Close call....
 

On my way to work this a.m., I got a reminder about the agility of the P-car. As I approached an intersection on a country road, a bonehead in a white Cavalier pulled up to the stop sign - and didn't stop. I suspected this guy was going to pull in front of me, and I sounded my horn twice, but he kept on coming. I was going about 50 mph, and braked hard while turning the wheel to the left. My car did exactly what it was supposed to do. It grabbed and kind of went into a slide on the black top. I down-shifted into second and tromped the gas, which brought my rear end around and I squirted right around the front of the Chevy. I missed him by inches. Jeez.

Had I been driving my Honda Civic or my wife's 4-wheel drive Suzuki, there's no way I could have avoided a collision. Thanks to the P-car gods, or engineers, I was able to continue on to the office - instead of to the hospital.

I don't post much, but the adrenaline is still flowing and I wanted to share this story with folks who will appreciate the handling that allowed me to escape what looked like a sure collision. Thanks for letting me vent.

johnjr
78 SC Targa

Be careful out there John... Ohio is full of the "Boneheaded" drivers.. I encounter them every single day!
see ya
Eric

John,

I'm happy you are OK. And we have our share of bonehead drivers in Texas also. (I think they migrated here from Ohio ;-) ) Keep driving safely! Oh, and keep driving the Porsche!

Yep, Texas has it's share, I think it's because there is so much space, so they drive like they are in a boat, just wandering where ever they please with no thought to signs, rules, laws, other cars....

Glad you made it through and didn't back into the guy.

It's at times like that that I wish I was driving a fully loaded semi.
I'll bet the other driver would have stopped for his stop sign with 50 tons of truck bearing down on him!
I have come to believe that people judge the size and weight of other vehicles when doing stupid things.
Perhaps that is why SUV's are popular.
Bob

This is just the sort of thing that keeps me off motorcycles...
-Chris

A female driver was waiting to enter into traffic from a McDonald's drive thru once as I was passing her. In her Bling Bling Lincoln Navigator! She was on the phone and doing what ever...and inched out into the roadway right as my passenger door was even with her bumper! I speed up to get avway, but I swear she was hairs away from the door handle! I looked back and she appeared as though she didn't se my little car. Wrench! If I didn't have a co-worker with me, I would have stopped the car and gotten out and stolen her fries!

My girlfriend and I have a sign now as a result of idiots drivers...we flash them the pinky finger.."i"

On my motorcycle, I blip the throttle, and it usually gets their attention Chris. If that doesn't work..and they proove themselves to be idiots..., I'll let them do what they will, but back off, but my foot likes to stick out as I blast by..wink wink...

Yeah..not smart or safe, but if my boot mark on their door doesn't make them smarter..they can choke on my exhuast... "sorry officeer, I thought she was coming into my lane, and it spooked me to stick my foot out in defense"..

OK..back to nice guy mode.. sorry.

Try Naples Florida. There are more over 80 drivers here than 99% of places. I saw a lady driving with an oxygen mask on. She must have been 90-100 yrs old. She crossed 3 lanes of traffic to get into a no U-turn median that was under construction. Then she sat there with half of her Buick LeSabre out in the fast lane of the road.
Not that I don't want to be still be drivng when I get older. But there is a limit. Good luck on the roads.

The exact same thing happened to me on sunday. Idiot kid pulled out in front of me. IT was a 45 mph 3-lane road, and the kid pulls out perpendicular to the highway and just stops in the middle of my lane, blocking mine and the turning lane. I did exactly what you did. Only difference is, he got me. Put dents and scrapes in my front fender, bumper, accordion, and door, plus a little on the rear fender. I'm trying to sort out the details with insurance. It's incidents like this that make me lose faith in people in general.

In the states it's too easy to get a license, the rules are too lax, and the people (undereducated) take their license for granted.

I see too many people doing things that are stupid and dangerous (besides speeding); you know backing up on ramps, driving the wrong way down on ramps, etc....

They should be more expensive, and harder to get with more training and more difficult testing. And more stringent car inspections, so there is less crap on the road.

What Steve said.

I learned how to listen and feel traffic riding a bicycle (training for races actually). Racing on a velodrome track also gives you a "sixth sense" about where everything is around you.

Graduating to motorcycles, I learned that the other person will always do the wrong thing.

With cars, it is so true that anyone can get a license. Buried in details of their day most drivers pay no attention whatsoever to an environment they see as "external" to their world.

John

John, glad to hear that you didn't get injured. I agree with you all, here in the Washington D.C. metro area we have our share of numbskull drivers, and I think it is due to what Steve said, its way too easy to get a license. Here we have so many people that come from other coutries that don't understand the unwritten or written driving rules of the U.S. These people (and most VA drivers) use the far left lane as the slow lane, and make it extremely dangerous to pass (often have to use the right lane to pass). If someone has no intention of going the speed limit, they should not even be in the left lane. On top of that, the DC area now ranks second in the nation (LA is obviously first) to having the worst traffic. There are many idiots that don't know how to drive in traffic and I have seen people eating, putting makeup on, reading the newspaper, or talking on the cell phone, all of which is unacceptable for stop and go traffic. I agree with you John, drivers do need that "sixth sense". When I drive I can anticipate other drivers moves before they make them, got to see things from all angles, 360 degree vision. Stay safe everyone, and watch the road rage.

For a cheap "sixth sense" education..and fun too..take the Motorcycle Safety Foundation Rider's Course...it will make you a better driver..and you 'll know how to ride a motorcycle in case you have to escape from a German prison camp ala Steve McQueen!


It's essentially FREE!