Channel 19 – June 2009

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Trimming video bears’ claws
A March Wall Street Journal story probed the proliferation of traffic violation cameras and the growing resistance to their use. A camera in Schaumburg, Ill., no longer tracks right-red turns, for instance, and anti-cam websites are multiplying. One site, www.Trapster.com, takes o’er-the-CB warnings of speed traps to a new level with a free iPhone application that allows users to pinpoint cameras and frequently manned speed-traps on a Google map. With trip-planning functionality, this could be a powerful app, indeed – no need to rely on drivers just ahead to tell you what’s coming. Garmin and Tom Tom units are likewise supported.

Now that’s a dedicated driver
On April 28, Torrey Lang made the mistake of leaving his truck running in a parking lot near Atlanta while he visited a cell phone shop. Police allege that Milo Banks, a 27-year-old Albany, Ga., resident, hopped in the bobtail to drive away. Lang noticed and after failing to get into the cab, ended up on the deckplate, where he endured a 70-mile ride south of Atlanta. Live coverage of the high-speed chase showed Lang safely jumping off the truck as it slowed after its tires were blown out. Banks was taken into custody.

Trick my shopping cart
Florence, S.C.-based K&L Chrome Shop President Kelvin Locklear appears in a Progressive Insurance commercial with a shopping cart tricked out in a manner similar to the trucks he and his team tackle on the new season of “Trick My Truck.” He and his shopping cart will be at the Progressive booth at the Great West Truck Show in Las Vegas, June 25-27. No word on whether he’ll bid on custom cart jobs, but he’ll have his own there.