I ought to start a thread where I list the dumb things I see drivers do on my daily commute. I think other's experiences would keep it active.
Today's nomination is special. I got on the freeway behind this wide-load mobile home. It was about a lane & a half wide. It had the proper escort vehicle (well, I think it did) and it was staying in the right lane (actually almost in the breakdown lane so cars could pass it). We came to the TN river bridge and it moved more or less into the middle of the road, blocking most of both lanes. I understand why he did that as I would be concerned about what would happen if the trailer contacted the railing on the bridge.
The dumb move of the day was a couple of cars who decided they could not wait until he passed over the bridge to pass him. There was less than a couple of feet of clearance between the cars and the left railing and the cars and the trailer. Since there was a bit of wind, the trailer wasn't exactly stable in the lane. I was seriously concerned the cars would either contact the trailer and/or the left railing causing all sorts of disasters.
It does take a few minutes to cross that bridge, but why couldn't those cars wait until the trailer crossed the bridge and he went back to taking up the right lane plus the breakdown lane? I think the trailer driver saw the cars as he moved off to the right, almost hitting the right rail of the bridge in an attempt (?) to NOT hit the idiots who were going around him on the bridge. And it wasn't just ONE car. A total of about 3 decided they had to pass on the bridge. Oh yea, and they were not going that much faster than the trailer, so it took the whole bridge for them to get around him.
I am just happy no one hit anything and I am able to tell you about the near-incident this evening.
Yesterday, I was second in a left turn lane and had pulled into the intersection to wait for a car traveling straight from the opposite direction. The driver behind me in my left turn lane actually came out into the intersection and passed me on my left side -- right in front of the car that was coming straight through. Why was I in the middle of the intersection? The green for our side street lasts only six seconds!
The thing that gets me about situations like this is that the cars passing him were probley locals. If they were in a hurry they should have known the bridge was coming and have sped up to pass him before they got to that point. That's what I would have done.
Can I tell a couple of year old dumb driver story on your thread? It's one of my favorites. I was on my way to work on the freeway in the middle lane (3 lanes) when I noticed a car speeding up behind me. Came right up on my bumper to within probably 3 feet. I slowed down a little to give me more space from the car in front of me. Traffic was fairly heavy so I was going about as fast as cars in the fast and slow lane and he had no where to go. I tapped my brake pedal to flash my brake lights at him and all that got me was a one finger salute. Eventually he was able to get around me on the right and as he passed me I got the one finger salute again and then he cut into my lane and I had to take evasive action to avoid a collision. Did I mention I was a Detective driving an unmarked police car? Yeah, he got pulled over and got one really expensive ticket for reckless driving.
2004 National Tropi-Cal T-350, Class A, Triple slide, 330 HP Cat DP. 2006 Dodge Dakota 4x4 or
2002 Harley FLSTF Fat Boy on a Trailer or
2004 Polaris Quad on the Trailer
Doug, I solved all of those problems a couple of years ago. I retired and left the highways to the idiots after 33 years of near misses, icy roads, and all the other joys of rush hour traffic. I see the same thing happening all over this country, driving along minding my own business, towing the trailer or what not, someone makes a bonehead move in a curve, or pulls out in front of you, honking and getting the #1 salute when they finally pass you, and a little later down the road, you pass them again while they are getting fuel or eating somewhere.
Don't sweat the small stuff, it seems there is something about getting behind the steeting wheel of a vehicle that changes a normal person into a raging idiot. Any other time you may enjoy this person sitting around a campfire sharing driving stories..........
Dave & Pat
1999 Wanderer 230FB
2004 F250, XLT Crew Cab, V10, finally, enough power!
"No kids, no pets, trying to make it to retirement"
Type one waits till the last second and then drives 90MPH in the55 zone in order to get to work on time, He's always in a rush rush rush and often gets slowed down by the nice man with the bubble gum machine atop his car.
Type two leaves 15 minutes earlier, drives the speed limit, and enjoies an extra cup of coffee before starting to work which he gets to 30 minutes ahead of type 1.
Nothin adds excitment like something that is none of your business
Kenwood TS-2000 housed in a 2005 Damon Intruder 377
I live in a suburb of Cincinnati. I-275 makes a loop around the tri-state area, passing through Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. A fair amount of traffic. When I enter, I stay in the right lane and set my speed control on the 65 mph speed limit. Generally, the right lane has the least traffic. Sometimes I get somebody behind me that thinks I should be speeding. They pull right up on my bumper instead of just going around. It isn't like the traffic is heavy. When they finally pass me, they often signal me that their team is # 1, but I think they're using the wrong finger.
Sometimes, I pass them a little later, pulled over by an officer in the same place that cars are always pulled over. I bet that even if there was a big sign that said, "Caution, speed trap - one mile", there would still be people pulled over. Since they were so friendly when they passed me, I return the favor by smiling and waving. Do we need a new traffic law for "driving while stupid"?
Retired and visiting as much of this beautiful country as I can.
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