1970
The Beach

One weekend in July the church youth group decided to spend a Saturday at St. Augustine Beach and I decided to go, especially since Anne said she would ride with me.  I hit 85 miles an hour on a long straight section of highway 100 on the way over, making it in less than an hour.  St. Augustine Beach allows cars to drive on the beach so there were five or six cars from the church group all lined up on the beach as we enjoyed the day.  All was going well until I decide to return home, I got in my Camaro, started it up but didn’t get twenty feet before the rear tires dug into the sand I and I got stuck. Several of the guys came over and pushed the car while I was driving, sand shot up behind me spraying the guys, but I got free and procced down the beach.  I only got a few hundred yards when I see a police car me going the opposite direction, turning on his flashing lights as approached me and flags me to stop.  The speed limit on the beach is like five miles an hour and I knew it was enforced so I was sure I was going less than speed limit and didn’t understand why the cop was pulling me over.  He gets out, approaches my window, asks for my driver’s license, looks it over and tells me I was going too fast.  I know I wasn’t and tell him so, but he said he saw the sand shooting up behind me.  I explained that I got stuck and the guys help push me out which was why the sand as shooting up, but he didn’t believe me and writes up and hands me a ticket. Reckless Driving, I’m in shock, then it gets worse, he says for me to follow him to the police station, and he gets back in his car, and I start to follow him down the beach.  We hadn’t gone a quarter mile when he stops, gets out, comes to my window, and says he has to go to another call and tells me to report to court on the specified day and then leaves.

When the court day came a couple of weeks later, I asked Greg, one of the boys that helped push me free when I got stuck, to go with me as a witness and he agreed, and we drive over to the courthouse in St. Augustine.  I find the court room, we take a seat and before too long my name is called, I go to a podium at the front of the court, the judge reads the charge, reckless driving, and asks me how I plead. Now reckless driving is a serious charge, one that the court can take your driver’s license away, so I plead not guilty, expecting then to plead my case about begin stuck with Greg as a witness, but then the judge asks, do you want a trial by jury or have the judge decide.  I say have the judge decide, expecting him to decide right then but he says tells me court date will be in two weeks then dismisses me. Well, I did not expect that.

Two weeks later I drive over to St. Augustine again but this time alone, as none of the guys that helped push me out could go, I was on my own.  I find a seat in the court room and wait until my name is called,  I go to the podium, the judge reads the charge then calls for the officer who gave me the ticket.  There was no answer, the judge asks the court clerk of the officer was present, the clerk say no he was not.  The Judge then says due to the officer not being present the case was dismissed.  A wave of relief swept over me.  I still had to pay a $20 court fee but that was a lot better than the possible hundreds of dollars and having my license suspended. 

I had  a pleasant summer, no school to worry about, no studying, sleeping late, work at the computing center in the afternoons, church on Sunday morning with the family and then the youth church group on Sunday nights, a cool car, life was pretty good.  I forgot about most the kids at school and made new friends at the church youth group. There were ten or so core kids going to the church youth meetings. My sister Brenda, our childhood friend Janice, the brothers John and Greg, Anne and her friend Terri, Bobby, Bill my go to guy for car information and parts, and a few more.  It was a good group.