South Carolina Highway Patrol – Troop Six, Post B

OK. I’ll admit it — every single experience I’ve ever had with these folks up until a couple years ago had been a very unfortunate (not to mention a very EXPENSIVE!) one. Actually, the very first speeding ticket I ever got in South Carolina was from a Post B trooper in the illustrious town of Canadys. It was a three digit fined one too.
Since then, I’ve had many experiences with the fine troopers of Troop 6. All equally disappointing, expensive and adrenalin inducing due to my incurable lead foot and their aplomb at thwarting my interpretations of the squawkings from my state-​of-​the-​art laser/​radar detector. Gotta hand it to them, they do their job well.
However, all negative feelings that I’d ever harbored against these fine public servants disappeared most recently when I was driving from Philly to Florida. Upon entering their state at about 2 AM, I started becoming sleepy and began dozing at the wheel. I kept it together until around 3AM when I finally took the exit and snoozed off my weariness in the parking lot of a Shell station. What I’d sleepily failed to do though, was turn off my freaking headlights!
So, when I went to start the car to continue my journey upon awakening, I turned the ignition key to not even a click. Cursing the fact that I’d now be paying $ 50 — $ 75 for a jump from the station, I walked toward the garage.
Then, in a bleary, still drowsy vision of glory it appeared — a SC State Trooper’s Crown Vic pulling out from the Shell store after having stopped in for some morning coffee. I flagged him down, explained what had happened and he cheerily said «Sure, I’ll help you out.»
He hooked up his jumpers to the outlet on his car’s grill and in no time I was on my way after having expended merely a «thanks so much». In tribute to this noble trooper, I did not speed throughout the rest of his state.
I’ve always looked at these guys in their silver and blue cars as something to be feared, the «enemy» if you will, but after this positive moment out of the (silver and) blue, I’ll never get that sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach upon seeing one of them ever again.