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I was in town today too, against my better judgement. I was supposed to go out to Whitespruce Trailer Sales and pick up our 18' car hauler trailer, then stop by BY Farms and get some hay. Well, after getting into town and seeing how the roads were I decided to deal with the trailer after we get back from Washington, didn't feel like hauling it home 100 miles, lol.
Stores weren't too terribly busy, but in the parking lots everyone was horribly inconsiderate, seems like they wanted to park by the door and didn't care how they did it. Me, I like to park way out away from everyone, I'm trying to save my black truck from scratches and dings!
Did manage to get an anchor on the way home, was cruising along about 70-75 mph almost home when this truck came up on me like I was standing still. He stayed on my tail for 10+ miles, I slowed down a couple trying to get him to go around, but he wouldn't. Finally I got sick of it and found a nice long passing zone and slowed down to 50 mph, he passed but was not happy about it. Then he pulled in front of me and slowed to even slower than he was going when he was behind me. I just hung out since I was about 5 miles from home. He finally took off. Guess he wanted me to get a ticket instead of him. :sick:
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
I admit I'm guilty of this. I rarely clean the snow or ice off my truck, just warm it up and clear the windshield with the wipers. There's 3 reasons I do this, 1. I'm lazy, lol, 2. The truck is too tall for me to use a snow brush on and do much good (other than side windows), and 3. I don't want to use a broom or brush on the black pain, too afraid of scratching it.
So, there you have it.......my inconsiderate side.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
No garage here, were going to build one this summer, but the horse barn is going to come first. I don't like scraping frost and snow off my horses, lol. :P
LOL, no, they find that rather inconsiderate.
Not quite ready to share the story here, though.
I take it that it wasn't your fault...
xwesx's Subie in happier times
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That's pretty vicious and I'm sure you don't mean it. The inconsiderate driver could have had innocent passengers including children.
When I see this happen, I'm always looking to see if there are any police around but there never are. I'm just thankful that I've never been hit by one of these inconsiderate drivers.
This type of driving infuriates all of us.
jmonroe
'15 Genesis V8 with Ultimate Package and '18 Legacy Limited 6 cyl
Guess what, I just heard on the local evening news that Pennsylvania (that’s where I live) has proposed a law that is to take affect at the end of January 2007, that you will now have to do this. I think they heard me say that on this board. Can you believe it, our politicians actually have time to read this board and take action!
I know what I am about to say is off topic but in the interest of the citizens of our state, I am going to push my luck:
HEY, PENNSYLVANIA POLITICIANS, WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO LOWER OUR TAXES ?
I am a dreamer, ain’t I?
jmonroe
'15 Genesis V8 with Ultimate Package and '18 Legacy Limited 6 cyl
Nah, that's impossible. These folks are total dopes, I'm sure you have some in your state as well.
Anything that's positive has to be coming from outside forces.
Thanks again Edmunds, your value is limitless.
jmonroe
'15 Genesis V8 with Ultimate Package and '18 Legacy Limited 6 cyl
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Okay, so here is the story as told in an email to family earlier, but modified slightly to remove names:
In one of two ironic twists of fate on this night (Dec 30, 2006), I stopped by a store on my way out to Friend 1's, the store owner, house (a good friend of mine with whom I play computer games most Saturday nights) at about 2010, or 8:10pm. I often stop here if his vehicle is still there as otherwise I would just be hanging out waiting for him to come home. This night, though, his roommate (Friend 2) hitched a ride with me when I arrived there as Friend 1 was headed to the supermarket before going home. So, in he goes and off we go, chatting amiably about vacations, family, etc. About 3 miles into this approximately 10 mile journey, we are coming to the end of a two-lane stretch of road, 45 SL, with me in the right lane. After the lane separation (white dotted line) ends, I take a routine glance in the rear view to see a truck approaching fast, obviously intent on getting by prior to the end of the zone. Well, it does not really make it, but I stayed to the right of the lane and the driver took to the snow-covered, wide median to make the pass. After he was by and while I was in white-out from the kicked out snow, I quickly flashed my brights to confirm his inconsideration and to locate the vehicle through the whiteout. It was still pulling away, so no big deal either way. My passenger noted "Wow... he must be in a hurry." I said something like "sure looks like it." After that, for the next mile or so, we resumed chatting amiably. Then, after all but one of the vehicles in front of this driver had turned, I had pretty much caught back up to the truck and was following 2 or 3 seconds behind, just S.O.P. But, out of the blue, on comes a rectangular, top mounted spot light and it starts shining into the left ditch, then the right ditch, then back left. Pretty soon, WHAM!, right in our faces - effectively blinding us to anything ahead. I wait a few seconds, dropping off the gas to slow down due to not being able to see anything other than a vague outline of tail lights, then quickly flash again as if to say, "Okay, I get it.... enough already!" No sooner had I flashed than the driver SLAMMED on the brakes, doing the standard ABS tail wiggle, and I could not really see it happen until the truck started closing on us and the spot light shone over the back of the car. I took evasive action by swerving into the left (oncoming) lane and then back into the right once we were around the truck - note that I did not speed up or slow down here - just evaded, and yet I was around and back in my own lane in just a moment's time. I was probably going about 40, maybe a bit slower at this time, so that truck really hit the brakes. Soon after this, the truck that was a ways ahead of this driver made a left turn. I slowed for the turn as did the truck behind me.... right on my bumper. As soon as the truck had made its turn, this driver turned on the brights, including a set of huge driving lights, and continued to ride my rear bumper. I flipped my night dimmer on the rear view and continued to drive, about 3 over the SL (my normal speed), both through the remainder of the 45 zone and into the 55 zone. Five or six oncoming cars passed us during this time and the other driver would dim the brights each time about 2 seconds before each of the cars would pass "us" - considering there was probably 10-20 feet separating our vehicles. Long up ahead, a vehicle was waiting to turn left and waited there until we had passed. After that, we rounded a bend and the driver then flew around us, came back in front and locked up the brakes a second time. I swerved to the left lane to avoid and as I was coming alongside the vehicle the driver cut into the left lane. I took to the shoulder to avoid the truck colliding with us and got hung up in the mounded snow there but could not do much about it as that truck was literally a foot away on my right side. The truck fell away - I think perhaps it either moved back to the right lane or slowed down realizing I was in serious trouble. I was bringing the car back onto the road (still on the left shoulder) when suddenly the back end spun around on me to the left and set us 90-degrees off center. The lanes were fairly dry so the car gripped hard and "stuttered" sideways as we shot across the road, I was turning full into the slide and had us back to about 45 degrees when the front end caught the snow berm on the right side of the road and spun us sideways again. At that point, we went down/across the embankment and flipped over, bouncing off or plowing down several small clusters of trees and shrubs before coming to a stop with the car upside down and 180-degrees from our intended direction of travel.
I immediately asked my friend if he was okay, but he responded with something similar to "gosh darn it," and "what the heck?," so I asked again. He said he was, so I unclipped my belt, fell to the ceiling, then let him know I was going to unclip his. He also fell a bit, but his was crushed down quite a bit so there was not much clearance. His response was, "Oh, this is much better." I told him to stay put for a moment while I found an exit, crawled into the back seat area, popped out the one remaining passenger side window (did not know that at the time though as the intensity of the crash did not really feel that severe). I crawled out, went to his door and found that it was already open a bit from the impact, and was able to tear it open the rest of the way. I helped him out and then I rushed up to the road. Nothing.... silence. No truck, no passersby, so the driver had obviously fled the scene. This was, perhaps, 30 seconds from the time the vehicle came to a stop and was maybe 45 seconds from the time it left the road. I went back to my friend, who had turned off the car (it was still running when I pulled him out) while I ran to the road, and asked him again if he was okay once he had a chance to inspect himself. He had a cut on his knee with a fair bit of blood on his leg (he was wearing shorts), but it looked to have stopped bleeding. He went to the road while I went back to his favorite ball cap and my gloves and knit hat. It was about 5 degrees outside, so not real cold (for Fairbanks in December/January), but I did not know how long we were going to be outside. I was well-dressed for a walk, but he was not as all of his winter gear was in Friend 1's vehicle. We tried flagging down 6 or 7 vehicles before a very kind gal in a small car stopped for us. She had a load in the car so said she would drop it at home and come back.
(Concluded in following post)
So, after a long enough story, the trooper did his thing, called recovery trucks, took stories and vehicle descriptions, in general was very pleasant and reassuring company, and within 90 minutes of the crash the car was gone and we were on our way to Friend 1 (and 2)'s house again.... sans Subaru. We went ahead and played computer games until about 0030, then Friend 1 took me home. In the second twist of fate for the night, the same truck who's driver had gone psychotic on me passed us. At first I was skeptical that it could possibly be the same one, though the back of my mind was screaming "it is!" the whole time, so we just continued on our way without altering course. We happened to catch back up at a stop light and I took the opportunity to look it over with relative care to confirm it was the same truck. It certainly was the same one - every detail was in place save one. This time, though, I got a license plate number because it was mostly uncovered - probably due to someone using the bumper to climb into the bed to remove the yellow "OVERSIZE" sign that was quite prominent throughout the events leading up to the crash. I tried to follow up with the trooper today to find out if and what is happening with the investigation, but had to leave a message and have not heard back.
Again, very strange, very scary. Both me and Friend 2 were bewildered the whole time and a swear my heart skipped a beat the second time he brake checked... and at least 3 the first time when we had a spotlight in our eyes. The trooper said that I should have stopped the car and taken a different route when the other driver hit us with the spot light / brake check. If the other driver pursued, then he said we should go to the first available busy location and get people's attention/call the police. He speculated that when I swerved around the truck to avoid the first brake check/collision, I probably only served to send him over the top. The trooper was probably right, but at the time it was purely defensive. I feel I had only 3 choices at that point - hit the ditch, hit the truck, or swerve to the left. Braking, alone, just would not have cut it.
Anyway, good advice from the trooper - it had not crossed my mind since we were headed the direction we wanted to go and were within 3 miles of there. I guess, being confused about what or why this driver was so insistent and severe, I just did not fathom that the driver would push it that far. The second time he passed I truly thought it was because he was satisfied with the sunburn on the back of my neck and was going to speed on his way. But, obviously, no. As a result, I was just trying to ignore him as best as possible so as to not provoke further aggression. It did not matter though, that driver had worked himself (or herself) into a determined frenzy.
So there is my "I'm an idiot" story (as I certainly hold myself responsible for catching that driver's attention 3+ back up the road - apparently he was really looking for an excuse to come unglued and any excuse would do), but at least we all lived to tell it. 220,640 miles was the final tally on the car. *sniffle* Back to driving the old '69 Chevy C20 (2wd) and I tell you, it is quite a different drive trying to nurse that old lump around.
So, do I get an award for the longest post ever on the forums?! :P
You should probably run this by a lawyer. Even if the police decline to press charges, you've got plenty of ammo for a civil suit.
The reason I feel it is positive is because it's a safety issue. While I'm not in favor of big government, when people create a hazard for others because they either don't know they are doing something wrong or they just don't care, somebody with authority has to step in.
How many times have you suggested something to someone like this only to hear, "there is no law that says that". Well, now they won't be able to say that.
It would be nice if everybody did what is right (safe in this case) but we all know they don't/won't.
I'm sure when speed limits were established, there were plenty of people who felt they were more than capable of determining, on their own, what a safe speed should be but we know they weren't.
This is just my opinion.
jmonroe
'15 Genesis V8 with Ultimate Package and '18 Legacy Limited 6 cyl
I was driving a supercharged range rover back from a clients house to the dealership to have the 7,500 mile service done.
Just cruising down the highway at right around the speed limit in the middle lane when a Toyota PRIUS jerks into my lane and cuts me off. He gets hard on the brakes forcing me to slow down and then swerves into the far left lane after waiting a moment for another car to pass. Then he tailgates the hell out of that car too. :confuse:
My first thought when he cut me off was that it was a good thing he left a little more space between me and him because give the size and shape of his car and the size and shape of my car I would have just driven right over the top of him by hardly noticing.
You obviously haven't visited the subcompact forum lately because those micro cars are safer and you probably would of totaled out your Rover. :P
Sounds like some of the subcompact drivers we have down here
Rocky
All just because you flicked your brights at him -- not that he was driving responsibly when he passed you the first time.
Look, I would have done the same thing (and I have done so in situations like this -- maybe even blared the horn).
I had a similar though much less serious incident happen to me when I flicked my brights at someone, including severe brake checking on the part of the other driver, but fortunately no crash. This was about 20 years ago in the predawn of the day of our office Christmas party -- put me in a fine holiday mood!
You should pursue all legal means to press charges against this guy -- he deserves it! And you do have your friend as a witness, so it's not just you against the creep!
That's totally amazing that you met up with him later and were able to identify his vehicle!
Much agreed. I have often thought that there should be a law in Alaska that requires drivers to use headlights at all times of the day through the months of November and January. Considering the low light and, when there is sun, low angle of the light, it is simply the responsible thing to do, but there are a lot of drivers out there (some friends of mine included) who are adamant that if it is daylight/bright enough for them to see fine then they do not need lights. Having the lights on seems to me like a small price to pay for the exponential increase in visibility of a vehicle to other drivers on the road.
I often groan about some of the ridiculous or invasive laws passed, but I guess I just have to remember that for every law there is someone cheering and someone groaning. One size never fits all. :sick:
If you dont get anywhere with the legal system, maybe we can put together an "Edmunds posse" and give a few people the kick in the butt we need to actually visit Alaska...
I am convinced that there is a small percentage of folks on this planet that are just looking for the slightest excuse to come unglued, and you just happened upon them.
When I hear about lunatics like this, I wish I had some mob ties, and I could send in the "cleaners"!
Best wishes to you from a stranger.
Yes, I truly was floored - which is why I did not push to snag its plate ID when it passed the first time. It was probably a 1/4 mile ahead by the time it was stopped by that light and, for some reason, the light stayed red quite a long time considering that intersection is sensor-controlled at that time of day and there was only one vehicle crossing the intersecting street. Quite a generous second chance to get my act together. But, despite that, there is no doubt in my mind it was the same rig - after all, I spent a few harrowing minutes becoming quite intimately familiar with it and I tend to be very good at spotting details. I used to pass the time on long family trips by studying the cars as they went by - now it is more subconcious than anything. It is a rare car I see that I cannot name (though I admit I am less than competent with MB and BMW models, though brand recognition is no problem) from a distance, so really I just have to pick out distinguishing features of the individual vehicle. *shrugs*
Even so, all that description of the vehicle probably would have netted zero results had I not seen it so soon afterward and been able to get that plate. As it is, I still have not found out whether the trooper has followed up or even plans to do so. My insurance company is following up though, so at least they are still working for me even if my coverage through them will not result in any immediate or direct compensation.
They said that they will inspect the vehicle tomorrow and then it is mine to dispose as I see fit. I have a feeling I will end up with a staggering bill from the towing company if I seek to retain it, so I'm not sure it is worth it. The entire drivetrain is undamaged save for one wheel assembly (rear left), and none of the rims or tires were damaged as far as I can thus far tell (the beads on both left tires were broken, so both of those are flat/unseated, but they look undamaged), so all that adds up to between $1000 and 1500, potentially, if I can salvage/sell the parts. I am unsure about it, really. I do know that it is unusable to me (or anyone) whole, so we are having to replace it and likely within the next few days.
Look, I would have done the same thing (and I have done so in situations like this -- maybe even blared the horn).
Well, I never thought anything of it before either, and when it happens to me I either agree or disagree, but I just take it for what it's worth - feedback! But, after this, I recall someone mentioning here about "that could get you shot around here" and think... "Whoa! Well, apparently here too!"
I think what he means is he literally would have driven right over the thing, because the Prius is essentially shaped like a speedbump...
I hope justice is served. Keep us informed.
Thats exactly what I meant but I didn't think I had to spell it out like that.
Please xwesx keep is inforned on what happens with the trucker guy.
First off:
I’m glad that you and your friend were not seriously hurt in that “event”. Don’t let this fade away, keep after the police dept. and your insurance company. Doing things like that guy did is criminal, plain and simple !!!
As for turning on your lights when your wipers are on seems like common sense to me but as I’ve said before, ‘common sense’ isn’t so common so some people need a reminder, like a law. In fact, for the last couple years, I’ve been driving with my headlights on all the time just so other people can see me better. My cars don’t have daytime running lights but I wish they did. However, my cars do have the ‘auto-lights-on’ feature but I know they don’t turn the lights on soon enough, to suit me, at dusk or other low light conditions so this ‘feature’ is useless as far as I’m concerned. Therefore, I can’t rely on this feature to make me more visible.
Again, glad you’re still kickin,
jmonroe
'15 Genesis V8 with Ultimate Package and '18 Legacy Limited 6 cyl
You are certainly NOT an idiot, indeed, your are alive and lived to talk about this unfortunate life endangering event.
I have seen strange things as a CHP, (i.e. your trooper) and you are still alive and without serious injuries to you and your rider. That is a blessing, karma, destiny, fill in.
And I would say that you did the things you needed to do to save your life and limb. JMO, we all second guess our selves and somehow try to make it right if we could do it over. But we can't. However, we can learn. And that includes me too.
My compliments to you for your ability to get through this ordeal and I honestly hope they find and get this dor@ (k) and his spot light.
Good luck to all and to all have a peaceful and centered 2007
jensad
Craig
Anyway, why do people slow down to WAY under the speed limit when they see a cop has someone pulled over? The speed limit on this stretch is 70. Sure, you should move over, or slow down if you can't, when passing the crime scene. What people do though is get over into the middle and left lanes and slow down to 55 or so.
Why? The cop is already busy! Also, it's not like you are going to receive an extra-credit voucher in the mail! In my mind, brake lights are something you should never see on a highway.
I should point out that this was about 10:45 p.m. The traffic wasn't heavy. Also, the cops focus solely on speeding, and maybe DWI/DUI, but LLC's get a free pass.
Just a little rant. I don't get the mentality of most people. Also, I don't get why a cop will do nothing about someone driving slower than everyone in the left lane, but pull over someone going 10 over for speeding.
LOL...
Best wording of this concept I've yet heard. Agree totally, btw.
It seems a very large portion of Camry cars are being driven by elderly people now holding onto the steering wheel with white knuckles trying to figure out how to drive. It's become the "Buick" replacement for too many drivers who shouldn't have keys.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Second one was me and "she who must be obeyed" were going to the local Ikea (I hate that place) to get something. The drive into the place was on a two lane entrance that had another drive merge into it. Well I am on the two lane drive in the left lane and someone merges onto this drive and cuts into the left lane. Only problem is I was in that left lane with my front bumper equal with his "A" pillar. Luckily there was no one in the oncoming lanes.
Finally me and "She who must be obeyed" were going out to dinner last night. Going through the downtown area of Naperville I came up to a four way stop. An SUV was going the other way and stopped at the intersection before me. Well we started to go through the intersection at the same time but he made a left turn in front of me. Well when this happened he blew his horn and did some jester towards me. Of course this guy would have had a point if 1.) he had used a turn signal and 2.) if the turn he made didn't put him going the wrong way on a one way street.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
I too get sick of the slowwww drivers rightously going the max speed limit, or usually 10 under in the fast lane.
"Also, I don't get why a cop will do nothing about someone driving slower than everyone in the left lane, but pull over someone going 10 over for speeding. "
Some of us did enforce the slower driver stuff in Ca. Especially in a metropolitan, (sp) area because many times that driver CAUSES an accident but is not involved in it.
Also at 2230 hours, several things are going on. Speeder, and indeed, DWI, and also the "night crew" is out driving.
The "night crews" are involving in criminal endeavors. Example, if one is to commit a burglary, or an armed robbery, one needs a get away car.
Many time stolen, the person relies upon night time to hide, and less traffic on the roadway, one has a better chance at getting away.
In my line of work, it was always good to remember that to be vigilant when working at night. Recently a CHP officer died in Oakland next to the Sports complex off the Nimitz freeway. Got run over and died. I believe the CHP lost six officers/supervisors in No. Ca in 2006. And I have no stats, but I would say that most officers are killed at night and not daytime.
Lastly, the rubberneckers used to drive me NUTS!! Hated them as their interest in another's sorry, many times caused more accidents.
This is an excellent forum, as we can vent our feelings abouit the sometimes insanity of drivers, and the stupidity of some, but also that we are wonderful human beings.
Good luck to all
jensad
I think it's pretty cool we have your perspective as part of this forum. I think a lot of times it's easy to get a feeling of "us against them" regarding police, only because some of them abuse their power and seem to (as we've hashed out 1000 times here) be collecting revenue more than enforcing safety, etc. etc.
I try to bear in mind that it is a dangerous occupation, especially in certain areas. I lived in Oakland for a year (currently in Sunnyvale). While it's not as bad as its reputation indicates, I know it's not the best place to be a police officer.
My theory is that you can learn a lot about the crime level of a city/town through the behavior of its police. Dublin/Pleasanton is notorious for its extremely bored cops. I was once pulled over and surrounded by five patrol cars at a gas station there ... to inform me that one of my taillights was out. (My passenger was also threatened when he reached for his cell phone while we were waiting for the whole affair to play out.) In Milpitas, an officer blocked me in and ran my driver's license because I was waiting for a friend in an empty parking lot at night.
You never see that sort of thing in Oakland, where they have far more important things to do
Anyway, I just wanted to say "glad you're here" because it's easy for a lot of us here (myself included) to feel/sound anti-police sometimes.
WRT left lane violations, I didn't mean to imply that I think the troopers are in revenue mode, or anything like that. Lane discipline should be in the same league, enforcement-wise, on at least this stretch of road. I kind of mixed up my gripes, because this behavior is most irritating when the traffic is heavier during the day.
Some of the scariest times in my life were spent on the shoulder of a highway. I don't mean to take lightly the danger of pulling people over under those conditions!
My gripe about people slowing down and changing lanes when approaching a trooper with 15,000 watts of flashing lights is that at night, you can and should see this a mile or more away. When you know you are approaching an "event", start getting an idea of who is around, and make a plan. Don't wait until you're there, and then hit the brakes while changing lanes, at the same instant you hit the signal! As soon as you can tell which side of the road they are on, move over in a calm and rational way.
I hope this clarifies things somewhat. I'm trying to watch The Simpsons while typing. And no, I am not in the car right now.