Bike Race
Chief R.J. Richardella Remembers a great Incident: with Police Officers trading cardsMaplewood New Jersey
Kids Trading Police Officers Cards!
At recess time in the yard at Our Lady of Perpetual Help grade school, Maple Shade, N.J., It would have been unheard of, circa 1959, to imagine that kids in the future would be trading Police cards instead of baseball cards. We could not have grasped that, and Chief Richardella agrees.
In those days, the only Peace Officers we ever ran into in any way was a patrolman we nicknamed Bluto. He was a menacing mouth-breather who looked like a Wurlitzer organ that somebody had left a tiny blue cap on top of by mistake. We had no concept of the criminal justice system except the phrase we used, which was summed up by the phrase "Yikes, here comes Bluto."
Trading Police Cards Versus Baseball Cards
We were after the likes of the great Mickey Mantle of the Yankees, and the almost godly Willie Mays of the Giants. We even hounded the great but unsung Granny Hamner of the Phillies. Who would have thought then that kids would someday clamor for Officer Paul Cymbaluk of the Cranford P.D., perched on his patrol bike? Or Detective Bill Behnke of the Evesham Township squad, deftly brushing his desk for fingerprints? Or Officer Jose R. Rodriguez of the Maplewood force, looking as if he just stepped out of a 1967 yearbook? Or his colleague, Officer John Tutunjian, looking bad, looking very bad, in that sleeveless police vest, muscular arms flexed? These are interesting images about Cops to contemplate.
"Well, kids will collect anything, " said Nick Gregorio, the sales manager of Miramar Productions Inc., a printing company in Trenton that started the ball rolling in New Jersey when it issued a set of "Big League Cards" featuring the Hamilton Township police force. Miramar and other novelty companies have since issued sets for more than two dozen Jersey departments.
It was a real Peace Officers-card phenomenon and it started in California, where it took off fast but lagged in places after local politicians tried to get in on the act. Kids weren't interested in collecting mayors and tax assessors. New Jersey politicians however appeared to be letting the cops have their day, although a police chaplain or two could also be found in some sets of cards of the day.
Collecting Police Cards a Great Idea
The idea of collecting cop cards was an ingenious blend of marketing, willing sponsors (local businesses sponsor individual cops and often hold autograph signings) and growing appreciation of the value of pro-active community policing. Peace Officers were then expected to personally hand out their cards to kids.
At first, a few officers resisted because the idea sound too unusual and silly. "Police are by nature skeptical, " said Chief Harry W. Wilde of the Cranford Department. But Chief Richard Richardella and others say they amazed at how well it has worked. "Kids routinely stop our officers on the street to ask for a card, " he said. "Now you see groups of kids in the center of town looking for the cops. It used to be the other way around, hehe as he laughed a little."
The cards acted as morale boosters and it worked out well. Police as a rule are very conscious of image (the occasional officer frolicking naked on a Washington hotel escalator aside.) Now, corpulent cops feel under siege. In some cop-card sets, the pudgy ones are the only ones posing behind the wheels of their cruisers.
Police Chief Richard Richardella Recalls a Funny Meeting
Police Chief Richard Richardella of Maplewood recalls attending a meeting with officials at West Point back in the day to discuss an Army leadership program for local police leaders. To welcome the chiefs, hospitable West Pointers had placed a box of Dunkin Donuts on the conference table. The Police Officers were horrified. "We wouldn't sit anywhere near those doughnuts, " said the trim Chief Rick Richardella.
In Maplewood NJ each officer got a stash of 2, 000 personal cards and is expected to hand them out one at a time. Local kids who collect all 51 cards qualify for drawings for prizes like bicycles and Giants tickets. The chief said that the Maplewood cards -- produced by Choice Marketing, a Pennsylvania company -- cost local sponsors $125 for each 2, 000 copies.
The Police Officers now think the idea is cool -- but then Police Officers think spit-shined shoes are cool. What about the real arbiters, the kids? Aren't these things . . . well, dopey?
"Oh no, " insisted Kiera Simpson, 9, traipsed into the Maplewood NJ station the other day to add to her set, now numbering 34. "You get to know the police. Besides, you could win a bike."
Her sister, 5-year-old Melody, added, "You trade the ones you have extra of for the ones you don't have."
Their father, Howard Simpson, said he liked the cards just fine. "Kids and cops start approaching one another on a personal level. I want my children not to be afraid of Peace Officers."
His daughters were out the door already, scrutinizing the card of Officer Ted Gnida, shown grinning wickedly as he writes a parking ticket.
"Got him, " decided Melody.
"Trade?" said her big sister.
"No Way!" Melody said, "I am Keepin Him."
Jimm Bankes is a Free Lance writer that writes on business and consulting issues. He often writes about humorous situations that have happened within his writing areas.
Here is one site that he writes business and electricity.
Best electric rates
best bike racing game?
Which Is The Best Bike Racing Game With High Graphics Please Tell Me
Get the answers...
What is the most populor bike race?
Get the answers...
CAN YOU HELP ME WITH THIS MATH PROBLEM?
3.) The organizers of a long-distance bike race wanted to set up food and aid stations every 8 miles along the route. There would be no aid stations at the start and finish. Each station would be staffed with one volunteer to give out food and dispense aid. Unfortunately, on the day of the race, three volunteers didn?t show up. The organizers quickly determined that everything would work out if they placed the aid stations 10 miles apart instead of 8 miles apart. How many volunteers showed up?
PLEASE HELP ME FIGURE THIS OUT FOR MY DAUGHTER IAM SO CONFUSED CANT SEE MTO FIND THE ANSWER . EXPLAIN TO ME HOW U GOT IT IF U SOLVED IT
Get the answers...
|
Next page: 25 Bicycle Tours
Bookmark/Share This Page:
|
|
||
Bike Race News
Pro bike race pedals into downtown LA - 89.3 KPCC
 abc7.com | Pro bike race pedals into downtown LA 89.3 KPCC Right around the time the LA Kings duke it out Sunday against the Phoenix Coyotes for a spot in the Stanley Cup finals, a mega bike race will come to a close — right there in front of Staples Center. Thousands are expected to come cheer on cyclists ... Estrada to signal start of Amgen Tour of California Sonora Residents Relish Opportunity To Host Stage Of Amgen Tour 2012 Tour of California, Stage 4: Preview Of Stage Shows Chance For Upset ... |
Final Stage of California Bike Race Starts Sunday in Beverly Hills - Patch.com
Final Stage of California Bike Race Starts Sunday in Beverly Hills Patch.com Doug Pensinger/Getty Images Stage 8 of the Amgen Tour of California bike race begins at 10:10 am Sunday on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. The day marks the final leg of the eight-day, 750-mile race, which kicked off Sunday, May 13, in Santa Rosa, Calif. |
Richmond gears up for 2015 bike race - Richmond Times Dispatch
Richmond gears up for 2015 bike race Richmond Times Dispatch "This is more than a bike race," Miller said. "This can be a catalyst for a lot of other things." In that way, the championships are pushing the schedule for big projects the city wants to do anyway, such as redeveloping the Main Street Station train ... |
Zabriskie holds lead in bike race - Monterey County Herald
Zabriskie holds lead in bike race Monterey County Herald Dore Holt leads the way as the peloton climbs Highway 138 near Crestline on Friday afternoon. BIG BEAR LAKE (AP) — Sylvain Georges of France pedaled to a long, solo win and Dave Zabriskie maintained his race lead Friday with a main field finish in the ... |
Bike Race Means Rolling Street Closures on Sunday Morning - Patch.com
 Bakersfield Now | Bike Race Means Rolling Street Closures on Sunday Morning Patch.com The 2012 Amgen Tour de California bicycle race will travel through West Hollywood along Doheny Drive and Sunset Boulevard for about 10 minutes on Sunday starting at approximately 10:10 am Expect rolling street closures during that time. Tour of California bike race pedals through Pacifica Water flows for bike race Peter Sagan wins Stage 4 of Tour of California |
L'eroica bike race: blast from the past - KKCO-TV
L'eroica bike race: blast from the past KKCO-TV A bike race from Grand Junction to Glenwood Springs takes riders back to a simpler -- but definitely more uncomfortable-- time. The race is called L'eroica, which is Italian for “hero,” and it is based on a ride that started in 1899 and lasted through ... |
Playoffs, Dodgers and bike race set stage for weekend gridlock - Los Angeles Times
 USA TODAY | Playoffs, Dodgers and bike race set stage for weekend gridlock Los Angeles Times With four of Los Angeles' professional sports teams in action this weekend -- three of them in postseason contests -- authorities are warning of a possible harmonic convergence of gridlock in the downtown area. The heavier than normal traffic is ... Super Sports Weekend Spells Traffic Headaches Around Staples Center A Staples diet of sports Kings, Lakers, Clippers, Amgen Tour to draw crowds at Staples Center |
