My friend and I were on a trip today up to South Carolina to pick up a shortblock from Lythropus, a member on here. We left around 3:26 and traveled up through Florida then all the way through Georgia to Hardeeville just into South Caroline. At first we we're pretty excited because the last time we did this we traveled down to Titusville. It took the same amount of time, but we were still in Florida.

This time we were excited that we might actually see something different than we're used to / cool, but we were wrong. Upon entering Georgia we noticed there was no welcome to Georgia sign or anything nice. It just started as mile 1. The first thing we see is two cars, one on each side of the road pulled over getting a speeding ticket. Not two minutes later we get pulled over for going 92 in a 70. A worthy ticket, no complaints there except for the officer made us sit in the car for 20 minutes when we were trying to coordinate our arrival. In the craptastic county of Camden we noticed they still had a large island in the median. This tree median featured periodic breaks in the trees for police cars to hide in. Along roughly 16 miles of Camden county we counted 9 police cars, 3 of which were pulling people over, not including me.

Once we exited Camden county we were hoping it would get better, but nope we were wrong again. Almost every single mile of 95 north in Georgia except Camden county is considered a, "Working Zone" and feature a reduced speed limit ranging from 60-55. The problem is in the 100+ miles we went through the only construction / work equipment we saw were 1 bulldozer, a wood chipper, and a giant ground tiller. That's it, yet the whole state is covered with large orange cones. The orange cones were the most exciting part as all Georgia seemed to offer was dead / leafless trees illuminated by headlights because there were no lights on the side of the road. Even when it said exit X city / Brunswich, Savannah, etc all there was were gas stations. You could look as far down the road on the overpass and not see anything.

Upon exiting the "******* of America" as we dubbed Georgia we were greated by a nice welcome to South Carolina sign with a flag and lights. We weren't greeted by police officers and the trees weren't dead. There were no Orange cones everywhere and as you drove you could actually see things on the side of the road. It wasn't exciting by many's standards, but after driving through that craphole Georgia it was wonderful. Upon meeting with Lythropus and collecting my $200 shortblock with a weak cylinder. We noticed 3 large firework stores and multiple restaraunts in our immediate area. A far cry from Georgia's nasty gas stations and bevy of traditional fast food places.

Our trip back through the "******* of America" was slightly better because there was less traffic, but still sucked. We needed gas on the way back only to almost run out because we went 22.4 miles without an exit. How is there not an exit for 22.4 miles? Only to find the rumor of cheap Georgia a myth. It's only 7 cents cheaper a gallon. We traveresed the orange cone, "Working zones" safely except for being cut off by a police car coming out of the median to pull someone over. The only reason we didn't get in a wreck was I switched lanes really quickly squeeling the tires. If there was another car there we would have been done for. Especially with all the **** in the back of my mom's car and a shortblock sliding around.

Upon nearing Camden county we began to notice all the police cars again and saw another two cars pulled over. I can say that exiting Georgia today was one of the happiest times I've ever exited a state. Today was my first time driving through Georgia myself and I will attempt to avoid further doing so at all costs.

My $200 shortblock became quite a bit more expensive seeing as how I have a speeding ticket to pay. Which for some odd reason doesn't say how much it's going to cost on it. I have to call the Camden county something office to figure it out. What happens if you don't pay a speeding ticket in another state? I don't know how much this is going to be, but if it's ridiculous I may majorly consider not paying it. What would they do?

All in all to sum up my rant Georgia aka the "******* of America" = Useless. I'm not basing this completely on my journey today, but my many travels through there with others. I've been to pretty much every part of the state and have to say it sucks. This trip today has made me appreciate the wonderful state of Florida much more.

PS: If you ever have to travel through the "******* of America" watch out for Camden county.

 

LOL. Nice write up. Goodluck w/ the ticket.

 

x2

Only time I go to GA, is Union Point to go dirtbiking when im passing through. Other than that, its a straight line through

 

Just drove from Daytona to Ft. Worth, TX...usually a 17ish hour trip, made it in about 15 hours with the help of V1.


P

 

^ I've been planning on getting one of those once my Formula is done. I guess I should have invested in one sooner. I tried looking up my ticket on the website they provided, but it said it wasn't in the system. I guess I shouldn't expect too much out of them.

EDIT: I have a Florida license and received a traffic ticket in another state. Will this affect my Florida driving record?

If you hold a Florida license and have received a ticket in another state, they will send Florida the ticket information and it will be added to your record. You will receive points on your license if the ticket is a point-accessible violation according to Florida Statute 322.27(3). Florida law does not allow any school or program to remove points for a ticket received in another state.

Any unpaid ticket reported by another state will result in the suspension of your Florida license. If this has happened you must contact the county where you received the ticket and obtain a receipt with the Court seal. You must present this receipt to DHSMV via fax (850-487-8473), or mail, or in person at any Florida Driver License Office. There will be a $47.50 reinstatement fee due if the ticket was paid after the Florida suspension date. If you are not sure if you owe the $47.50 fee or have trouble contacting the county where you received the ticket, please call 850-617-2000 or inquire at your local Driver License Office in person.

 

Contact the county clerk, request deferred adjudication...they will usually tell you to request it in writing to the judge and send it postmarked no later than the day they want you to respond by. They will either accept and ask that you pay the fine and be on 6 mos. probation and it will stay off your record, or pay a lesser amount for the fine and take a defensive driving course and will also stay off your record. Good luck w/ it.


P

 

Georgia sucks, that's the only reason Florida doesn't float away. Lol, my late stepdad said that nearly 10 years ago and I remember it like it was yesterday. I know how you feel about the cops. We went to North Carolina so we had to cross the whole state. The Chick Fil A Bowl was New Years Day when we came back and there wa cops everywhere with people pulled over.

 

Got a ticket in Indiana on Power Tour last year got deferred adjudication. Points never made it back to Florida. Call the clerk's office and ask if they have the deferred program.

Good luck!

 

was going through GA on the way to NY for the holidays. one of my copilots got caught speeding in a construction zone.

77 in a 55 i believe.

figured it would be a NASTY ticket due to the construction zone.

she called and it was $132

so you may luck out a bit on cost.

 

I went to school in KY from 2001-2005. Took I-75 for 8 hours through GA every trip. It was ALWAYS under construction in the area between Macon and the Florida Line, ALL 4 YEARS!!! Now about the speeding part, you already said that is your fault....but after seeing people pulled over right after the state line, why did you continue going 90+mph?

 

I hate to tell you, but that sounds like an extension of Florida. And if they are the ******* we are right below them collecting all the ****.

I read somewhere that Florida has more construction than any other state. Just drive around Orlando. Hell, you never know what lane is or isnt going to be there from day to day. Try going 3 blocks in Deland on 17-92. It took me 45 minutes to get beer and gas one day because the first gas station was out of our beer and I had to go 3 blocks to the next, slamming the bottom of the Z all the way. The Troopers hunt in packs as well as the county and city police. Try coming from Seminole County to Volusia County during a holiday weekend sometime. The weekend before Christmas I counted 36 police cars and bikes right there. The police in GA probalby just thought, last holiday weekend, lets get some revenue from out of staters going home. Better to get the tourists then thier own citizens.

Not that GA isnt a shithole, just in comparison Florida sucks too. Oh and a similar ticket here you will need to refinance your home to pay it. $132 for over 20mph over? Thats unheard of. More like $500 here in Florida, that is if they dont arrest you for drag racing.

 

Yes, all the license agencys are linked countrywide, if you dont pay it a warrant will be issued in georgia, and they will suspend your florida license

How do i know? i got a ticket in 1998 in california, that i did pay, but the paperwork at the court got screwed up and didnt get cleared. I then spent 7 years out of the country, only to return to Florida, got in a fender bender and was told my license had been suspended for 7 years, and i never knew it! I had to have it cleared in california before Florida would issue me a new license

 

That really sucks about your Georgia experience, but at least you got a short block out of it. What are the plans for it??

I have driven through Georgia once before, and 95 was under construction (this was summer 2006). Apparently Camden County, GA is always on World's Wildest Police Videos. A lot of drug running and chases there.

 

Not p[aying a GA ticket will get your license pulled in Fla. Both states have an agreement. I got nailed for 87 in a 55 and it was like $150. I too had to wait a few weeks and call for the amount. It takes them a while to even put it in the system. If you have no tickets in the past 3 years, ask them about that. I sent them a copy of my record and they dropped $50 off the ticket. lol

 

I have never understood how all of that state could be under construction at the same time with very few workers/ equipment.

 

Agreed, I mean I'm not a county engineer.....but when you look from the outside and see a sign that says construction for the next 22 MILES and orange cones all throughout those 22 mile. But, only see workers and equipment working on only 1/4 mile area....something doesn't make sense.

Off topic, but my favorite sign is the one on 441 N as you are coming into Alachua north of Gainesville. There's a sign that says Alachua is 5 miles ahead, then not even 300ft from that sign is another one that says "Alachua city limit". lmao

 

we wouldnt need all this construction if all the northerners stayed up north!!!

 

I just drove up to DE for the holidays. I too noticed the abundance of cop cars and the fact that GA and FL have useless construction zones. No doubt used to generate revenue.

 

Just made the trip myself on Saturday to South Carolina. Your write-up is dead on, and it doesn't matter what time of day, day of week, or time of year. Georgia truly is the @$$-hole of America. Slows my trip considerably. I even have a lot of them shoot me with radar then wait and try to be sneaky and follow me waiting to bust me. Worthless idiots. South Carolina is great. lots of dense trees and fence in the middle so no surprises along I-95.

I have to travel across SC on I95, I25, and I77. No cops the whole way Saturday, unlike Georgia where they outnumber the population.

 

Thanks for that useful bit of info I'm going to read up on that.

In our long journey we made a much better comparison. We named Florida the ******* of America. The shape is somewhat similar and it's right on the opposite side of the *******. Plus, Florida is full of fun and Georgia well....

I agree Orlando is awful, right lane ends signs are everywhere. That's also in a metropolitan area. Georgia is just useless. The problem I have with Georgia's construction zones is that they aren't even construction zones nor are they referred to as such. They are officially, "Working Zones". We drove for 100+ miles on 95N and the only area that wasn't covered in cones, Camden county was instead covered in cop cars.

That and when you drive around here and they say it's a construction zone at least their is some equipment or workers present. In 100+ miles of 95N all we saw was a bulldozer, a ground tiller, and a wood chipper. That's it, nothing else. Yet the whole state is covered in orange cones and reduced speed zones. Just the fact alone someone earlier posted that their friend got a speeding ticket in a, "working zone" and it was $132 is a joke. The signs on them say fines = a minimum of $100.

The thing is cops here are usually pretty cool. The one time I got a speeding ticket I was racing my friend, going 89 in a 45. The cop that pulled me over not only didn't arrest me, didn't write me a racing ticket or a ticket for 89 in a 45. He wrote me for 59 in a 45 which was about $140. I've been harrased by cops up here, but they don't give you tickets. I've been pulled over in Daytona for driving the wrong way down the road and he let me go. Ponte Vedra for a cracked windshield, speeding 53 in a 45, and failure to use a blinker. All I got was a $9 fix it ticket. Yes, tickets here are expensive when you get them. I'll take my near 5 years of driving in Florida with 1 speeding ticket vs. two minutes into Georgia and getting one right off the bat anyday though.

I'm going to use it and put it in my Camaro. I've already got some diamond forged pistons for that bore size and some ported 806 heads that are set up for solid roller. I'm going to use all the rest of the parts I pull off my Formula when I get the new stuff in and use the old stuff to convert my Camaro.

Agreed, especially on 100+ miles of road.

My favorite one up here is on the end of JTB. It says, "Guana River State Park next right". Then about 250 feet from it there's another sign that says, "Guana River State Park 11 miles."

We were joking about that too because of all the license plates we saw only a few of them were Georgia. All the rest were from some other area of the eastern coast.