Who is going to ride tomorrow?

[Dirtrideroader]

After playing Mr. Mom most of October and just a few days of rain, I can't wait to ride in some cool weather. I will be taking the long way to work.

[Tourmeister]

Anything special about tomorrow? :scratch

[HotChickenStrips]

Tomorrow is tomorrow Scott!!! another day to ride!

[Squeaky]

a DRY and COOL day to ride!

I think I'll be getting some more cold weather gear - it's invigorating for a minute or two, then it's downright cold. The ride to/from P.O.s tonight was chilling.

[Rocket_Cowboy]

It was decidedly WET up in Dallas, but I rode anyway.

The depressing thing was, I road the Busa to the shop to trade her in. As a going away gesture ... she reminded me of just how well she likes dense cold air. This is definitely the first bike I've ever had second thoughts about trading.

[Tourmeister]

Tomorrow is tomorrow Scott!!! another day to ride!

Well... that's what I thought. So I was confused as to why tomorrow might be different from any other day?

Adios,

[TheCanuck]

Originally Posted by Tourmeister

Anything special about tomorrow? :scratch

That is what I was wondering.

Anyway, after 4 days of PMS I had to take it to work. Monday and Tuesday I had good excusses though, kinda rough carrying a new litter box and litter home on the FJR, let alone the crap I had to bring to work on Monday.

I still can't figure out how people live without luggage. Rain gear, visors and heated liner in left panier, workot clothes in right, and lap top in the top box. Of course my Racketball racket still has to be strapped to the **** rear seat, it's too big to fig in any of the luggage.

I might have to see if the I can test fit the racket into a givi top box.

cheers,
Tom

[Tourmeister]

kinda rough carrying a new litter box and litter home on the FJR, let alone the crap I had to bring to work on Monday.

Your work crap is so bad you have to transport it in a litter box? :scratch

Of course my Racketball racket still has to be strapped to the **** rear seat, it's too big to fig in any of the luggage.

I've noticed that since my days of playing in college, the rackets have gotten as big as tennis rackets!! My old Ektelon was about 12" long by 8" wide for the webbing. The ones I have seen lately are MUCH larger. I guess it makes it easier to hit the ball because you don't have to be as precise with your hand/eye coordination Probably got a bigger sweet spot in the webbing too. Before my knees crapped out, I used to play about 3-4 hours a night during the week for a few years. I doubt I could hit the ball now

Adios,

[bluedogok]

I drove back from Monahans yesterday, a long drive down I-10. We did have snow Tuesday in Monahans and in Odessa, man it was cold. The cold wind reminded me of the same kind of cold bitter wind that blows in Okalahoma in the winter. It was nice yesterday when we left.

Hope you had a good ride, I plan on getting some time in now that it is cooler and back in Austin.

[kurt]

I ride most days its not raining, cold is just a matter of layers. Except today 'cause I went to a funeral (for a cop who died in the line of duty, it sucked royally).

[Thermalser]

Originally Posted by txmedic

I ride most days its not raining, cold is just a matter of layers. Except today 'cause I went to a funeral (for a cop who died in the line of duty, it sucked royally).

Heard about that officer on the news. Her partner must feel pretty bad!

RIP.

[Tourmeister]

What happened?

[kurt]

By Tony Plohetski

AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF

Monday, November 01, 2004

Four months after they left the police academy together, Austin officers Amy Donovan and Adrian Valdovino were patrolling late Saturday night for drug dealers and prostitutes along Poquito Street when they spotted a man acting suspiciously.

Donovan jumped from the car to question the man, who began running. As Donovan chased him, Valdovino threw the car in reverse to block the fleeing man, Police Chief Stan Knee said.

Instead, Valdovino hit his partner, pinning her against a telephone pole.

Three hours later, at 2 a.m. Sunday, Donovan, a 37-year-old mother of four, became Austin's first female officer to die in the line of duty.

"It is indeed a sad day for the Police Department and this community," Knee said in a news conference an hour later. "She took to heart the responsibility of being a commissioned officer. Her actions tonight fall right in line with that observation."

The man Donovan was chasing was not caught. It was not clear Sunday why he drew their suspicion.

Many details about the incident, which occurred between 13th and 14th streets, remained unclear Sunday night. During the pre-dawn news conference, in which Knee was visibly disturbed at times, the chief did not comment on why two rookies were working together — a situation that seemed unusual to two nationally known police experts — or whether Valdovino was trying to use a maneuver he had learned in the academy.

Knee said the department has launched an investigation to determine the patrol car's speed and the distance it traveled in reverse.

He said the inquiry also will include a review of how officers are trained to drive. The academy currently requires 40 hours of driving instruction.

Valdovino has been placed on leave until an investigation is completed, which is standard for officers involved in fatal incidents. Knee said Valdovino was "very emotional" and was being comforted by fellow officers. He had helped administer first aid to Donovan at the scene before paramedics arrived.

Hours before dawn, some 50 officers, shaken and upset, gathered outside Brackenridge Hospital, where Donovan died in surgery. Dozens more, including those assigned to her patrol district, huddled for a prayer service at the city's East Austin police substation.

Officers wore black ribbons across their badges throughout the day, and flags at the department were lowered to half-staff.

"This is a tragedy in the truest sense of the word," said Mike Sheffield, president of the Austin Police Association. "You never really have the right words to describe the range of feelings that go with an event like this."

Friends and partners

Officers assigned to the department's academy were among the most grief-stricken. Donovan, a former stockbroker and restaurant owner, had graduated in June in the top 10 percent of her class, excelling in particular at mock interviews.

She was among 11 women in her 78-member cadet class.

Jay Swann, an Amarillo native and Harvard graduate, was elected one of its two class presidents. He was on patrol in Southwest Austin when he got a text page from another classmate that Donovan had been in an accident.

At the time, her condition was critical. He learned a couple of hours later that she had died.

"I was just full of sorrow for her, for her family . . . for Adrian and the misery that he's living through right now," Swann said. "It just serves as a very chilling reminder that police work is dangerous."

Fellow cadets and training officers said that Donovan and Valdovino studied side by side at the academy but that their camaraderie strengthened after they both were assigned to patrol East Austin. Valdovino was described as a quiet student; Donovan dreamed of being a detective. The two frequently served as each other's backup.

Austin officers typically work alone, but Saturday night, Donovan and Valdovino were working special duty. It was not clear Sunday evening whether they were assigned to work together or selected each other as partners for the night.

Knee said police had recently increased patrols in the area, where drug dealing and other crimes occur at higher rates.

Gary Gilleland, who lives near the scene of the incident, said he has participated in several forums with police commanders recently to discuss his concerns. He said he generally calls police at least once a week to report suspicious activity — typically drug dealing and prostitution — outside his home.

When he saw the flashing lights of police cars late Saturday night, he first thought they had responded to a routine call.

"When you call them, they come out," said Gilleland, who stayed inside his home and did not learn of Donovan's death until early Sunday. "It's tragic, obviously."

Robert Funchess, who lives on East 13th Street, left his front porch to investigate soon after seeing the car moving in reverse and hearing a loud noise a few seconds later.

He said Donovan appeared to be conscious at first as emergency officials gathered around.

"It's sad," he said, "for her to have had four kids. . . . That's a loss right there."

Experts weigh in

Sheffield would not comment on whether it was routine for two rookies to be paired soon after graduating from the academy. City Manager Toby Futrell referred all calls to Knee.

Both officers had recently completed the department's field training program, in which rookies are assigned to work with more experienced officers after graduation.

Austin officers participate in the program for at least eight weeks, but some continue for 12 weeks. Supervisors decide when a new officer should be released from the program, and each officer also must pass a final exam. By comparison, new Dallas officers participate in field training programs for 24 weeks, according to the department's Web site; San Antonio officers must complete a minimum of 14 weeks.

According to a report issued last week by the Police Executive Research Forum in Washington, Austin should work to strengthen its field training operation by better training the more senior officers.

William Naber, a retired sheriff's captain in Auburn, Calif., who is an expert in law enforcement training, said many departments nationwide conduct such programs for six to 18 months.

"To have two rookies in a car, I'm absolutely taken aback by that," he said.

Edward Mamet, a retired New York City police captain who now works as an expert witness and litigation consultant, said having rookies paired together seems unusual.

He also said most police department policies do not address how to conduct pursuits with one officer on foot and the other behind the wheel.

He said incidents such as Donovan's death will probably cause departments to begin addressing the issue.

"There's nothing wrong with it as long as you use caution," Mamet said.

Department officials said they do not know when the investigation will be complete.

"We are going to look at every angle that you can with the hopes of making sure it never happens again," Knee said.

[Tourmeister]

Hmm... Sad indeed. There is something about incidents like this that really bother me. Everyone seems to be all in a fluster about them being rookies and being paired up. Does it ever occur to these people that it may have just been an accident, plain and simple?

Does every incident always have to be the result of deficient training or some flawed policy? I mean, we are talking about people here and people make honest mistakes, sometimes trivial and sometimes deadly. That's not to say we shouldn't look at it and see if we can learn from it, but I hate seeing how the authorities often go on some kind of blame/cause witch hunt. Maybe she would not have been killed if she had been with a more experienced officer, then again, maybe she would have

It has to really suck for her family and for her partner. No matter how we try to view it, her death will never make sense. It is a tragedy for sure.

Adios,

[kurt]

I'm not a fan of putting rookies together (police or paramedic) when lives are on the line. Sometimes its unavoidable. You get all the training and are "cleared" to work as a full fledged LEO or Paramedic, but nothing counts like experience. In Austin, the last three APD officers (1995, 2001, 2004) to die in the line of duty all had less than 18 months of experience. This does not include the Austin Parks Police Officer shot to death during a traffic stop or the TCSO Deputy shot during a high risk warrant service.

I'm not going to second guess what happened Saturday, it was tradgic and I'll never forget it. I was glad to see Officer Valvindino sitting with the family of Officer Donovan. APD will work through it and handle it like the professionals that they are. This could have happened anywhere, most departments have just been lucky so far. My prayers are for both families and all of those in APD who worked with both of them.

[Tourmeister]

In Austin, the last three APD officers (1995, 2002, 2004) to die in the line of duty all had less than 18 months of experience.

Now that bit of info would have been good to include in the aritcle!

Adios,