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  1. #1 How to lose your driving license... 
    Duct tape savant felix's Avatar
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    ...through a combination of unfortunate factors and stupidity. This is my story.

    Two months ago i rode down to suzhou on a saturday to go meet some friends. In the evening we got plenty drunk and then headed home to grab some sleep. The next day i was supposed to meet some friends at Tianma racetrack to watch some racing in the afternoon. I woke up around 11, hopped on the bike and headed out towards the track, which is just inside the border of shanghai 'province'.

    At the time the shanghai world expo was still going, meaning that every road leading into shanghai had big police blockades at the border where they checked every vehicle entering the city. All my papers are in order and i'd ridden through a few times before so, not worried, i stopped to show my license and documents. I stayed on my bike, helmet on, while the policeman took my documents inside to check them. While he was in there i took my helmet off so i could politley thank him when he came back out.

    I took back my license with both hands and thanked him; that's when he smelled the alcohol on my breath from the night before and accused me of drunk driving. Sure i was pretty hungover, but i didn't imagine that would be an offence. Nevertheless i was made to blow in the alcotest machine, and guess what: i was over the limit by 0.01. The limit is 0.2 and i blew a sad 0.21. I pleaded my case and explained repeatedly that i had only been drinking the night before and that i was fine today but they were not taking any of it.

    They took my license away but said i could keep the bike. I lost my license for 3 months and had to pay a 500 RMB fine. To get it back i must also attend 7 days of driving school (full days, not evening classes) and repass the theory test at the end. Of course this is china and if you are willing to pay then there are other ways. I did not want to waste one of my weeks of yearly leave for this farce only to fail the test at the end anyway, so with the help of the company driver we found a 'yellow cow' that can take care of all this for you. It costs 3000 kuai and for that someone is paid to attend the 7 days of school for me and sit the test, i don't even have to be present. I passed with flying colours, a proud 96%! I got an official certificate from the traffic bureau saying that i did all that and now i just need to wait for the end of my 3 month sentence to go and claim my license back.

    I mentioned that they took my license at the checkpoint (50km out of shanghai city) but let me keep the bike. They told me i was not allowed to drive it home.
    "what should i do with it then?"
    was met with a shrug.
    "can i push it home?"
    shrug.
    So i pushed it away until i was out of view then rode it back. What did they expect?

    Conclusion / Things i could have done differently to avoid this stupid waste of time and money:
    - brushed my teeth in the morning
    - had breakfast
    - had a bottle of green tea
    - rode with my mouth open
    - not tried to be polite by taking my helmet off
    - not stopped at the police check, just like every other bike does
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  2. #2 Re: How to lose your driving license... 
    Senior C-Moto Guru euphonius's Avatar
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    Felix,

    thanks for having the cojones to tell this tale in public. Lotsa drink for thought here.

    First, sorry you had to be the guinea pig. There are a lot of other riders out there I'd have preferred to see going through this, but, then again, none of them are on this board or literate enough to write about it.

    Second, at one level it's comforting that China, or at least Shanghai, is starting to adopt assertive means to suppress drunk driving. Again, sorry it had to be you, particularly given the day-after circumstances, but I really do hope this snares some of the worst offenders and gets them off the roads.

    Third, not surprised that you found a back-door solution to the driving school requirement, and glad you have the integrity to tell us how you handled this. In a perfect world, you wouldn't have had that option, but China remains far from perfect.

    Fourth, for your candor I think all of us riders in China, especially those of us to tipple from time to time, owe you one for taking this on the chin and owning up to it. This will help us all to stay out of trouble. Next round is on me!

    er, cheers!
    jkp
    Shanghai
    2010 JH600 "Merkin Muffley" (in Shanghai)
    2000 KLR650 "Feezer Ablanalp" (in California)
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  3. #3 Re: How to lose your driving license... 
    C-Moto Guru
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    Yeh, I know it's usually best to play it safe, but I'm reluctant to stop for police unless absolutely necessary. Coming in to Shanghai from Suzhou, my friends and I would usually take a back road, at least until they put checkpoints on each of the back roads, and moved the main checkpoint back about a kilometer. During expo we would wait till there was a truck going through and then sneak in behind it. Now however, the cops don't seem to bother with me when going through. =D That being said, if a cop stands in front with his hand raised I will stop, however, if he's on the side of the road jumping up and down and pointing I might not be able to see him.

    In the meanwhile, at least you didn't get your bike confiscated!
    Last edited by Nuhaus; 01-20-2011 at 03:10 PM.
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  4. #4 Re: How to lose your driving license... 
    Life Is Good! ChinaV's Avatar
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    Think I would have started this thread with "I knew a guy", but hats off for being honest and sharing. As the Expo wound down, we had the Asian Games here in GD, and with it came the checkpoints. My rule of thumb is to always stop for guys in full battle armor holding powerful firearms. Other than that, flip up the visor, smile, big hello and pretend you think their waving. I let the wife take care of all the driving whenever I have a few drinks, that only cost me the right to ever use my car again as now she thinks it's hers.

    Instead of breakfast, brushing your teeth and green tea, eat some blue cheese, Chinese are terrified of that stuff.

    Cheers!
    ChinaV
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  5. #5 Re: How to lose your driving license... 
    C-Moto Guru
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    I think you've just earned a new comment below your name (instead of "not 1 useful post") for being so honest and sharing this story with us.

    Why nobody mentioned this little thing called "chewing gum"!!
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  6. #6 Re: How to lose your driving license... 
    Duct tape savant felix's Avatar
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    Hey guys i never intended for anyone to learn a lesson from any of this! I certainly didn't! I won't be driving drunk but frankly i'll probably drive hungover again, except this time i'll bring chewing gum! (good point barry!)

    Seriously though i consider myself pretty lucky that i learned this lesson in China. Though i think they could have just as easily let me off with a warning, in the end i was over the legal limit and if it had happened back home i certainly wouldn't be paying my way out of it.

    Quote Originally Posted by ChinaV View Post
    that only cost me the right to ever use my car again as now she thinks it's hers.
    Haha, stinger! By the way i hate blue cheese too. I would rather lose my license again than put that shit in my mouth.

    Oh and Barry, duly noted about the comment below my name!
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  7. #7 Re: How to lose your driving license... 
    Senior C-Moto Guru ZMC888's Avatar
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    In China, I believe in being road legal, in terms of bike and license, however in reality I only yield on most un-patrolled red lights and only stop when I am forced to directly by what I believe to be a member of the genuine Gong An or other directly traffic responsible 'organ'. Learned that lesson from India.
    Without consciousness, space and time are nothing; in reality you can take any time -- whether past or future -− as your new frame of reference. Death is a reboot that leads to all potentialities.
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  8. #8 Re: How to lose your driving license... 
    Motorcycle Addict chinabiker's Avatar
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    Thanks to tell the story so frankly Felix

    I came close to loose mine several years ago after filling some delicious German Weissbier into my belly. Having stopped at a red light the cops went from car to car with the pre-tester, but they started from behind, so most people wouldn't see them coming and neither did I. One guy knocked my window, I opened it and knew that shit was going to hit the fan in a second, when luck turned to my side and let the light turn green, me being in pole.

    It was a narrow escape and I've been clean behind handle bars and the wheel ever since. Despite knowing it, I never considered the danger of a hangover though.
    Andy
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  9. #9 Re: How to lose your driving license... 
    Duct tape savant felix's Avatar
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    Wow that was some luck you had, sounds like the opposite of my story! Thanks for sharing that with us too Andy!
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  10. #10 Re: How to lose your driving license... 
    Motorcycle Addict chinabiker's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by felix View Post
    Wow that was some luck you had, sounds like the opposite of my story! Thanks for sharing that with us too Andy!
    Yep, I was freakin' lucky indeed. I'm pretty sure it was more than 0.01 over the limit
    Lesson learned and decided not to challenge Miss Fortune again.

    No after
    Andy
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