Wednesday, July 04, 2007

Happy 4th of July!


Drugs or Ultra Running Necessities
Officer, those are left over from a 100-mile running race I just did in Sheridan. I needed the dope to keep going, I mean the energy drink powder and pills, salt pills.


I hope ya'll are having a good time. Here's a story you guys might enjoy.

2 Officers: Excuse, Mr. Gaston? Could you come with us please we'd like to ask you a few questions.
Me: Uh-oh, is this what I think it is, crappola I bet it is.
2 Officers: We found something in your luggage that we'd like to talk to you about, you have any idea what we're talking about?
Me: You guys are talking about white powder in plastic bag aren't you?
2 Officers: Now why would you say that?
Me: It occured to me that it does look like drugs but then I thought further that surely you guys would know how to spot the real thing, besides who would openly transport real dope like that.
2 Officers: So what is it?
Me: Sports Drink / Energy Drink
2 Officers: Is that what that is?
Me: Yup.
2 Officers: Why are you transporting it like that?
Me: I was at a race and we package it that way so we can just open and mix the powder with H20 on the go.
2 Officers: What race was this?
Me: Bighorn 100-miler in Sheridan.
2 Officers: Yeah what is that race? A bike race? (Officers had already rifled through my bag and found the water bottle with the splits on the them, the shirt, the race number, blister repair kit and other race related gear, not to mention three pairs of stinking, muddy shoes in individual shoe bags and the dirty smelly clothes)
Me: It's a run.
2 Officers: A run?
Me: Yup.
2 Officers: Brief silence. one scribbles more notes on small notepad.
2 Officers: So look what you've created here is a suspicious situation. You're transporting powder, white powder at that in small plastic bags. Under x-ray it all looked very suspicious. Now we actually did take out your bag and tested it. Because this is a small airport we were able to handle it quickly but had this been a larger airport, say San Francisco, you could have missed your flight.
Me: I understand officers.
2 Officers: Next time transport it in a container with the package intact or buy it here if possible.
Me: Got it.
2 Officers: Also you had suspicious looking pills. You had pills in a bottle but you also had pills in small plastic baggies. That was also suspicious.
Me: Oh those are salt tablets (smiling at this point because I'm getting off with a warning)
2 Officers: More brief silence (definitely not amused)
2 Officers: Well ok, we have your name and address on record, next time be careful about that kind of stuff.
Me: Thank you officers. ( I shuffle painfully away)

So that was my encounter with the police before leaving Sheridan, Wyoming. I did create a situation where they had no choice but to investigate. Placing myself in their shoes I would have done the same. I also felt bad that they had to go through my stuff, there were some pretty "ripe" stuff in there. There was no time to hit the laundry before leaving Sheridan. I placed everything in separate bags, the shoes, the used clothes, the used socks...oh damn the socks! They were stern but nice, speaking of which, I did not meet one rude person while I was in Wyoming. They let me go without giving me too much of a hard time. Maybe they felt sorry for me when they saw me walk. Damn blisters!

7 comments:

  1. What a great story! I am sure the officers see a lot of things, but I would imagine that was a new one for them. They are probably still talking about you back at the headquarters!

    Happy 4th of July, Rick!

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  2. May be they felt sorry for your mental state as you go for those "100M runs" and figured this dude doesn't need dope, he is already crooket in his head. I guess that's why they didn't open my packages:) oh I looked nicer and less suspicious. May be I walked better and less wobbly too.
    I hope the moral of the story is not that you JUST unpacked your stinky clothes, although mine set for 3 days before I got around:)

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  3. good story! hey would you mind listing the contents of your blister kit?

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  4. Hart, I got my blister kit from ZombieRunner. I opted for the small foot care kit.

    Moleskin (2)
    Benzoin ampules (4)
    Alcohol preps (8)
    Antibiotic ointment (4)
    2" Elastikon tape (1)
    1" Micropore tape (1)

    Spenco 2nd Skin (2)
    Folding scissors (1)
    Powder
    2" x 3" baggies (2)
    3" x 5" baggies (4)
    Tape spools (2)
    Instructions

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  5. Great story. You handled it well. Probably more sensible to package the stuff so it doesn't look like drugs. : ) Although I'm also of the mind that you have a right to package your fully legal stuff any way you like and they should have been apologizing to you! : )

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  6. That's too funny! It does look like you have baggies of coke and some pills, which if it were true would make you the dumbest drug dealer in the world for leaving them openly exposed for the x-ray to see, but who knows what people will try. I'm glad they didn't decide to throw you in jail while they investigated.

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  7. Rick! Way to get out of that one, you drug fiend! Got the scoop through Scott's blog.

    I got pulled over for going straight through a right-turn only lane that surprised me driving through Livermore after Ohlone last year. The officer saw my grimy shirt and race number and asked if I just ran a race. He was impressed with my answer of 31 miles over the hills from Fremont and let me off with an urging to be more careful and a congratulations.

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