Back at the Concord Barracks (on the days that she wasn't in South Boston) Joan was training for highway patrol with "Trooper Coaches". Meeting all the men was an ongoing experience in mostly good-natured teasing. About a week into training, Joan was handed a special name tag made for her. It was gold plated and the printing said "Squat 1". On the serious side, her gender, build and life experiences presented challenges that needed to be addressed! She required a lot of patience from her coaches. In fact one day the Barracks Commander asked Joan, "Why is my star trainer so grumpy?" Joan replied, "Because it's so hard to train me!" Joan's challenges were as follows:
-She was only 5'3" tall. Her feet couldn't reach the gas pedals because of the way the radio systems were installed in the cruisers, so they made her a big blue custom cushion. This was placed on the seat behind her to push her closer to the pedals...it worked! -Her uniform shirts were much too big all over...way too long, and they bunched out on her like a balloon! So, she received some custom tailored shirts. When they arrived, everyone laughed because the shirts looked so tiny. The sergeant said, "No way!!!! That looks like a doll's shirt!! That won't fit you!!" She tried it on in the bathroom, and it fit perfectly!! All stood there shaking their heads. -She couldn't identify the make, model, or year of most vehicles...a very important part of highway patrol. Oh, she could tell the difference between a pick-up truck and a sedan, but all in between looked the same. A trooper helped her with her own code of identification using the words: compact, medium sized, sedan, station wagon, van, and truck...so that along with the color and license plate fixed that issue. -She was not used to driving aggressively. She had to get over her fear of driving fast, and taking curves at high speeds. She did but never liked it, and was never to be a Mario Andretti. After a few months, in spite of her personal challenges, she was released along with the other new troopers to road patrol by herself. She knew, and was often reminded that her progress was being monitored. She took comfort in the slogan, "It takes five years to become a good road patrol officer!" That understanding would not be so helpful with the dilemmas in which she found herself. One very snowy night, Joan was on Rte 128 patrol when another trooper warned her that the exit ramps were very slick. She thanked him and proceeded to exit the highway. The road was pure ice, and she buried the cruiser deep into a snow bank...embarrassing after the warning. However, the bigger challenge was hiding this situation from the barracks. She tried the tricks she had learned. She called in saying she needed a tow truck stating that the registration was unknown. The dispatcher refused to accept the explanation and insisted that she find the registration. She ran out of all her other tricks, and in defeat simply blurted out, "CRUISER 200!! BURIED IN A SNOW BANK!" And when she said "buried"...she meant BURIED!!! Joan couldn't even open the door. The wolf whistles and comments flooded the airways. Another evening while patrolling Rte 128, Joan noticed a large tractor trailer parked on the grassy area between exit ramps. After a couple of passes she realized the truck had not moved so she decided to investigate. She approached and realized that her head didn't even reach the step to the cab. She yelled and knocked on what she could reach with no response. She realized that she might not be heard due to the noise of passing traffic, and began to contemplate Plan B. Just then, a state police captain stopped by, and she explained the problem. He pulled out his night stick, reached up, and gave a hell of a wham on the rig, and up popped the driver's head. As the captain walked away, he said, "That's how Farrell!! That's how you do it!" She was always so thankful to the guys who were helpful and didn't judge her. One evening patrol she was called to investigate a traffic jam on a smaller connecting route. When she arrived, the traffic was tied up in both directions due to a commotion in the middle of the road. The crux of the tie up was an injured raccoon, hissing and fighting any maneuver made by a couple of men who tried to usher it off to the side of the road. They eventually accomplished the task, and Joan proceeded back to her cruiser. She asked the dispatcher to contact the MSPCA (Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) for the injured animal. There were no Animal Control Officers at that time. A few minutes later, she noticed her patrol supervisor walking towards her, shaking his head and obviously not pleased. He said, "Farrell, don't you EVER do that again." She argued in defense of the injured animal but to no avail. He simply repeated his same warning. It was clear that he was somehow embarrassed by this request. A new state police policy was issued approximately six months later which required calling for assistance in the event of any injured animal. Joan always wondered if the new policy resulted from her request for the MSPCA that night. While there were many other learning lessons, the biggest frustration for the other troopers was that she hadn't made an arrest on her own yet. Some of the guys would offer to ride with her saying, "We'll get an arrest Farrell!", but none were able. She took comfort in the attitude of the captain of her troop. It was relayed to her that the captain said, "If the guys will just leave Joan alone, she'll do fine."
And she did. Thank you Captain!!!
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