I was driving down to Salida last weekend and ended up in an accident going SB on hwy 285. I crested a hill, visibility went pretty suddenly from good to ~100ft, and I clipped the rear of a CR-V that was unexpectedly stopped in the road due to a jackknifed semi. I feel like an ass for running into someone from behind, because as a rider I know you have to anticipate the unexpected and adjust to conditions. But at the same time, I was caught off guard a bit by the sudden change in conditions, and still can't say exactly what I would have done differently.
Anyway, I got a ticket for "following too close", which I think is inaccurate, but the officer said he was being generous in not giving me a "reckless driving" because it's a lesser fine. But I have the ticket on my desk now and I'm debating whether to pay the fine by mail and cut the number of points in half, or go to the court date to see if there's any way to keep it from going on my record. I'm most concerned about a possible insurance hike, the ticket itself isn't that bad.
Anybody have any experience contesting a ticket here in CO, particularly an accident ticket? Is it worth going to the court date and asking for leniency, or should I just pay up?