Prime Time Tonight - Boy Racers

prospect

It thought it was very fair.
It showed some people just hanging around, which is fine. But it focused on the scum who went on trying to act the fool on the road.
They also emphasised the difference between an enthusiast and a "boy racer"

Although it didn't offer any real solutions.

As said earlier, could some undercover guards not video the law breakers, and record the reg plates. Then block off the area, and confiscate the guilty parties cars and crush them.

Same for the fat cat tearing around in a high powered exec car, take it away and crush it.

mike65

mike65 wrote:

You have to wonder about how seriously the Gards take this, the Bellview Port road is classic, its a known hot-spot and its the worlds easier road to close but they don't bother.

Just moving the problem elsewhere then. They can't speed bump the whole country.

PauloMN

So what do you suggest ronoc? Leave them be, let them kill one of their own (not really an issue in my book), or an innocent bystander (real big problem in my book).

DeBeere

ronoc wrote:

Just moving the problem elsewhere then. They can't speed bump the whole country.

Can you imagine, that would be horrible!

Haven't watched it yet but have it recorded, sounds entertaining.

PauloMN

PauloMN wrote:

So what do you suggest ronoc? Leave them be, let them kill one of their own (not really an issue in my book), or an innocent bystander (real big problem in my book).

More skid pans or tracks for them to mess about on would be a good start. Take it off the streets. Which would at least leave those with no interest in behaving safely on the roads no excuse.

Guy:Incognito

ronoc wrote:

More skid pans or tracks for them to mess about on would be a good start. Take it off the streets. Which would at least leave those with no interest in behaving safely on the roads no excuse.

Buying law breakers things isnt an acceptable solution to problems. If I want something should I go out and annoy enough gards/politicians etc till they buy it for me?

They do this with travellers and I dont agree with it, escalating this "solution" is unaccepable in my book.


Plus they'll soon get bored or decide they dont want to travel to tracks and get more fun out of doing it on nice big open roads.

PauloMN

ronoc wrote:

More skid pans or tracks for them to mess about on would be a good start. Take it off the streets. Which would at least leave those with no interest in behaving safely on the roads no excuse.

There's no excuse anyway. Besides the gob****es doing the real dangerous stuff will continue to use the roads and car parks, and will continue to have people hanging out of the cars etc., and will continue to enjoy the chases from the Gardaí.

Stekelly

Stekelly wrote:

Buying law breakers things isnt an acceptable solution to problems. If I want something should I go out and annoy enough gards/politicians etc till they buy it for me?

They do this with travellers and I dont agree with it, escalating this "solution" is unaccepable in my book.


Plus they'll soon get bored or decide they dont want to travel to tracks and get more fun out of doing it on nice big open roads.

Give me a break. There is a pathetic amount of motor sport facilities in this country. This is a huge area of interest for thousands of people in this country.

5500

I thought it was good in the fact it showed what actually does happen nightly in every county in the country BUT as JHMEG said it didnt differentiate between an ethusiast/boy racer/joyriding scumbag and just pushes further the mentality to joe public that if theres alloys or an exhaust on your car you engage in what was shown.

unkel

Nothing new or revealing in the program, was there?

dingding wrote:

And breaking the irish speed record at 200mph with people standing on is not irresponsible. ?????

I agree. Bringing your wan on to comment was hypocritical and counterproductive. Apart from that, she didn't really have anything useful to say

Wishbone Ash

unkel wrote:

Bringing your wan on to comment was hypocritical and counterproductive

But, by Christ, she was gorgeous in her day. We used to drool over her at school in the 70s. (She hasn't aged well!)

BrandonBlock

Anyone know is this repeated at all, I missed it.. ??

Blitzkrieger

ronoc wrote:

They can't speed bump the whole country.

They already have.


No wait...........



..........those are pot holes.......

JHMEG

BrandonBlock wrote:

Anyone know is this repeated at all, I missed it.. ??

If you don't mind installing Real Player bloatware on your PC you can watch Prime Time in poor quality on RTE's website.

furtzy

Usual brain dead knobs in their sh*t heap cars trying to be cool.

Good to see the Guards stopping them but they should adopt a zero-tolerance approach i.e do them for every little traffic offence like illegal number plates, tax, NCT's etc. Hassle them at every opportunity until they get the message. They'll soon get sick of the constant fines and court apperances

HashSlinging

I didnt see prime time last night but im not sure a zero tolerance approach will get this problem sorted, programs like this seem to have the opposite effect as far as im concerned. I'd rather see my television licence money going to promote youth culture (what music, modified cars is all about) rather than trying to point a finger at a problem. It all sounds very familiar and very like gaybo on the radio years ago saying that every youth in the country under 21 was on E or to drugged out of their little minds to have an opinion/interest.

HashSlinging

HashSlinging wrote:

It all sounds very familiar and very like gaybo on the radio years ago saying that every youth in the country under 21 was on E or to drugged out of their little minds to have an opinion/interest.

Spot on.

It has all the hall marks of a moral panic

dubstub

I thought parts of the show were good and parts were just woeful. The worst was Ms. 70-year-old ex-rally driver explaining how the car could flip over at any moment during donuts and how a simple stone in the road could throw a car off track. This was then followed by a shot of her screaming down a country road at 200 mph with spectators everywhere... Then there was that guy from the AA - what was he on about? What is the link between driving like a lunatic, putting lives at risk and Pulp Ficton? Or iPods for that matter?

prospect

eireal wrote:

BUT as JHMEG said it didnt differentiate between an ethusiast/boy racer/joyriding scumbag and just pushes further the mentality to joe public that if theres alloys or an exhaust on your car you engage in what was shown.

What??

Did you fall asleep?

They very clearly distinguished the difference between a genuine modder and the scumbag. The Psychiatrist Guy, Conor AA Guy both spoke about the distinction and they continually interviewed the Modified Mag Guy.

Wishbone Ash

prospect wrote:

The Psychiatrist Guy

Psychologist?

5500

prospect wrote:

They very clearly distinguished the difference between a genuine modder and the scumbag. The Psychiatrist Guy, Conor AA Guy both spoke about the distinction and they continually interviewed the Modified Mag Guy.

I didnt think so,seen as the professor chap said "you have two kinds of boy racers,those who love there cars and put all there money into them as a hobby ect and those who go out and act the maggot"

Im suprised they only had 1 person from an enthusiast point of view trying to get his point across,half the clips that were shown were of stolen cars,in no way anything to do with modified cars and likewise showing your man being chased by 15 garda cars and saying he'll be back in prison next week.

prospect

Wishbone Ash wrote:

Psychologist?

Probably

MercMad

I have the solution, kill two bird with one stone !

Invite all these cruise guys into the traveller encampment in each area, and tell them they are free to do whatever amount of doughnuts they want !!

Come back in a week and clean up the mess, take away the bodies etc !!

Seriously I do understand what these meetings are all about and I would be the last person to try to prevent car enthusiasts from meeting eachother. There is an element within each group that will ruin things for the others and pulling doughnuts (its fun) in the midst of a crowd is to dangerous to allow, end of story !

Drifting on public roads is simply a murder waiting to happen !

I think there is some mid ground here, the guard who drove into the carpark and started chasing the Toyota Twin Cam deserves the boot. The TC driver just took off and the squad car after it.............very intelligent indeed !

Why cant the Gardai go out and meet these guys, cordon off an area and keep the crowd back, let them do their stuff, talk to the other guys there but make it clear that there will be a zero tollerance policy on the road !

The problem as I see it is one of them using private property and the whole insurance/health & safety and the claims that could ensue if the Gardai were seen to condone it !

But if the car owners/drivers dont gain respect for the Gardai there will be bigger problems, and the only way for this to start is for the Gardai to show some interest in the needs of these people !

Having said that the Law is the Law and it should be enforced !

Having Rosemary Smith with all due respect, is the wrong person to show as an "expert" though she may well be, the image of a wrinkly 65 year old wont cut the mustard with a bunch of young male drivers. Its worse than their Ma sayin' "Slow down ...........and clean your bedroom "

OldmanMondeo

eireal wrote:

I didnt think so,seen as the professor chap said "you have Im suprised they only had 1 person from an enthusiast point of view trying to get his point across,half the clips that were shown were of stolen cars,in no way anything to do with modified cars and likewise showing your man being chased by 15 garda cars and saying he'll be back in prison next week.

Totally agree with you. From the little I know about Boy Racers there are 2 types,
1 Those that spend thousands on modifing the cars and using the car for a "Show and Tell". These tend to respect their car and would not try anything that might damage it.
2. Are the muppets that "Flash" around in a suped up piece of crap, carrying out the stupid dangerous "Stunts" shown on last night. They think they can drive, but in fact haven't got a clue. Also tend to end up invovled in Road rage, cause they know better than anyone else.

Joyriders should never be considered Boy Racers in any form. Boy Racers will at the very least purchase their own car, Joyriders are scum who take what they want.

prospect

eireal wrote:

the professor chap said "you have two kinds of boy racers,those who love there cars and put all there money into them as a hobby ect and those who go out and act the maggot"

Correct.

There are those who invest and,
seperately,
There are those who act the maggot.

It would be different if he said:
"You have boy racers, who love there cars and put all there money into them as a hobby ect and go out and act the maggot.

Where he makes a distinction. "There are two types".

prospect

I think the main problem is the classifications.

IMO:
Boy Racer (girl racer)= Scumbag, Joyrider, Should be shipped to an island somewhere and left there.

Modified Car Enthusiast = Appreciates their vehicle and respects the rules of the road, and other road users.

Seth Brundle

MercMad wrote:

Why cant the Gardai go out and meet these guys, cordon off an area and keep the crowd back, let them do their stuff, talk to the other guys there but make it clear that there will be a zero tollerance policy on the road !

There is supposed to be a zero tolerance policy on the roads anyhow!
Its not the gardai's role to organise events. Its up to the event organisers to get permission from the gardai and whatever other bodies. The gardai may attend the event to ensure safety and other laws are adhered to. IIRC this requires payment.

MercMad wrote:

Having Rosemary Smith with all due respect, is the wrong person to show as an "expert" though she may well be, the image of a wrinkly 65 year old wont cut the mustard with a bunch of young male drivers. Its worse than their Ma sayin' "Slow down ...........and clean your bedroom "

I agree. I was visualising many of those being discussed laughing at the tv.

SoupyNorman

The show did not address one single new question. Seems like it was arranged fairly haphazardly and given the Label of a 'PRIME TIME SPECIAL REPORT'.

How are the young drivers supposed to sit up and take notice of this 'BIG ISSUE' when the message is being broadcast so patronizingly.

Voice behind the camera: "have you ever broke the law on the road?"

Generic Boy Racer1: "Yes"

Voice behind the camera: "do you not think that was wrong"

Generic boy racer1: "Yes, but I dont really care"

A perfect example provided by RTE of how driving dangerously will not incur any consequences........

layke

OldmanMondeo wrote:

Totally agree with you. From the little I know about Boy Racers there are 2 types,
1 Those that spend thousands on modifing the cars and using the car for a "Show and Tell". These tend to respect their car and would not try anything that might damage it.
2. Are the muppets that "Flash" around in a suped up piece of crap, carrying out the stupid dangerous "Stunts" shown on last night. They think they can drive, but in fact haven't got a clue. Also tend to end up invovled in Road rage, cause they know better than anyone else.

Joyriders should never be considered Boy Racers in any form. Boy Racers will at the very least purchase their own car, Joyriders are scum who take what they want.

While agreeing with you on the joyrider bit...

I'm 25 with clean license and all that, please don't call me a boy-racer or try to class me as one. I'm neither a boy, nor a racer, yet I mod cars. Being labled under that catagory really gets on my man jubblies. I know you said from the little you know about boy racers, just clarifying.

To class a boy racer in my mind would be a young male 17-19 who drives like a lunatic.

Seth Brundle

@ bravestarr082 - its not up to Prime Time to make changes - they are just reporting the situation.