Were those posted limits on white or yellow signs? Just in case there's a cultural barrier (like right turn on red) you know the yellow signs are not mandatory in CA, right?
just beware CA has am absolute limit of 65 (unless marked up to 70) above which any speed is considered a priori unsafe, which means you can be cited regardless of road conditions.
And beware you can always be cited for unsafe speed (as determined by the cop) regardless of the marked limit and whether you were under it or not.
In my experience that means you won't be cited unless you are doing something truly outrageous compared to the indicated limit or conditions (eg 60 in a rainstorm at night around a turn with an advised speed of 35, >78ish, etc., 65 on a freeway in a blizzard), or weaving out of your lane, or in a speed trap at the edge of a small town.
General summary of color-coding for American highway signs:
- Black & White is an enforced regulation.
- Red is a vehicle collision hazard.
- Yellow is a single-vehicle hazard.
- Green is city and town locations/distances.
- Brown is national landmarks, parks, etc.
- Blue is all other information.
A few geographical signs, like city limits and bridge names, are also sometimes white but the text is much, much smaller. If it's important, you can read it from far away.
