Safe Speed Forums

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/a ... ge_id=1770


Speeding driver caught doing 100mph - with children dangling out of the window

10th March 2008

A speeding driver caught doing more than 100mph while children without seatbelts dangled out of the car window has been banned from driving for just 28 days. Colin Goodall was caught on a speed camera at 101mph, but police were horrified when studied the images and spotted children sticking their heads out of the window as the Audi hurtled down the road.

Officers were certain the youngsters were not wearing seatbelts as they clambered around in the back of the car to reach out of the speeding vehicle. Colin Goodall speeding at 101mph with two children hanging out of the window of his car

Goodall was branded a "disgrace" by safety campaigners, as the 37-year-old was banned from the roads for just one month and fined £200.

Jeremy Forsberg, of the Northumbria Safer Roads Initiative, said: "This is clearly absolutely disgusting behaviour. "He is meant to be responsible for the children in the car, other road users and to himself not to drive in this manner.

Colin Goodall was caught on a speed camera at 101mph
"Breaking a speed limit by more than 30mph is bad enough, but to have young people not secured properly and dangling out of the window is shocking."

Goodall, of Ashington, Northumberland, was speeding in his car on the A189 Spine Road, at Cramlington, Northumberland in October.

Because he was caught doing 101mph - more than 30mph over the speed limit - his case was automatically referred to court.

He appeared before Bedlington Magistrates, where he admitted the speeding charge and was given the short ban. He was also fined £200 and ordered to pay £45 in costs and a victim surcharge.

But it is Goodall's disregard for the safety of his child passengers that has angered safety campaigners. Mr Forsberg added: "We know that hitting a windscreen at 30mph is the equivalent of falling off a three-story building.

"So, while travelling at 101mph, any sudden braking by the driver while children's heads are hanging out of the window like that would have severely tragic consequences. "For those children not to be properly restrained in the first place is dangerous, particularly while going at such a speed.

"But to allow them to be behaving in the way they did shows a complete disrespect for the roads. He put his own life in danger, those of the children and other roads motorists. "That should attract a harsh penalty and the driver was quite rightly banned by magistrates."

Lorna Jackson, of pressure group Brake, said: "Speeding with children hanging out the window is highly dangerous and irresponsible and to then only receive a one month ban really sends out the wrong message.

"This driver has endangered his own and other people's lives and I am sure seeing those children would have been a distraction to other motorists as well.

"This is wrong on so many levels and our stance is that if speeding or driving behaviour is that bad, it should attract a charge of at the very least careless driving."



I would like to express my apparent lack of sympathy for this fool. He deserved all he got.

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Anyone who tells you that nothing is impossible has never bathed in a saucer of water.

Whilst not condoning any part of his behaviour I find the terminology a little over enthusiastic.



From the picture, which I assume was used in evidence I can see a head out of the window. Not exactly what I would describe as 'dangling' out of the vehicle. The description is used in the headline to the piece and also as a quote within the body of the report.
By all means lets look at how unsafe the children were in the rear of the car and encourage them to wear seat belts but the hyperbole just detracts from the facts IMHO.
We might as well say "Murderous motorist rockets through busy streets intent on killing" if we're going to get so caught up in adjectives that we lose sight of the facts.

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Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.

do you expect any better from the daily mail ? !

Hyperbole and safety are poor bedfellows.

That is odd.
What was he convicted of?
How can a speeding conviction have the circumstances taken into account?
How can a speed camera provide evidence for a dangerous driving (or similar) offence?

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Andrew.

It would appear he was only convicted for speeding

Folks,

Well it makes a change from dogs heads sticking out of car windows, when they (said dogs) are not wearing seat belts.

e.

Didn't Terry Nutkins' seal like sticking its head out of the window?

Fell out on a motorway according to rumour and in the next episode of The Really Wild Show he tearfully released "it" (different seal of course) back to the sea.

It could be that there was a severe case of in-car flatulence and the kids had their heads out the window to avoid the whiff.


101mph on a motorway? Indefensible.

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Anyone who tells you that nothing is impossible has never bathed in a saucer of water.

Not necessarily. He seems to think that braking hard from 100 gives rise to the same sort of deceleration as hitting a windscreen at 30...

Still I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Since when was knowing your 4rse from your elbow a qualification for being a "safety" campaigner?!

(edited to add that I in no way condone this sort of driving but let's keep some sense of realism)!

Right, so instead of concentrating on his driving, this guy should have reached around, told his children off and buckled them back up, probably multiple times in the same journey if my memories of myself and friends pulling similar stunts as a kid is anything to go by.

God help you if you're the only adult with a car containing children, you can't watch them constantly and still drive safely, just have to hope that no-one notices when the kids decide to unbuckle themselves.

Admittedly when I did this as a kid, it was mainly to avoid throwing up on the carpet, and usually in slower traffic, and it wasn't necessary to have rear seatbelts back then. Also I taught a cyclist not to undertake at lights using that method.

Anyway, if anyone has a serious method for keeping kids under control in the back of a car, I'd love to hear it, maybe they can have child locks for seatbelt buckles or something?

Do we even know how old the "child" is and how far they were "dangling"?

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Andrew.

Clear case of Delhi-belly. Dad's had a Phall the night before and Ghandi is having his revenge. He has his clog right down in the search for a kharzi, but has got to the stage of the 'moist clench', emitting tiny poots of capsic acid-laden gas that are making the kids' eyes burn.

Stands to reason...

Three figures is a bit antisocial, though. Still, at least they weren't behind him on quad-bikes...

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Aquila



Licat volare si super tergum aquila volat...

Now that's funny!

'Anyway, if anyone has a serious method for keeping kids under control in the back of a car, I'd love to hear it'

How's about raising them properly so they know not to do something so stupid? Or is that a little too obvious.......................

Especially when you start adding wild reporting and emotion to it.

I have to deal with some barking 'safety ideas' that have come from some idiot who gets scared and overly emotive about things.

I can't honestly comment as this story is so full of emotion and empty of fact that I don't know enough to comment on.

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Gordon Brown saying I got the country into it's current economic mess so I'll get us out of it is the same as Bomber Harris nipping over to Dresden and offering to repair a few windows.

Chaos, panic and disorder - my work here is done.

http://www.wildcrafts.co.uk

I thought they were a charity, and not political?

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Time to take responsibility for our actions.. and don't be afraid of speaking out!