There's a big crowd like that here...something I'd expect to see more in suburban NYC or something.
Saw a couple of winners lately. First was a woman who I will just say was very small, in a Sentra. She drove in an insanely timid manner...very slow, would try to keep like a 20 car length distance from the car in front of her, and a left turn on a moderately busy street was painful as she wouldn't go until there was no oncoming traffic for several blocks. Then she crawled down a side street, going slower because there were cones up for a sidewalk repair - no workmen present, and on the other side of the street. Her competency was topped off at a stop sign, which she turned left at - blowing through the sign itself like it wasn't there. I sure am glad the lowest common denominator is taking over.
I also saw a STS pull out from a side street and merge onto a highway. I thought it might be slow...I was wrong. This guy must have been going 100mph by the time he hit the highway, seriously. Traffic was light but he was shooting past everyone. Possibly the fastest I have ever seen a Caddy move,.
Fintail posted that one earlier. Again, drunk 24 year-olds probably should have $100k+ cars capable of doing 150mph. Actually, almost nobody should, really.
.....but today after leaving da Jewels (it's actually just Jewel, but you must say it incorrectly, like a Chicagoan, at least once, just for fun) with $66 worth of groceries and having spent twenty minutes at the bank inside (so I was there an hour, basically), the car parked next to me when I came out was STILL a newish (current-gen) black-on-black Cadillac STS with two (white, fuzzy) Wheaten Terriers locked inside, none of its four windows cracked open in the slightest (it was 50 degrees, so they're not going to freeze nor boil, but still, fresh air is always nice for animals). I guess I don't get this on (at least) two levels: (1.) why drag your rather large dogs around so they can sit in a (sealed up) vehicle for an hour while you're at the grocery store, and (2.) even if you have no moral problem with that, why haul them around in a newish ~$50k leather-clad car? Complete, wanton lack of regard for both animals and money. Stupid.
Having seen this in Ca, I am with you ghulet as to the dumbness of drivers, i.e. common sense is many times too high a standard to get a driver's license at least in Ca.
A idiot driver on the freeway at Berkeley, stopped his station wagon in the fast lane at 9 pm to pick up the baby carriage that had fallen off his car and was laying in the fast lane behind his car.
Summary: This caused a five car accident, with two other cars catching fire, two kids with broken necks, one deceased driver still in his flaming corvette, and one female with her clothes burned off strapped into a stretcher until the ambulance could arrive.
God bless the citizens of Berkeley who jumped over the freeway fences/got out of their cars and helped by giving first aid to the victims of one dumb stupid driver who had a valid Ca license but no common sense. (Typing this makes me angry but I know its over.)
Oh, the baby carriage was ran over, and his car was untouched which was a good thing, because his wife and three kids were still in it.
I love this board and sometimes I do flash back to things one never forgets. And I know that there are many here that do too. And its ok.
I had some lady yell at me for leaving my dog in a car with the windows rolled up. I had just filled up the tank and ran inside the gas station store to get something. When I came back the lady started lecturing me about it. I explained that it was just a few minutes. To which she asked me if I knew how fast the interior of a car will get to above 120 degrees? I responded that since it was night, the middle of January with temps hovering around 10 degrees it would take a few months for that to happen.
She wasn't to happy with my response.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Heck, there are a number of 10K+/- used cars these days that can do 150.
Beautiful warm day here, that as usual fried the brains of the peon drivers I get to contend with. My favorite was a stone-age Corolla and an old Integra on a 40mph 4 lane suburban road...running side by side at 5 under with about 10 cars piled up behind them. Why isn't it legal to pit maneuver these types off the road? Second place goes to an aging boomer in a previous generation Camry with a spoiler (bad sign right there) playing with his phone going maybe 10 under, left lane, of course. And the finale was a white box van that turned right on red - the only problem was that I had the green arrow, facing him. Traffic lights...small meaningless details.
sadly, there are plenty of cheap cars that can do 120-150; fortunately, most of the drivers aren't ballsy or arrogant enough to attempt doing so, or perhaps they don't know its possible.
The other 'sadly' is that drivers rarely receive citations for driving too slowly, blocking lanes, having one car in either lane travelling 1.5 mph faster or slower than the one in the other, etc. I invite anyone to use I-55 on a weekend, going 'South' (really it's west/southwest): the entire road is as such: four lanes: light traffic, furthest left lane has some dingbat on her cell doing 65; next over, a guy yelling at his kids in his T/C, going 66.4; next over, someone not paying attention, travelling perhaps 64 or so; furthest right lane, everyone else trying to pass the three left lanes, going 80 but usually stopped in their tracks by some duffer going 53, or slowing down a mile before their exit. Good times. :sick:
(1) On topic, dangerous drivers. Most dogs you see in cars are not secured in the car when the the owner leaves them there. I'm not talking about locked doors. I'm talking about a dog crate. In moving cars, relatively few dogs are secured by either a harness tethered to a seat belt or a crate. The dogs are running wild in a moving car and serve as a distraction beyond the level of cell phone/texting/substance impairment. In an accident, 12 pound Muffy becomes a projectile of bowling ball proportions. And 85 pound Killer.......you get the drift. This creates a totally unsafe situation for the dog, the driver, everyone else on the road, and pedestrians. And that is before you factor in their driving skills or lack thereof.
A well-trained dog will just sit attentively or take a snooze in the car during the owners' absence. There are a lot of folks who simply travel with their dogs, take them everywhere, whether it be short hops or longer ones with a stop or two on the way to or on the way home. Personally, I don't like to leave my dogs alone in a car for more than a few minutes, regardless of ambient temperatures. Too much can happen. Better left at home or dropped off there, even if it may be inconvenient. A cracked open window for air circulation solves one problem for a time but creates a whole subset of possible new ones.
(2) Re the leather (or cloth) seats getting trashed by dogs. Most folks would never read a car forum like this because to them an automobile is nothing more than a tool, four wheels and transportation. Most everything discussed here holds little or no interest for them. Sure, they like a good looking car; but it fades quickly once they have had the car for a couple of months. Four car washes a year if that. The car is filled with garbage, dried liquid spillage, and debris.... like they are living out of their car and trunk. They never open the owners manual and don't use half of the options because they don't know how or don't know they even have them. Car wax.....why bother? Leaves and tree debris in every exterior nook, cranny, and drain channel, most of which can be carbon dated for the year the stuff fell off the tree. Sap, bugs, and bird droppings. Scraped tires and bent/gauged rims. And on. They are the masses that leave all of the carnage on YOUR car in parking lots, all four sides, then scream "What's the big deal?" when caught in the act.
Mechanical maintenance? Fess up. How many of us folks have a family member or friend that asks you why that annoying check engine light won't go off, and when you check the dipstick you can't get a reading. You add four quarts and tell them to get the motor oil changed. Six months later you get the exact same question from them, only this time they also ask about that strange rythmic ticking coming from the engine compartment or you find a piece of tape covering the check engine light.
My father was approaching retirement when he got his first Cadillac. A beautiful 500 c.i. fuel injected boat. Now he was a stickler for maintenance. He took the car into his dealer for some minor repair and the service writer almost had a heart attack when he saw the rear leather seats. "What happened to your rear seat?" "The dog." "Why would you let the dogs do that?" "Well, if the seats are not good enough for the dog they are not good enough for me." End of that discussion.
I am sure the average V6 Camcord driver doesn't know what such a vehicle can hit top end...certainly not the average Lexus driver.
What you describe there sounds like pretty much every highway in the Seattle area, with the right de facto fast lane, and obliviousness everywhere. I swear people here drive worse when the weather is nice, too.
I'm in the deferred maintenance section. And car wax is for glamor, not protection.
It is scary what people haul around loose in their cars. Those loose 40 pound sandbags in your pickup bed can fly right through the back of the cab. I'd like to see the stats on cell phone injuries to people's heads when they bounce off the windshield.
That they can; frankly, though, there is very little "secured cargo" that will stay that way in the event of a crash. If there is any weight to it at all, anything on a roof rack is coming off, anything in a cargo area secured by a net, bungee, etc., is going to come loose.
2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
well, no, of course not, but between my place and the nearest Home Depot and/or Menard's, (the former, about 1.5 miles away, the latter, less than a mile), I could barely hit 30 mph if I wanted to. Plus, isn't that why people own vans, SUVs and/or pickups (to haul stuff, I mean)? But, no, I wouldn't recommend that load in that vehicle at 70mph unless the notion of you or your passenger being decapitated, upon a quick stop, doesn't bother you.
I'm not saying that I take wonderful care of my vehicles, I don't, though I am a car enthusiast, always have been.. It takes time and money, often of which I don't have enough....I do look after them, though, at least enough to keep them decent. But, I guess, really, I don't care if people want to buy expensive cars and let their dogs destroy them.....it's not my money. Ergo, I give a rat's about their vehicles.
I also don't 'baby' my pets to the point that they become psychotic if they're not with me, side-by-side, 24 hours a day, which is what I suspect has happened with the cutesy twin dogs locked-up in the Caddy. Why else would one drag them along to the supermarket and lock them up in the car? They've become accessories to the owner, really. Vanity is even more wonderful a trait when it involves animals, isn't it? And, of course, there's nowhere in an STS to 'secure' two dogs; that was part of my point: if you're going to have your dogs with you all the time, would you NOT at least have an SUV, wagon or something with a secure place (where one can install a fence/cage-type barrier) and a flat floor on which they can at least sit? Though I'm on here constantly, I actually care less about cars than about people mistreating their pets, honestly.
With baby in car, Va. man fired 13 shots at truck, police say
BY MARY PAT FLAHERTY AND PAUL DUGGAN, Washington Post
With his 2-year-old daughter in a car seat inside, Gabriel Poventud of Woodbridge threw open the door of his silver Jaguar on the shoulder of southbound interstate 95 in Prince William County and fired 13 shots at a dump truck, terrifying Tuesday evening commuters, Virginia State Police said.
Police said Wednesday that Poventud, 25, and the operator of the white Ford truck, James Bringham, 44, also of Woodbridge, drove recklessly and in a rage down a four-mile stretch of highway. The incident happened after the truck merged onto the interstate from Route 123 just south of the Fairfax County line shortly after 4 p.m. and "encountered" the Jaguar, police said.
The truck struck the Jaguar twice before both vehicles wound up on the left shoulder pinned against a Jersey wall, where Poventud began shooting, state police allege. The truck driver headed back into traffic, trailed by the Jaguar, police said, until one of several state troopers at the scene brought the chase to a halt on the right shoulder of I-95 near a weigh station.
Frightened drivers flooded emergency lines with calls, police said...
I was on my way home yesterday afternoon on the 4-lane highway (2 lanes in each direction) posted at 55 mph. I was in the right lane, and I noticed cars in front of me starting to bunch up and flash their brake lights in the left lane, the sure sign of an LLC. Sure enough, there was a Mazda Miata with a hardtop holding up the line of maybe 7 or so cars.
I finally caught up to the driver (a middle-aged she) at a red light and passed her on the right, giving her my customary dirty look (although probably not too obvious to her with my shades on). I cannot understand why people will do this for miles on end, totally oblivious to what's going on behind them.
I kept checking in my rearview mirror, and she never turned left at any of the intersections, so she clearly wasn't preparing for a left turn at any point.
Haha; what was in the boxes? I was thinking laminate flooring at first, but.... ?
For that whole trip to PA and back last spring, our minivan was probably borderline GVWR with the load of cargo we had in there.
I may not be the king, but I am at least a duke of overloading! I rarely think to stop and snap a photo, though. I think my all-time best was hauling all the lumber for the first floor of my house in one load (about 12 miles from the lumber yard). The invoice included the weight of each item subtotal, and the total was right at 12,000#. I have removed some of the lumber from the trailer at the point I took this photo, but there are 52 sheets of 3/4" OSB in the bed of the truck alone.
I may have hit 30 a time or two, but I had to take it real easy because I do not have an electric brake controller on that truck.
2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
Re the leather (or cloth) seats getting trashed by dogs.
For me the dog travels in the 12 year old car with 170K miles on it that has seen much better days. I really don't care if the dog damages the seat, if she did it would reduce the value of the car by what? 25 cents?
Now the dog will never be in the Convertible.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
....very '70s. Makes you remember when a family of four didn't feel like they 'need' a three-ton SUV to haul their kids and junk around to the supermarket....
The woman in the pic became an RN and wound up with a half dozen show cats. We've lost track of her, but I bet she's driving an Excursion now. :shades:
ghulet......I agree with you. Folks treat dogs like human children creating the very problems you witness with the classic psycho dogs going nuts in cars, and that behavior begins at home.
But when it comes to safety.....theirs, their dogs', the rest of the people on the road, and pedestrians.....these folks don't do the minimum, at least secure the dog in the car so that no matter what, they can pay attention to driving their 3,000-6,000 pound (automotive) weapon of choice. I value my life and that of my family, but apparently they don't.
Actually, you can easily and safely secure two dogs in an STS or any car with a rear seat using a canine car harness on each dog, tethered to the rear seat seat belts. For 9 years I had to transport my two dogs 100 miles almost weekly in my car, one weighing 135 lbs. and the second 75 lbs. Add rear seat covers and there you have it. Everything and everyone protected, including the seats....unmarked by the dogs.
I didn't know they made restraints that adapted the seat belts for dog use. I have never seen one. Indeed the most common thing I see among dogs in the car is the ankle nipper on the driver's lap poking its head out the cracked window. Best place for it so that when you get in an accident the air bag can slam that puppy right into the driver's face. :sick:
The next worst thing I see is dogs tethered by his leash, like you would in the back yard, in a truck bed. Imagine the dog bouncing and running all over the bed, somehow falls out and because he is tethered by his leash is now dragged along with the vehicle bouncing along the pavement. Now it would be best not to have the dog in a truck bed at all. But if you do, to me it's pick your form of carnage. At least untethered the dog has a better chance of survival, although in a collusion at freeway speeds, tethered or untethered, a dog in a truck bed is bound to come out on the worse end of the deal.
My idea would be that unless you have some way to secure your dog like you would your own child don't take it out... A city surface street where speeds don't get up to above say 25 MPH and you're probably okay. The risk of injury is lower unless of course you have it sitting in your lap...
my thoughts exactly. Unless you're taking your pet(s) to the vet, or the sitter, or some other form of care for them, or you and they are both insane, keep them AT HOME, for the most part. Give them food, water, excercise and your pets will not die without you for a few hours. They were not created to hang out with humans during their errands, period. I will now, especially since this is a vehicle-based forum, stop with my Natalie Merchant-esque rant now.
A dump truck driver admitted he was "fishing for papers" when his rig crashed through nine motorcycles this afternoon in Phoenix, killing several riders.
The accident took place near 27th and Carefree Highway in Phoenix. Multiple sources have confirmed earlier reports of a major accident involving multiple bikes in the area. According to the employees of a Walgreens located near the site of the accident, the truck driver plowed through at least nine motorcycle riders who were parked at the intersection waiting for the light. The truck then caught on fire with motorcycles trapped underneath it.
According to one Walgreens employee, the truck driver admitted to bystanders that he was "fishing for papers" when the accident occured. Lifeflight was sent to the scene and the casualty count is unclear, but at least three people and possibly five are dead with many others injured. Another car was said to be involved. [ABC 15]
I believe it is illegal to not have a dog tethered in the bed of a pickup in Washington state.
I think that is the case in Oregon as well. One would have to be some kind of fool to make the tether long enough to allow the dog to jump out of the truck... not that we don't have plenty of those. :sick:
The dog harness comes in different sizes and is adjustable to the dog's shape, has a loop, and you just fish the seat belt buckle through the loop and connect as usual. The seat belt gives the dog enough leeway to sit or lie down amd move around a bit (like a passenger), but not so much the dog encroaches on the driver's space. Dog can't accidentally jump out the window either, causing another vehicular accident or its own demise.. Sold in all of the box store pet supply stores and a ton of places on the internet. Inexpensive too. Automotive supply stores and internet stores sell the seat covers, custom fitted to your make and model and year of car/SUV/truck and are washable.
The next worst thing I see is dogs tethered by his leash, like you would in the back yard, in a truck bed. Imagine the dog bouncing and running all over the bed, somehow falls out and because he is tethered by his leash is now dragged along with the vehicle bouncing along the pavement. Now it would be best not to have the dog in a truck bed at all. But if you do, to me it's pick your form of carnage. At least untethered the dog has a better chance of survival, although in a collusion at freeway speeds, tethered or untethered, a dog in a truck bed is bound to come out on the worse end of the deal.
I used to tether my dog in the bed of my truck, but did so with one that was mounted at the dead center of the bed (on the floor) and just long enough for the dogs nose to reach over the bed to each side. I figured if I got in a crash, the dog was a likely goner anyway, so I was not concerned at all about that. My concern was with the dog jumping out and causing mischief while the truck was parked - she is smart enough to stay put while it is in motion!
People let their lives be ruled by this illusion of safety; it simply gets out of hand (current airport/air travel situation being a perfect example).
2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
My thinking on the tether (like a simple hook attached to the collar) was that it would allow the dog to be dragged (if the leash was long enough), or if the force of the crash was enough and the dog was thrown forward, when he hit the end of the tether, the collar would snap its neck. That was my thinking...
Although I still think it's better and safer to just leave the dogs at home. It bugs me when I walk into the store and the dog in the bed of the truck feels the need to bark at every thing passing within 10 feet of the truck bed or the yipper that bounces excitedly non-stop scratching the door sill and clawing at the barely cracked window raising a ruckus. It just seems to me to be inconsiderate to those walking past to have to endure that or be afraid (especially if the dog is a big one in an open bed) that the dog will somehow get loose while they are the ones walking by.
If your dog is well trained and can keep quiet and such, that's your deal. I just can't stand ill trained dogs of any sort. I think that is my biggest issue.
Regarding the tether, that's exactly the case. The thing is, I don't really care if the dog dies in a crash... I can get another dog. I would be far more concerned with the crash itself than the welfare of the animal at that point. The chances of a crash on any given outing are so low that my concern is with the more likely scenarios, such as the animal jumping out of the bed. Even with a belt tether, a dog's survival prospects in a serious crash are pretty grim. Granted, it may mean the difference between serious injury or death for the animal, but my opinion is that one is the same as the other with the prior merely meaning I have to finish the job. The main reason for a tether of any kind is to protect the human occupants of the vehicle.
I agree with you about leaving them at home. I take mine with me when we are headed somewhere that involves the dog; otherwise, she stays at home. Mine is a complete neurotic when it comes to travel - she's definitely one of those animals that barks incessantly from the back of the truck. In an enclosed vehicle, she just whines (while we are driving) and is perfectly well-behaved when we walk away, but watch out if she is left alone in the truck: She acts like a complete fool. The worst type of truck bed dogs in a parking lot, though, are the ones that rush or ambush you (in a vicious manner) as you access your vehicle, which is right next to theirs.
2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
I think that untethered-dog-in-pickup-bed is illegal in most states if not all.
CATS inside the passenger compartment in many states are required to be transported in closed-cages, while dogs are not required to be caged in any state, afaik. I don't recall hearing about any statute about cats being transported in a pickup-bed, however.
I don't recall hearing about any statute about cats being transported in a pickup-bed, however.
Hahahahah; come to think of it, I do not think I have ever seen that happen. Of course, I have not turned over every stone in said pickups' beds, under which the cat would surely be hidden if it were subjected to such treatment! :P
I can see the reasoning behind the caging requirement. Cats are very hit-and-miss when it comes to vehicle travel - about half of them ride very comfortably or find a cubby in which to curl up (such as under a seat) and the other half completely spaz out. It is the second group that causes the problems!
I used to have a cat that traveled in my parents' motorhome when I was in high school. She was, at first, uneasy about it and would hide under the recliner. After about twelve hours on the road, though, she relaxed and ended up riding on the dash stretched out in front of the massive glass soaking up the sun while being bathed in cool air from the vents. I tell ya, that cat had it rough.
2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
Had a great start to my morning. Headed to work, about 0545, deserted 4 lane 40mph suburban arterial that ends in a split at an on-ramp. Near the end, a blue 98-02 Corolla pulls out, doesn't look, I have to hit my brakes or slam into them. No excuse, line of sight is at least a quarter mile, I'm the only oncoming car. Then moves onto the ramp at 29mph. Accelerates to about 33mph when hitting the highway, with traffic zooming by at ~65 - maybe doing so because I dared to flash him to wake him up. The car was occupied by an older couple, not surprising but not what I expected given this area. I was debating whether or not to call them in as a suspected drunk...or use a pit maneuver or RPG on them :shades:
"Sharing the road" shouldn't mean sharing it with such ignorance and irresponsibility. My car slamming into that thing at 40 would probably have at least one of them enjoying a long hospital stay.
Yesterday I saw a Yukon pull out right in front of a previous-generation 3-series convertible, going about 30mph. I was sure I was going to see a decent little crash, but the BMW swerved. People where I live love pulling that crap.
I5 today had more LLCs than I have ever seen. Best one was an old man in a 80s S10 pickup, which was wearing a canopy of course. He was actually speeding, weaving in and out of traffic, cutting people off...it was insane. Then it started raining, and he cut his speed way down and everyone ended up passing him. What the hell?
Second place winner goes to some oaf in a mid 90s Sentra who was pacing the vehicle beside him at 58mph, then when flashed (by the car in front of me), he got into the carpool lane (he was alone in the car) slowed down even more, and everyone in that lane had to pass him on the right. Wow.
Second place winner goes to some oaf in a mid 90s Sentra who was pacing the vehicle beside him at 58mph, then when flashed (by the car in front of me), he got into the carpool lane (he was alone in the car) slowed down even more, and everyone in that lane had to pass him on the right. Wow.
There really should be a "driver confidence check" or something every couple of years. People doing the above are obviously too timid behind the wheel and really need some sort of training to drive a car properly. I see too many slow drivers, those who can't negotiate a tight turn into a parking lot, can't merge onto a highway without stopping, can't change lanes even when you give them tons of room and wave them over being nice, It just frustrates the hell out of me.
My 82 year old Grand Marquis driving grandfather still has enough ability to drive in the craziness of NJ. However, I see people half his age two inches from the wheel doing 45 in a 65 zone. Isn't this dangerous?
Just last night, an oblivious driver in the Buick version of the Aztec (Rendevous??) was turning into a shopping center with noone else around. Driver must have thought they were going to go over the curb and stops dead with their rear end still in the middle of the road in rush hour. Almost caused a chain reaction accident with about 5 of us slamming on the brakes.
2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic / 2022 Ram 1500 Bighorn, Built to Serve
Sentra guy was probably no older than his 40s, too. Timid driving is a chronic disease where I live, it really shows when people try to merge onto freeways - so many just can't do it. I see people "merging" at 25 under the flow of traffic, people braking while merging...if they can't handle it, they need to be restricted to surface streets. We need a driver confidence check at the initial time of licensing...I'd bet the issues exist there too. Some kind of license differentiation would be cool too...but probably too complex for that sector.
Both of my grandfathers drove on the highway past 80, and they got a lot slower with age...but they also both stuck to the right lane. I never had a real problem riding with them.
I think sitting too close to the wheel must have some kind of airbag related danger, not to mention the speed disparity. That Rendezvous driver reminds me of another local trait...slow turners. They will take turns at 5mph that a loaded 1952 double decker bus could take at 40.
You are so right xwest. Leaving a dog in the back of a pick up with a leash or not is not to safe for the poor dog.
My wife and I were driving up a city street, when the truck in front, with a leashed dog in the back sped up and the dog fell off and was dragged by the "lost in space" driver for about 200 feet until he heard the honking of various other drivers. My wfie cried and I was angry but the poor boxer dog was dead.
Watching a dog die due to human carelessness still gets me angry, and when I see it being done, I mention it to the owner.
Also where we live it gets from about May thru Aug. hot in the range of 90-101. When I see a dog in a car with the windows up I leave a note, or call the cops.
Oh, I used a dog as the victim, but I think it should apply to ANY animal and children too.
Good luck to all and and stay safe and please be kind to animals.
...but I have to vent eventually. Here are some of my fairly recent experiences (I live in the suburbs of Atlanta for context)- -Getting stuck behind a rolling roadblock on the highway I drive pretty fast. Normally, and I'm sure other GA posters can attest to this, traffic moves pretty quickly outside of rush hour. But not today. All four lanes were occupied by cars going 65 MPH, side by side, with bountiful space ahead of them for at least ONE to pass the others. There seems to be a kind of mentality where drivers are comforted by the presence of other drivers, because this roadblock did NOT break up until one of the cars took an exit. I'm hoping the long-awaited law banning left lane camping will be enforced in my area! -Driving in snow/ice I know, Atlanta isn't exactly known for its snowy winters. But it does snow here, and sometimes it even sticks to the roads. In my area there are a lot of northern transplants-you'd think that they would have some idea of how to handle it. So "snowstorm" number 1 hits in January. A whopping 1 inch of snow falls in my area, and due to extremely cold temperatures (didn't get above 20 the next day if I remember right) the roads went to hell. The main roads were treated, but in my hilly neighborhood they were left untouched. Over the course of the day I saw no less than 10 cars slide down my hill, some backwards. The day after, when the snow had melted somewhat, people were driving at barely more than walking pace down the main road, which had been treated the day before. Wash, rinse and repeat for another "snowstorm" in February, which at least gave us enough to make a decent snowman (4-5" I think).
-Road rage As I mentioned above, I drive fast when the conditions allow. One day I was driving at about 90 MPH on a highway with little traffic and straight as an arrow. My car is a well-maintained 2000 Mercedes-Benz E320 by the way, designed to drive comfortably well above any speed limit here in the U.S. I pull off at my exit, get into the left turn lane and someone pulls up next to me (there are two left turn lanes). He motions quickly to roll down my window, and proceeds to chew me out about the dangers of speeding (I guess I passed him earlier). I don't want to stereotype, but he drove an older Cadillac DeVille...
The king of my few road-rage experiences actually scared me a bit. I was at a red light near my home and was changing the song on my iPod. A middle-aged man in a Lexus SUV next to me starts yelling at me. "Put up your GD phone!" he said. I calmly replied that selecting a new song on your MP3 player, while stopped at a red light, is completely legal and harmless. He continued to yell, talking about how he will call the cops on me (disregarding my above statement obviously), so I rolled up my window in the middle of one of his tirades and turned up my music.
Comments
Truck driver said a bird had hit his truck and he wanted to check for damage.
http://www.whiotv.com/news/22902909/detail.html
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Saw a couple of winners lately. First was a woman who I will just say was very small, in a Sentra. She drove in an insanely timid manner...very slow, would try to keep like a 20 car length distance from the car in front of her, and a left turn on a moderately busy street was painful as she wouldn't go until there was no oncoming traffic for several blocks. Then she crawled down a side street, going slower because there were cones up for a sidewalk repair - no workmen present, and on the other side of the street. Her competency was topped off at a stop sign, which she turned left at - blowing through the sign itself like it wasn't there. I sure am glad the lowest common denominator is taking over.
I also saw a STS pull out from a side street and merge onto a highway. I thought it might be slow...I was wrong. This guy must have been going 100mph by the time he hit the highway, seriously. Traffic was light but he was shooting past everyone. Possibly the fastest I have ever seen a Caddy move,.
A idiot driver on the freeway at Berkeley, stopped his station wagon in the fast lane at 9 pm to pick up the baby carriage that had fallen off his car and was laying in the fast lane behind his car.
Summary: This caused a five car accident, with two other cars catching fire, two kids with broken necks, one deceased driver still in his flaming corvette, and one female with her clothes burned off strapped into a stretcher until the ambulance could arrive.
God bless the citizens of Berkeley who jumped over the freeway fences/got out of their cars and helped by giving first aid to the victims of one dumb stupid driver who had a valid Ca license but no common sense. (Typing this makes me angry but I know its over.)
Oh, the baby carriage was ran over, and his car was untouched which was a good thing, because his wife and three kids were still in it.
I love this board and sometimes I do flash back to things one never forgets. And I know that there are many here that do too. And its ok.
Good luck to all and stay safe.
jensad
She wasn't to happy with my response.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Beautiful warm day here, that as usual fried the brains of the peon drivers I get to contend with. My favorite was a stone-age Corolla and an old Integra on a 40mph 4 lane suburban road...running side by side at 5 under with about 10 cars piled up behind them. Why isn't it legal to pit maneuver these types off the road? Second place goes to an aging boomer in a previous generation Camry with a spoiler (bad sign right there) playing with his phone going maybe 10 under, left lane, of course. And the finale was a white box van that turned right on red - the only problem was that I had the green arrow, facing him. Traffic lights...small meaningless details.
The other 'sadly' is that drivers rarely receive citations for driving too slowly, blocking lanes, having one car in either lane travelling 1.5 mph faster or slower than the one in the other, etc. I invite anyone to use I-55 on a weekend, going 'South' (really it's west/southwest): the entire road is as such: four lanes: light traffic, furthest left lane has some dingbat on her cell doing 65; next over, a guy yelling at his kids in his T/C, going 66.4; next over, someone not paying attention, travelling perhaps 64 or so; furthest right lane, everyone else trying to pass the three left lanes, going 80 but usually stopped in their tracks by some duffer going 53, or slowing down a mile before their exit. Good times. :sick:
I do it all the time, not nearly as bad as you portray.
Now on a weekday afternoon you are better off walking.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
A well-trained dog will just sit attentively or take a snooze in the car during the owners' absence. There are a lot of folks who simply travel with their dogs, take them everywhere, whether it be short hops or longer ones with a stop or two on the way to or on the way home. Personally, I don't like to leave my dogs alone in a car for more than a few minutes, regardless of ambient temperatures. Too much can happen. Better left at home or dropped off there, even if it may be inconvenient. A cracked open window for air circulation solves one problem for a time but creates a whole subset of possible new ones.
(2) Re the leather (or cloth) seats getting trashed by dogs. Most folks would never read a car forum like this because to them an automobile is nothing more than a tool, four wheels and transportation. Most everything discussed here holds little or no interest for them. Sure, they like a good looking car; but it fades quickly once they have had the car for a couple of months. Four car washes a year if that. The car is filled with garbage, dried liquid spillage, and debris.... like they are living out of their car and trunk. They never open the owners manual and don't use half of the options because they don't know how or don't know they even have them. Car wax.....why bother? Leaves and tree debris in every exterior nook, cranny, and drain channel, most of which can be carbon dated for the year the stuff fell off the tree. Sap, bugs, and bird droppings. Scraped tires and bent/gauged rims. And on. They are the masses that leave all of the carnage on YOUR car in parking lots, all four sides, then scream "What's the big deal?" when caught in the act.
Mechanical maintenance? Fess up. How many of us folks have a family member or friend that asks you why that annoying check engine light won't go off, and when you check the dipstick you can't get a reading. You add four quarts and tell them to get the motor oil changed. Six months later you get the exact same question from them, only this time they also ask about that strange rythmic ticking coming from the engine compartment or you find a piece of tape covering the check engine light.
My father was approaching retirement when he got his first Cadillac. A beautiful 500 c.i. fuel injected boat. Now he was a stickler for maintenance. He took the car into his dealer for some minor repair and the service writer almost had a heart attack when he saw the rear leather seats. "What happened to your rear seat?" "The dog." "Why would you let the dogs do that?" "Well, if the seats are not good enough for the dog they are not good enough for me." End of that discussion.
What you describe there sounds like pretty much every highway in the Seattle area, with the right de facto fast lane, and obliviousness everywhere. I swear people here drive worse when the weather is nice, too.
It is scary what people haul around loose in their cars. Those loose 40 pound sandbags in your pickup bed can fly right through the back of the cab. I'd like to see the stats on cell phone injuries to people's heads when they bounce off the windshield.
Sadly, Ballard is rapidly changing from quaint questionably-driving Scandinavian neighborhood to hipster [non-permissible content removed] condo development.
I'd probably fall into the Chena with that load.
I also don't 'baby' my pets to the point that they become psychotic if they're not with me, side-by-side, 24 hours a day, which is what I suspect has happened with the cutesy twin dogs locked-up in the Caddy. Why else would one drag them along to the supermarket and lock them up in the car? They've become accessories to the owner, really. Vanity is even more wonderful a trait when it involves animals, isn't it? And, of course, there's nowhere in an STS to 'secure' two dogs; that was part of my point: if you're going to have your dogs with you all the time, would you NOT at least have an SUV, wagon or something with a secure place (where one can install a fence/cage-type barrier) and a flat floor on which they can at least sit? Though I'm on here constantly, I actually care less about cars than about people mistreating their pets, honestly.
But yeah, I didn't see the far side of 30 mph.
With baby in car, Va. man fired 13 shots at truck, police say
BY MARY PAT FLAHERTY AND PAUL DUGGAN, Washington Post
With his 2-year-old daughter in a car seat inside, Gabriel Poventud of Woodbridge threw open the door of his silver Jaguar on the shoulder of southbound interstate 95 in Prince William County and fired 13 shots at a dump truck, terrifying Tuesday evening commuters, Virginia State Police said.
Police said Wednesday that Poventud, 25, and the operator of the white Ford truck, James Bringham, 44, also of Woodbridge, drove recklessly and in a rage down a four-mile stretch of highway. The incident happened after the truck merged onto the interstate from Route 123 just south of the Fairfax County line shortly after 4 p.m. and "encountered" the Jaguar, police said.
The truck struck the Jaguar twice before both vehicles wound up on the left shoulder pinned against a Jersey wall, where Poventud began shooting, state police allege. The truck driver headed back into traffic, trailed by the Jaguar, police said, until one of several state troopers at the scene brought the chase to a halt on the right shoulder of I-95 near a weigh station.
Frightened drivers flooded emergency lines with calls, police said...
I finally caught up to the driver (a middle-aged she) at a red light and passed her on the right, giving her my customary dirty look (although probably not too obvious to her with my shades on). I cannot understand why people will do this for miles on end, totally oblivious to what's going on behind them.
I kept checking in my rearview mirror, and she never turned left at any of the intersections, so she clearly wasn't preparing for a left turn at any point.
For that whole trip to PA and back last spring, our minivan was probably borderline GVWR with the load of cargo we had in there.
I may not be the king, but I am at least a duke of overloading! I rarely think to stop and snap a photo, though. I think my all-time best was hauling all the lumber for the first floor of my house in one load (about 12 miles from the lumber yard). The invoice included the weight of each item subtotal, and the total was right at 12,000#. I have removed some of the lumber from the trailer at the point I took this photo, but there are 52 sheets of 3/4" OSB in the bed of the truck alone.
I may have hit 30 a time or two, but I had to take it real easy because I do not have an electric brake controller on that truck.
For me the dog travels in the 12 year old car with 170K miles on it that has seen much better days. I really don't care if the dog damages the seat, if she did it would reduce the value of the car by what? 25 cents?
Now the dog will never be in the Convertible.
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
2011 Hyundai Sonata, 2014 BMW 428i convertible, 2015 Honda CTX700D
Could have been worse though - my wife hitched a ride north with this friend and her Bug back in the day. Cali to Anchorage, complete with cats:
But when it comes to safety.....theirs, their dogs', the rest of the people on the road, and pedestrians.....these folks don't do the minimum, at least secure the dog in the car so that no matter what, they can pay attention to driving their 3,000-6,000 pound (automotive) weapon of choice. I value my life and that of my family, but apparently they don't.
Actually, you can easily and safely secure two dogs in an STS or any car with a rear seat using a canine car harness on each dog, tethered to the rear seat seat belts. For 9 years I had to transport my two dogs 100 miles almost weekly in my car, one weighing 135 lbs. and the second 75 lbs. Add rear seat covers and there you have it. Everything and everyone protected, including the seats....unmarked by the dogs.
The next worst thing I see is dogs tethered by his leash, like you would in the back yard, in a truck bed. Imagine the dog bouncing and running all over the bed, somehow falls out and because he is tethered by his leash is now dragged along with the vehicle bouncing along the pavement. Now it would be best not to have the dog in a truck bed at all. But if you do, to me it's pick your form of carnage. At least untethered the dog has a better chance of survival, although in a collusion at freeway speeds, tethered or untethered, a dog in a truck bed is bound to come out on the worse end of the deal.
My idea would be that unless you have some way to secure your dog like you would your own child don't take it out... A city surface street where speeds don't get up to above say 25 MPH and you're probably okay. The risk of injury is lower unless of course you have it sitting in your lap...
from: http://jalopnik.com/5502266/dump-truck-driver-in-massive-motorcycle-crash-fishin- g-for-papers-before-accident
A dump truck driver admitted he was "fishing for papers" when his rig crashed through nine motorcycles this afternoon in Phoenix, killing several riders.
The accident took place near 27th and Carefree Highway in Phoenix. Multiple sources have confirmed earlier reports of a major accident involving multiple bikes in the area. According to the employees of a Walgreens located near the site of the accident, the truck driver plowed through at least nine motorcycle riders who were parked at the intersection waiting for the light. The truck then caught on fire with motorcycles trapped underneath it.
According to one Walgreens employee, the truck driver admitted to bystanders that he was "fishing for papers" when the accident occured. Lifeflight was sent to the scene and the casualty count is unclear, but at least three people and possibly five are dead with many others injured. Another car was said to be involved. [ABC 15]
I believe it is illegal to not have a dog tethered in the bed of a pickup in Washington state.
I think that is the case in Oregon as well. One would have to be some kind of fool to make the tether long enough to allow the dog to jump out of the truck... not that we don't have plenty of those. :sick:
And another speed demon gets nabbed, this time a local pseudo-celeb...that area is a notorious speed trap, especially at the end of the month...idiocy.
I don't think I agree with that description after watching him on American Idol!!!
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
I used to tether my dog in the bed of my truck, but did so with one that was mounted at the dead center of the bed (on the floor) and just long enough for the dogs nose to reach over the bed to each side. I figured if I got in a crash, the dog was a likely goner anyway, so I was not concerned at all about that. My concern was with the dog jumping out and causing mischief while the truck was parked - she is smart enough to stay put while it is in motion!
People let their lives be ruled by this illusion of safety; it simply gets out of hand (current airport/air travel situation being a perfect example).
Although I still think it's better and safer to just leave the dogs at home. It bugs me when I walk into the store and the dog in the bed of the truck feels the need to bark at every thing passing within 10 feet of the truck bed or the yipper that bounces excitedly non-stop scratching the door sill and clawing at the barely cracked window raising a ruckus. It just seems to me to be inconsiderate to those walking past to have to endure that or be afraid (especially if the dog is a big one in an open bed) that the dog will somehow get loose while they are the ones walking by.
If your dog is well trained and can keep quiet and such, that's your deal. I just can't stand ill trained dogs of any sort. I think that is my biggest issue.
I agree with you about leaving them at home. I take mine with me when we are headed somewhere that involves the dog; otherwise, she stays at home. Mine is a complete neurotic when it comes to travel - she's definitely one of those animals that barks incessantly from the back of the truck. In an enclosed vehicle, she just whines (while we are driving) and is perfectly well-behaved when we walk away, but watch out if she is left alone in the truck: She acts like a complete fool. The worst type of truck bed dogs in a parking lot, though, are the ones that rush or ambush you (in a vicious manner) as you access your vehicle, which is right next to theirs.
CATS inside the passenger compartment in many states are required to be transported in closed-cages, while dogs are not required to be caged in any state, afaik.
I don't recall hearing about any statute about cats being transported in a pickup-bed, however.
Hahahahah; come to think of it, I do not think I have ever seen that happen. Of course, I have not turned over every stone in said pickups' beds, under which the cat would surely be hidden if it were subjected to such treatment! :P
I can see the reasoning behind the caging requirement. Cats are very hit-and-miss when it comes to vehicle travel - about half of them ride very comfortably or find a cubby in which to curl up (such as under a seat) and the other half completely spaz out. It is the second group that causes the problems!
I used to have a cat that traveled in my parents' motorhome when I was in high school. She was, at first, uneasy about it and would hide under the recliner. After about twelve hours on the road, though, she relaxed and ended up riding on the dash stretched out in front of the massive glass soaking up the sun while being bathed in cool air from the vents. I tell ya, that cat had it rough.
"Sharing the road" shouldn't mean sharing it with such ignorance and irresponsibility. My car slamming into that thing at 40 would probably have at least one of them enjoying a long hospital stay.
Yesterday I saw a Yukon pull out right in front of a previous-generation 3-series convertible, going about 30mph. I was sure I was going to see a decent little crash, but the BMW swerved. People where I live love pulling that crap.
I5 today had more LLCs than I have ever seen. Best one was an old man in a 80s S10 pickup, which was wearing a canopy of course. He was actually speeding, weaving in and out of traffic, cutting people off...it was insane. Then it started raining, and he cut his speed way down and everyone ended up passing him. What the hell?
Second place winner goes to some oaf in a mid 90s Sentra who was pacing the vehicle beside him at 58mph, then when flashed (by the car in front of me), he got into the carpool lane (he was alone in the car) slowed down even more, and everyone in that lane had to pass him on the right. Wow.
There really should be a "driver confidence check" or something every couple of years. People doing the above are obviously too timid behind the wheel and really need some sort of training to drive a car properly. I see too many slow drivers, those who can't negotiate a tight turn into a parking lot, can't merge onto a highway without stopping, can't change lanes even when you give them tons of room and wave them over being nice, It just frustrates the hell out of me.
My 82 year old Grand Marquis driving grandfather still has enough ability to drive in the craziness of NJ. However, I see people half his age two inches from the wheel doing 45 in a 65 zone. Isn't this dangerous?
Just last night, an oblivious driver in the Buick version of the Aztec (Rendevous??) was turning into a shopping center with noone else around. Driver must have thought they were going to go over the curb and stops dead with their rear end still in the middle of the road in rush hour. Almost caused a chain reaction accident with about 5 of us slamming on the brakes.
2023 Mercedes EQE 350 4Matic / 2022 Ram 1500 Bighorn, Built to Serve
Both of my grandfathers drove on the highway past 80, and they got a lot slower with age...but they also both stuck to the right lane. I never had a real problem riding with them.
I think sitting too close to the wheel must have some kind of airbag related danger, not to mention the speed disparity. That Rendezvous driver reminds me of another local trait...slow turners. They will take turns at 5mph that a loaded 1952 double decker bus could take at 40.
My wife and I were driving up a city street, when the truck in front, with a leashed dog in the back sped up and the dog fell off and was dragged by the "lost in space" driver for about 200 feet until he heard the honking of various other drivers. My wfie cried and I was angry but the poor boxer dog was dead.
Watching a dog die due to human carelessness still gets me angry, and when I see it being done, I mention it to the owner.
Also where we live it gets from about May thru Aug. hot in the range of 90-101. When I see a dog in a car with the windows up I leave a note, or call the cops.
Oh, I used a dog as the victim, but I think it should apply to ANY animal and children too.
Good luck to all and and stay safe and please be kind to animals.
jensad
-Getting stuck behind a rolling roadblock on the highway
I drive pretty fast. Normally, and I'm sure other GA posters can attest to this, traffic moves pretty quickly outside of rush hour. But not today. All four lanes were occupied by cars going 65 MPH, side by side, with bountiful space ahead of them for at least ONE to pass the others. There seems to be a kind of mentality where drivers are comforted by the presence of other drivers, because this roadblock did NOT break up until one of the cars took an exit. I'm hoping the long-awaited law banning left lane camping will be enforced in my area!
-Driving in snow/ice
I know, Atlanta isn't exactly known for its snowy winters. But it does snow here, and sometimes it even sticks to the roads. In my area there are a lot of northern transplants-you'd think that they would have some idea of how to handle it. So "snowstorm" number 1 hits in January. A whopping 1 inch of snow falls in my area, and due to extremely cold temperatures (didn't get above 20 the next day if I remember right) the roads went to hell. The main roads were treated, but in my hilly neighborhood they were left untouched. Over the course of the day I saw no less than 10 cars slide down my hill, some backwards. The day after, when the snow had melted somewhat, people were driving at barely more than walking pace down the main road, which had been treated the day before. Wash, rinse and repeat for another "snowstorm" in February, which at least gave us enough to make a decent snowman (4-5" I think).
-Road rage
As I mentioned above, I drive fast when the conditions allow. One day I was driving at about 90 MPH on a highway with little traffic and straight as an arrow. My car is a well-maintained 2000 Mercedes-Benz E320 by the way, designed to drive comfortably well above any speed limit here in the U.S. I pull off at my exit, get into the left turn lane and someone pulls up next to me (there are two left turn lanes). He motions quickly to roll down my window, and proceeds to chew me out about the dangers of speeding (I guess I passed him earlier). I don't want to stereotype, but he drove an older Cadillac DeVille...
The king of my few road-rage experiences actually scared me a bit. I was at a red light near my home and was changing the song on my iPod. A middle-aged man in a Lexus SUV next to me starts yelling at me. "Put up your GD phone!" he said. I calmly replied that selecting a new song on your MP3 player, while stopped at a red light, is completely legal and harmless. He continued to yell, talking about how he will call the cops on me (disregarding my above statement obviously), so I rolled up my window in the middle of one of his tirades and turned up my music.