't be seen. After a few more seconds I think what am I doing? I have no idea where I am or where I am going and it is dark. I turn my headlights back on and slow down just in time to take a curve in the road that looks likes it has just come to an end. I think OH NO! Now what do I do and hit the brakes and come to a sliding stop. 

I take a moment to look at the road again and it looks like an old low water crossing and decide this must be what is called Coopers Crossing. I ease across the dry shallow crossing and very slowly ease into Gainesville, hoping the Highway Patrol is not aware of where I went. As soon as I get into downtown, I go by the store and open the overhead shop door, pull in and close the door and wait there for a while.

The store is on one of the main streets in town almost across from the Court House and local DPS office. I call Carol to tell her what just happened and that I was hiding out here for a while and will be home in an hour if I do not get caught and arrested. I wasn't scared of anything that had just happened until I tell her the story and now I am scared. I do not recall her comment, but I am sure it was not kind.

Epilog-

Though I was only 20 years old, I should have known better. I should not have been speeding in the first place. I should not have run from the State Trooper. I really should not have driven down a gravel road that I have never been on AND with my lights off, but I did and it makes for a great story now. Dang I wish I still had that car.

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