Masters of the Universe: have you even drink-drived?

[Yorkshire Blue]

Following on from the abusing Lee Hughes thread, I'd be interested to know how many people on here have driven whilst under the influence of drink or drugs (including prescription drugs which you aren't supposed to drive having taken). I'll also include an option regarding speeding, as it can be argued that it is also irresponsible to drive at a speed above the speed limit.

I've made the poll anonymous.

 

[Pubey]

haven't drunk-driven ever... the most i've ever had is a bottle of beer and then driven but 99% of the time i don't have a drop if i'm driving later that day

 

[Southminster_Shrimper]

Considering also the "morning after".....

The body will take approx 1 hour to "filter through" one unit of alcohol.

A unit being 1/2 pint of 3-4% alcohol beer, for example.

 

[* ORM *]

Yep, not proud of it. Should have thrown the book at me. Drove all the way from Catford to Eastwood about 20 years ago. Frightened the life out of me the following day when I started to patch together how I'd made it home. The car parked over my father's lawn (when his house had a massive driveway) gave me a clue that all was not right, or more to the point, when my father came storming in about 8am asking wtf I was playing at.

Once, only once, but once too often.

Quite often we'd have drinking games and long sessions after a game of footie. Private Bank sports club, in those days charging a heck of a lot less than normal boozers. Quite often I'd get a train home or crash somewhere local or share a cab home with two or three heading north of the river. One night I decided to be 'clever' and we aren't just talking 3 or 4 pints. ****er !

 

[MK Shrimper]

Have to hold hands up along with ORM, not something I'm proud of and scared myself stupid next morning and have NEVER done it again.

 

[TrueBlue]

Yes I have driven while being off my face, its nothing to be proud of and I have not done it for a long time since I saw how many mates have been caught for it I thought best not chance the luck I have had and since then I have never done it!

 

[Firestorm]

Once , about 30 years ago, fell off my bike going round a corner seconds after a police car had passed in the other direction.

 

[Einstein]

Personally, I do not feel this poll will be reflective of the 'true' results for today. Twenty years ago drink driving was barely frowned upon, let alone ending up behind bars. As time has gone on, we've learnt more about the affects of alcohol has on us. Drink driving has become a much more serious crime and with the technology now available to the Police, offenders can be caught easier and punished. (Although not punished enough IMO, but that is another thread....)

With all the DD messages about these days, I do not believe the current poll is really a fair reflection of todays society.

Maybe I'm wrong, but ORM and MK seem to both be suggesting their offences were in a day when DD wasn't really that challenged.

 

[MK Shrimper]

I reckon it was about 13/14 yrs ago.....I reckon a ban and points, but I'd have probably lost my job.

 

[DTS]

I have never driven the same night as a drink. I dont even believe in having one.

That said I have driven countless times after a heavy night which is not ideal.

Drugs are a No No for me.

 

[Xàbia Shrimper]

Drink-driving is extremely prevalent amongst the British ex-pats here in Spain. They seem to think that because the locals are able to have a couple of wines and maybe a brandy with their meal and then drive home reasonably safely, they can do the same after knocking back six or seven pints of strong lager in their local bar. The Spanish government are trying their best to crack down on this but the Guardia Civil are severely overstretched and, despite there being a greater number of temporary road-blocks, there simply aren't enough of them to catch the persistent drink drivers.

One story though: there was a story last year of a Spanish man who was stopped by a temporary road-block and did register positive in the subsequent breathalyser test. However, when his case was heard, his lawyer managed to persuade the court that his client was able to drive his car quite safely, despite admitting drinking several glasses of wine; the authorities subsequently admitted that the driver had not been pulled over because of obvious erratic driving but as part of a normal ID and paperwork check (we have plenty of these here in Spain); there was no indication as he approached the road-block that he was unable to control his car. He got off.

 

[Xàbia Shrimper]

On a personal level, I had done this once - almost. It almost four years ago and we had consumed plenty of alcohol on a Saturday afternoon whilst watching the football in our local here in Spain. In the early evening, the missus drove us both to the next village down to visit a friend who had invited us for dinner. For the next six hours, we enjoyed a superb meal and I drank just water or soft drinks. Just after 1am I decided that I didn't want to crash for the night (I rarely like doing so) and I felt that I could drive home safely. For the next twenty or so minutes we had to negotiate a number of temporary road-blocks that had sprung up at almost every junction (it transpired later that they were hunting for some drug-runners who had been observed landed on an isolated beach earlier in the day) and our hearts pounded at each one. Luckily we still had our UK-plated car and we drove through them unhindered* but said nothing to each other until we reached home and both let out a huge sigh of relief. Okay, it's not as bad as tumbling out of the bar and getting in a car, but I had drunk a fair few drinks during the afternoon and I'm pretty sure that a fair amount was still in my system.

*This has changed now. There are so many British ex-pats abusing the system that the Guardia Civil and the DVLA have got together to try and stop such abuse. Most British-plated cars are running around the Costa Blanca untaxed, uninsured and without a valid MoT. If the Guardia Civil stop someone and they can't produce the documentation, the car could be impounded without warning and it will cost a fair amount to have returned (as well as providing valid documentation). Some ex-pats continue to abuse this by simply going out and acquiring another illegal car. My neighbour does this and it ****ing annoys me!

 

[Uncle Leo]

I have never driven the same night as a drink. I dont even believe in having one.

That said I have driven countless times after a heavy night which is not ideal.

Drugs are a No No for me.

Pretty much exactly what my reply would have been. I gave a mate a lift a few months ago quite early in the morning after a very late night and that was stupid.

If I'm driving of an evening I wouldn't even have a shandy.

 

[Davros]

Im with DTS.

I never drink and drive on a night out etc or on the same day, i cant even see the point in having 'just one'.

However, driving to football on a Sunday morning, i have often wondered if Saturday night is out of my system.

To try and combat this, i try and stop drinking before 1am now, therefore i should be fine by 8.30 on a Sunday.

So my answer would be that i have never DD'd knowingly

 

[Southminster_Shrimper]

Im with DTS.

I never drink and drive on a night out etc or on the same day, i cant even see the point in having 'just one'.

However, the number of times i've driven to football on a Sunday morning after a heavy night on Saturday has left me wondering whether i'd be over the limit or not.

To try and combat this, i try and stop drinking before 1am now, therefore i should be fine by 8.30 on a Sunday.

So my answer would be that i have never DD'd knowingly

Not necessarily......thats 7.5 hours different and assuming you were drinking 3-4% beer in pints then that would mean you had about 4 pints ish (I think). Is that a heavy night?

1 unit being half a pint and takes 1 hour to exit the body.

Or 6 hours for half a bottle of wine.

Still sure the answer is no?

 

[Southminster_Shrimper]

Unfortunately when I was much younger I did it. Probably about 16-17 years ago now. Certainly wouldnt do it now.

The morning after DD is a little more of a problem to work out. I guess I might well have unknowlingly been over the limit but my recovery time after a long night has slowed so I am sober before I am able to crawl out of my pit and face the world.

 

[MK Shrimper]

With Notwork Rail you can quite legally drive to work with some in your system after the night before but can get sacked if you're "randomly" tested as the limit is much lower.

I know two guys who lost their jobs this way.

 

[Mr. Benedict]

Not necessarily......thats 7.5 hours different and assuming you were drinking 3-4% beer in pints then that would mean you had about 4 pints ish (I think). Is that a heavy night?

1 unit being half a pint and takes 1 hour to exit the body.

Or 6 hours for half a bottle of wine.

Still sure the answer is no?

Surely this would depend on when you started drinking - if you drank at an average of a pint an hour from 7pm - say 7 pints - that's 13 hours for your body to process the alcohol, so it could get rid of 6.5 pints of it in that time. You'd just about be legal to drive...

 

[Matt the Shrimp]

I'm ashamed to say that I have to answer this question in the affirmative. I think I've only done it once on drink and once on drugs so far as I can recall.

:(

Thankfully, it's not something I'll do ever again. I'm a little wiser than I used to be.

Matt

 

[Southminster_Shrimper]

Surely this would depend on when you started drinking - if you drank at an average of a pint an hour from 7pm - say 7 pints - that's 13 hours for your body to process the alcohol, so it could get rid of 6.5 pints of it in that time. You'd just about be legal to drive...

Not easy though is it the "morning after effect".