Banned for driving with sandals

ismynametoolong

Heard on G Ryan this morning about some woman who
got slapped big time by a judge in Roscommon ? for wearing Sandals
She apparantly got 18 Months driving ban and € 700 fine .
The Garda in question is alledged to have said in court that
wearing sandals did or could contribute to dangerous driving and that
Shoes are for driving and sandals are for the beech !
Guess the Judge aghreed with him !

unnameduser

a bit OTT. Lots of women drive with sandals!

Stark

The ****? Where in the law does it say that you can't drive with sandals?

The_Magoo

*sniff sniff* Anyone else smell something funny?

mike65

Sandals? Would Jesus have been banned?! :eek:

Now slippers I understand!

Mike.

Wossack

Thats a bit ridiculus... how did the Garda even see she was wearing em?

Go something like?

"Out of the car missus, you'll have to take a sobriety test."
*gets her to walk lines etc*
"Damn, you passed... hows the thread depth on those tires?"
*prods wheels*
"Damn... err... seatbelt no, headlights no, mobile no, um..."
*scratches head*
"Ah ha, sandals! Gotcha! Get in the squad car mam!"

subway

sandals or flip-flops [heh, funny word]?

i presume the gard stopped her for driving dangerously,
and realised the cause was that she was wearing unsecured flip-flopd which kept slipping off her feet?

i didnt think they were doing random shoe inspections yet?
[maybe it was the fashion gardai?]

Alun

Seems like the typical "only half the story" thing all over again. I'm guessing she was done for dangerous driving for some completely unrelated reason, and the thing about the sandals was just a passing comment by the Garda, that got picked up by the judge. Still seems a bit silly as I drive in sandals all the time in the summer. Maybe it was those plastic flip-flop things people wear on the beach, in which case I can understand it, although I still don't believe that was the primary cause of her being "done".

Stark

subway wrote:

[maybe it was the fashion gardai?]

Maybe she wore socks with her sandals.

kona

i often wonder how women drive with sandals, she was prob wearing those paper thin pieces of pennys sh1te. bit harsh but there must have been a more sinister reason for her to be stopped,speeding, crazy woman driving etc i mean how the hell can you see a persons feet from outside a car.

FX Meister

Why do you wonder Kona? I drive in sandals all the time and it makes no difference to my driving. Or are you just curious how women drive with sandals and not men?

mike65

If the cops are coming down hard on footware then this is bad news!

Mike.

BrianD3

Gerry Ryan is an idiot and his show is a load of crap. I wouldn't believe a word I hear on either that show or Joe Duffy's one. People who ring up those shows tend to be fruitcakes, moaners and liars.

So I would have a similar opinion to Alun on this

mike65

Methinks this is a quite light-hearted thread Brian!

Mike.

kona

FX Meister wrote:

Why do you wonder Kona? I drive in sandals all the time and it makes no difference to my driving. Or are you just curious how women drive with sandals and not men?

whatever, i wonder becuse i cant thats why, i also wonder why they cycle with sandals, which is much more stupid than driving with them.
and how the hell do they drive with big heels on and heeled boots, ****ing hell, it must be a skill.

Vegeta

I drive barefoot all the time in the summer

I do know a few people who have had difficulty wearing flip flops while driving. Where the heel gets stuck on the floor mat and your foot gets stuck on the pedal. Happened to my brother and my girlfriends best friend.

EDIT: flip flops are different from sandals

wingnut

kona wrote:

i also wonder why they cycle with sandals, which is much more stupid than driving with them.

You can't generalise like that, it depends on the sandals. I drive and cycle (my Kona bike funnily enough) in my sadals. I have also hiked numerous Mountains in them. A proper pair of sandals are just as safe as shoes. They give just as much control, FACT.

There is no law against wearing sandals or even driving barefoot for that matter. I reiterate the point made my numerous others that there is more to this case, and it IS typical Jerry Ryan crap of people sensationalising their subjective side of the story.

gibbon75

Stark wrote:

Maybe she wore socks with her sandals.

Black or white,short or long ?

colm_mcm

how did the Garda know she was wearing sandals?
Do they have to have a good reason to suspect that you may be infact wearing sandals, or can they do random sandal checks?

Robbo

colm_mcm wrote:

how did the Garda know she was wearing sandals?
Do they have to have a good reason to suspect that you may be infact wearing sandals, or can they do random sandal checks?

Personally, I'd mount a challenge to the sandal checking apparatus.

endplate

Is it not in the rules of the road that you are to wear proper adequate footware. Sandals were not included in that

kona

wingnut wrote:

You can't generalise like that, it depends on the sandals. I drive and cycle (my Kona bike funnily enough) in my sadals. I have also hiked numerous Mountains in them. A proper pair of sandals are just as safe as shoes. They give just as much control, FACT.

There is no law against wearing sandals or even driving barefoot for that matter. I reiterate the point made my numerous others that there is more to this case, and it IS typical Jerry Ryan crap of people sensationalising their subjective side of the story.

they are fine man, sorry what i ment were flip flops, your sandals are well built, grand for a bike,flip flops aint.
i bet ya 2000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 euro the woman wasnt wearing sandals similar to yours.

andrea

I drive in flip flops in this weather because wearing anything else would be too hot. I haven't had any problems with that or I wouldn't do it. Now I don't notice a difference between driving with them and driving with my normal runners.

Sandals could mean anything, and presumably there was some dodgy driving that drew attention to her footwear in the first place!

kona

andrea wrote:

I drive in flip flops in this weather because wearing anything else would be too hot. I haven't had any problems with that or I wouldn't do it. Now I don't notice a difference between driving with them and driving with my normal runners.

Sandals could mean anything, and presumably there was some dodgy driving that drew attention to her footwear in the first place!

honestly, i wear socks with skate runners when i cycle and drive, i was in NY at the start of the month in 38 degrees and wore the same footwear, and i dont notice a difference from in winter, doesnt bother me does the heat. you will notice a difference when ya go back to runners trust me.
and ye she prob hit the accelerator instead of brake or somthing that has to do with the pedals.

andrea

I have switched over and back and have no problem adjusting. I never got into a habit of wearing a particular type of footwear for driving when I started first so in general if I can walk comfortably in something I can drive comfortably in it too.

Vegeta

the problem with flip flops is that the heal part of em is not attached to your foot and it is easy enough for the whole flip flop to get wedged between the pedal and those floor mats with ridges in them

sandals on the other hand are usualy strapped to your foot so its all cool

seamus

Vegeta wrote:

the problem with flip flops is that the heal part of em is not attached to your foot and it is easy enough for the whole flip flop to get wedged between the pedal those floor mats with ridges in them

That's what I'm guessing. I'd say the woman made some stupid manouver which caused her to crash or almost crash, and probably attributed the error to her sandal impeding her ability to control her vehicle correctly.

AMurphy

This is redicilous. There are several forms of footwear that could be lumped together into that catagory. High heels with only toe straps. Large wellingtons/boots could easily hit 2 pedals of some cars.

So where does driving with no shoes stand or with a plaster cast
or no legs.

stupid.

lostexpectation

andrea wrote:

I drive in flip flops in this weather because wearing anything else would be too hot. I haven't had any problems with that or I wouldn't do it. Now I don't notice a difference between driving with them and driving with my normal runners.

Sandals could mean anything, and presumably there was some dodgy driving that drew attention to her footwear in the first place!

i figure flipflops without any back bit wouldn't and shouldn't pass muster, those robust sandals are different thing.

Vegeta

AMurphy wrote:

So where does driving with no shoes stand or with a plaster cast
or no legs.

stupid.

there are people with no legs who drive you know.

My math lecturer in college for one. Had a joy stick beside the steering wheel for speeding up and slowing down

py2006

Ah well sure its another female driver off the road! Sure thats a good thing right!! :rolleyes: :eek:

KIDDING!!

Surely, sandals can get caught between pedals which could lead to an accident!

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

seamus

It's the same deal with any kind of hazardous footwear. I drive a peugeot, and the pedals are quite close together. I also have a pair of shoes with a wide rim on them, which makes my footprint about an inch wider than my actual foot. I drove with them for about 100m before I realised that it was next to impossible to drive in them without stepping on two pedals at once. So I changed them.

Maxwell

Vegeta wrote:

I drive barefoot all the time in the summer

I do know a few people who have had difficulty wearing flip flops while driving. Where the heel gets stuck on the floor mat and your foot gets stuck on the pedal. Happened to my brother and my girlfriends best friend.

EDIT: flip flops are different from sandals

Well you are wrong driving barefoot. I would love to see your control of a car whole breaking in a sudden situation in barefoot compared to if you had shoes on.

You are putting yourself and others at risk by driving like that.

Yes, there is some comedic value to this decision by the Judge, but he is correct, there is no way that you have the same control over a car wearing flip-flops, flimsy sandals than regular shoes/runners. I think the woman deserves a caution, but not an 18 ban. I think the judge came to his decision in order for a PR stunt as it might get people to wear proper shoes while driving machinery at up to 120kmph an hour. Its basic common sense.

Squirrel

In work I drove a car (I don't remember which one) and the pedals were ridiculously close together in my boots, and had to consciously make sure my foot was only on one pedal, foot-wear has a big affect, that said, any other car in them boots and i they were grand that whole day

Vegeta

Maxwell wrote:

Well you are wrong driving barefoot. I would love to see your control of a car whole breaking in a sudden situation in barefoot compared to if you had shoes on.

You are putting yourself and others at risk by driving like that.

please go on. I'd love to hear how a barefoot is less sensitive than a shoed one.

Big Balls

I can't believe you're even trying to defend driving barefoot.

HOW are you gonna stand on the brakes if you have to without hurting yourself?

Idiot. :rolleyes:

wingnut

Now that I think about it the young girl that ran in to the back of me two weeks ago was wearing flip flops and a bikini!

saobh_ie

Gerry Ryan... nothing more needs to be said.

Probaly a case of her ploughing somebody out of it with her car, coming up with some story about how her sandals stopped her from moving her foot quickly enough, "The heel got caught on the mat and then I couldn't get over to the brake so I slammed into the back of the car at the red light."

"A likley story... careless driving, pay three grand."

comanche

Big Balls wrote:

I can't believe you're even trying to defend driving barefoot.

HOW are you gonna stand on the brakes if you have to without hurting yourself?

Idiot. :rolleyes:

Are you having a laugh?

1. There are already rubber on the pedals
2. In an emergency you will only be concerned about the pain afterwards

Stark

If you're used to being barefoot then the soles of your feet are probably hard anyway.

Mine are soft and ladylike at the moment so I won't be doing any barefoot driving

Vegeta

Big Balls wrote:

I can't believe you're even trying to defend driving barefoot.

HOW are you gonna stand on the brakes if you have to without hurting yourself?

Idiot. :rolleyes:

am with my foot, i thought that would be obvious.

yeah and racing car drivers wear big wellies do they. No they wear very tight fitting thin soled shoes.

Why would standing on a pedal hurt. I kick people quite regularly and that doesn't hurt

seamus

I'm assuming you do some form of martial arts vegeta, which has toughened the balls of your feet significantly. Many pedals are designed with a shoe in mind, and as such have large thin "blades" or small spikes on them for grip. This would hurt most people.

You may want to reconsider for your own sake however - very often in accidents people will break toes and other parts of their feet, even if it's a very small crash. This is probably due to the amount of force they are putting against the brake pedal, and their foot/leg then takes a significant shock from the impact. Any padding you can apply to this will help minimise the damage.

zilog_jones

Yeah, Vegeta - if you read the EuroNCAP reports you'll see a lot of cars (especially older ones) have pretty piss-poor protection when it comes to you lower legs/feet in a frontal collision - the pedals go all over the place in some cars for starters. At least if you're wearing shoes you'll have decent enough protection from jaggedy metal trying to go into your soles.

Vegeta

whoa, i am not contesting the fact if in an accident when driving barefoot you are more likely to damage your foot.

Just like if drviving with no top on or driving with a vest style piece of clothin you are going to get pretty bad seat belt burn.

I am saying that braking hard would not hurt me. I am saying driving in your bare feet does not make you any less in control of the car.

Yes if you crash you will pay for it. I never challenged that.

My cousin cut a hole in his shin from the pedals when he crashed a micra but he was wearing shoes

whassupp2

Ok. I only saw this thread now but its a load of rubblish.
I live in Roscommon. Last Tuesday week I awoke like every Tuesday and read my local newspaper, the "Roscommon Champion".
I saw a little section in the corner of one page entitled "news in brief".
This section contained the sandal story in question and other ridiculous stories. I then found out that the editors of the paper have started running a hoax page. It is written at the top of the page that the stories are made up but its very unclear and easily missable.
Obviously, work spread fast amongst unaware Roscommoners and that eejit Gerry Ryan found out. It was all joke.

Last Tuesday, a similar page was in the paper. This time there was a story about a pensioner who was fined for carrying too much money in public.!!!!

It spread rumours anyway but was a bit of craic all the same.

Wossack

whassupp2 wrote:

Last Tuesday, a similar page was in the paper. This time there was a story about a pensioner who was fined for carrying too much money in public.!!!!

It spread rumours anyway but was a bit of craic all the same.

Bout time to be honest, damn pensioners walkin around like they own the place. brb, gonna call Gerry Ryan, see if he agrees with me.

Nevyn

You are ment to wear proper shoes for driving I know someone who was done for driving barefoot there is a part of the rules of the road safe operation of a motorised vechile that it comes under.

Vegeta

Thaedydal wrote:

driving barefoot there is a part of the rules of the road safe operation of a motorised vechile that it comes under.

can someone please post this section if they have it as anywhere online the rules of the road are generally a mess

Hotblack Desiato

Thaedydal wrote:

You are ment to wear proper shoes for driving I know someone who was done for driving barefoot

Really? What was the charge? What did they do to get stopped in the first place?

there is a part of the rules of the road safe operation of a motorised vechile that it comes under.

Rubbish, the whole book comes under 'safe operation of a motorised vehicle' (well, except for the pedestrians, cyclists and persons in charge of animals bits )
Anyway ROTR is NOT the law, it is advice. Unless there is a specific law being broken then no offence is being committed.

I heard once that quite a few truckies drive in stocking feet, hitting the brake pedal hard enough isn't going to be a problem with BFO servo brakes.

hshortt

Guard must have been the using the new sniffilizer