Wtinessed a fun accident today

Scariest one I can recall was following a travel trailer being towed by a pickup heading west in I84 between Poughkeepsie and Pennsylvania. We're all chugging along at the speed limit and suddenly the trailer started getting a little tail happy. We all backed off and watched as the combo wound up spinning out completely, throwing up an amazing amount of tire smoke and dust from the side of the road. I fully expected the end result being the trailer winding up on its side, but it stopped without bumping into anything, and we all got stopped in plenty of time. The truck backed up to straighten out and got going again, probably sweating bullets inside.

fast_eddie_72 wrote: Autocross should be required. My 16 year old has a pretty good idea where the right side of the car is.

I was following a Fiat 500 the other week... driver had the passenger wheels on the shoulder... the 500 is a really narrow car, can you guess where in the lane his body was?

Not funny by any means. In fact, downright drawer-pooping scary.

Didn't see it coming...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=603oGeryn6A

nicksta43 wrote: Coming up 65N in Nashville

There's your problem

I hate driving in/through Nashville.

mad_machine wrote:

fast_eddie_72 wrote: Autocross should be required. My 16 year old has a pretty good idea where the right side of the car is.

I was following a Fiat 500 the other week... driver had the passenger wheels on the shoulder... the 500 is a really narrow car, can you guess where in the lane his body was?

To be fair, if you're used to driving something wide you will develop that habit with tiny cars. I was reminded of this in the Yugo after the 3rd or 4th car damn near took my mirror off passing the truck behind me.

I used to drive commercial.. if you varied from the centre of the lane.. you were either on the shoulder or in the other lane.. going to my small cars.. never had that urge to drive with my body in the centre or even the far right of the lane I was in

I honestly think there should be some test involving placement of the car, very much like driving though a very easy autocross course at low speed. My neighborhood, like many, has about enough room for cars parked on both sides of the street and two normal size cars to pass. But they never do, because no one can come closer than 5 feet to the car on the right hand side. Once in a blue moon I'll come upon another competent driver and we'll pass at normal neighborhood speeds. Granted, probably couldn't do it in a big van or a Hummer, but 2 4Runners (the unofficial car of Colorado) can pass with no trouble if the drivers have some vague awareness of where their vehicle is.

Okay, I'll stop ranting now.

I think its a combo of the old "line center of hood up with shoulder line trick" that works on big wide cars, and the realization that one is driving a tin can at over a mile a minute surrounded by vehicles that are tank like in comparison. Probably more of the latter.

Just saw this gem on the local news' facebook page.

fast_eddie_72 wrote: Autocross should be required. My 16 year old has a pretty good idea where the right side of the car is.

It should be, no one knows how to handle a car that's at or beyond its limits.

I almost rear ended some dumb lady last week. I'm on a 40mph road going home coming up to an intersection, i have a green light, cross traffic has a red light.

I'll be damned if this lady didn't just come flying up on the cross road and make a right in front of me without even slowing down. I had to jump all over my brakes to not blast the E36 M3 out of her.

In retrospect, i wish i had just hit her. And here's why:

We both get stopped at the next light, i'm in the left turn lane, she's next to me going straight. She motions for me to put my window down as she rolls hers down. Figuring she wants to apologize, i do so.

NOPE.

She proceeds to start screaming a bunch of obscenities at me, telling me that i need to learn how to drive, describing what she thinks of my sexuality, etc...

After attempting to get a word in edgewise twice, i roll up my window, and then leaving the car in neutral, stomp on the gas and hold it there.

So there we have it. Loud explosions and fireballs WILL shut up an ignorant bitch.

From Facebook today:

https://www.facebook.com/RADriverTraining/posts/382536285178031

Shaun de Jager | Driver Development said: OMG! I just heard the funniest call come over the scanner all morning! OPP: "Lady in a SUV...a Tourag, is stuck in the bullnose on the highway at...... Tow truck is on scene but she is refusing to allow the tow driver pull her out and is refusing to pay anyone else to do it either because she says it's not her fault that she's stuck in the snow."

In reply to turboswede:

The cop should give her a choice: pay to get pulled out or get a ticket for being illegally parked.

DuctTape&Bondo wrote: Not so fun was the accident on the opposing side of the fwy on the way home yesterday, looked like more than 2 cars with one facing the wrong way. Backed up traffic in that direction for a good 2 or 3 hours. Slowed down my side considerably too from lookie loos.

About a month ago I passed two accidents on the highway, directly across from each other. One side looked like a tailgater ran into somebody and caused a minor accident. On my side 4 cars piled into each other when someone slowed down to look at it.

Last summer on the NYS thruway I saw an accident that was caused by what I could comprehend was someone jacking their brakes on when they saw troopers that had about 3 cars pulled over doing a speed trap in the other lane. One car ran into the back of another, directly across from where the cars stopped, flat open road, 65mph speed limit.

Last accident I was in I was hit by the stereo typical suburban woman in a Tahoe, late for a Dr. appt., talking on her cell phone, trying to pass me on a double yellow as I was turning left. She tried blaming me but her lie still put her at fault. Even the scum bag insurance company paid out 100% because they couldn't pin any blame on me. Usually they'll try to weasel their way out of 10-20%.

25 plus years ago, I came across the end result of what was maybe the most spectacular flatspin in the history of trailering. Picture a 1ton Chev flatdeck truck with a 7701 John Deere combine hooked to it, facing the wrong way on my side of the road, toolboxes and parts sprayed all over the highway, huge wide skidmarks, and a driver in need of new underwear.

For the cityfolk among us, here is a 7701 combine:

For reference, the tires are about 5 feet tall.

The last impressive accident I saw was almost 2 months ago, on a raised section of freeway (near the ca state fairgrounds if anyone knows where that is). A semi truck was stuffed into the left side guard rail pointed the wrong way with the trailer still facing the direction of traffic. One of the fuel tanks had been ripped open and dumped diesel all over the road, and a little past the truck about 20 cars had either hit the guard rails, eachother or both. And there were people out of the cars walking around the side of the road, and this was about 9pm so it was dark. Surprisingly I don't think anyone was seriously injured.

Diesel is some slippery stuff

Watched a woman in a Ford Fusion pull away on a green light and hit a traffic island that had about an 8" curb, bounce up in the air and came down on the wheelchair cutout curb with her oil pan. Broken suspension and motor !

Just drove past a wrecked '03ish Mustang convertible that tangled with a BRZ. Two lane freeway entrance ramp I used to take in our Cooper S at 70 no problem but it's wet out so maybe 60 without losing it. Looked like the BRZ tapped the Mustang mid turn or the Mustang turned into the BRZ and spun the Mustang. The Mustang went across four lanes before hitting the K-rail backwards and ending up facing traffic against the rail. The BRZ had a munched left front and was off the other side on the shoulder.

I wonder if the cop will blame the BRZ, car was that off white color, lowered on bigger wheels but didn't look stanced. It was a nice looking car other than the 6 inches of toe in.

Lady in the Mustang was pretty upset as I'm sure it was a wild ride across the landscaping and traffic into the railing.

Swank Force One wrote: I almost rear ended some dumb lady last week. I'm on a 40mph road going home coming up to an intersection, i have a green light, cross traffic has a red light. I'll be damned if this lady didn't just come flying up on the cross road and make a right in front of me without even slowing down. I had to jump all over my brakes to not blast the E36 M3 out of her. In retrospect, i wish i had just hit her. And here's why: We both get stopped at the next light, I'm in the left turn lane, she's next to me going straight. She motions for me to put my window down as she rolls hers down. Figuring she wants to apologize, i do so. NOPE. She proceeds to start screaming a bunch of obscenities at me, telling me that i need to learn how to drive, describing what she thinks of my sexuality, etc... After attempting to get a word in edgewise twice, i roll up my window, and then leaving the car in neutral, stomp on the gas and hold it there. So there we have it. Loud explosions and fireballs WILL shut up an ignorant bitch.

I simply pull out my cell phone can call the police and say that I would like to report a road rage incident in progress. Done this 2x and both times it has resulted in an arrest (for things found in there cars and parole violations.

The police get especially interested when they can here the other party yelling at you through the phone. The police take this very seriously now. Ohya dare I say remain calm and get the place number and description of both the driver and the car.

I had a weird one. One that makes you say "did I really see that?"

I was coming out of the tole booths on I90 heading east towards Boston by I95. I was in my Porsche and scooted to the left lane and was running about 1 foot of the concrete divider. The divider is a permanent cast in place concrete jersey barrier type divider that separates east and west bound traffic. I am rowing through the gears briskly passing the idiots that are trying to figure out how to merge in the lanes at the right. The next thing I know I am driving under a large sedan (a Lincoln Town car?) that had some how got on top of the divider and was, as far as I can figure, rotating while sliding along on top of it. I looked in my rear view mirror and just caught it landing back in its lane but facing the wrong direction. The funny part is all I could think of was that I was glad I had lowered my car about 1 1/2" with the Iboc's. A dam good thing I was not driving the truck that day.

This morning I got called to an accident that had a couple of buses blocked. I get there and a taxi had run a light and broadsided a woman who had jumped the light going the other way. I was able to convince them that moving their cars out of the way was not tampering with evidence and got them off to the curb out of the way. Traffic starts to flow again and the taxi driver throws his door open into the back wheels of a passing dump truck which tore it off and left it half a block away and kept on going. I hadn't laughed that hard all week.

Rufledt wrote:

mad_machine wrote: It just amazes me that people lack the awareness of their car, where it is on the road, and the fact that a barrier on the shoulder is NOT going to jump out and wreck your car if you just stay in your own damn lane.

QFT

+1

Every single day I see someone wandering between a couple of lanes on the interstate at 75mph. No small surprise that the area is known for traffic grinding crashes.

I was going to look at a car one night and spent 2.5hrs on I-40 with the car turned completely off, with 5 lanes eastbound, all cars completly off and windows down for MILES, in pitch black dark. It was like a scene from the Walking Dead.

Edit: someone had performed an impromptu lane change and as a result a Durango had a spectacular nascar-style roll for at least an eighth of a mile. Firemen were using Jaws of life on two cars at the 2.5 hr mark, which can't be a good sign.

fast_eddie_72 wrote: Autocross should be required. My 16 year old has a pretty good idea where the right side of the car is.

Tell my dad, he hasn't even let me be a corner worker (yet)! Hearing the stories that teen drivers tell at my school, its a wonder that there aren't more fatalities. I could probably start an entire book on stupid things (read "wrecks", texting, drinking and driving, evading the police, doing well over triple digits, racing each other on the road) that drivers at my school do. The dad of someone whom I consider to be very irresponsible just bought him a brand new WRX yesterday and he doesn't even get his drivers lisence until the end of the month... Let's see how long that lasts...The drivers who do drive somewhat reasonably clearly still don't know how to drive properly. The one hand at 12 o'clock, mirrors adjusted to inspect the paint for scratches, gangsta' style seating position, texting; its just ridiculous. Driver's education consists of the gym teacher reading (and misinterpreting) the state driver manual (unless he falls asleep or forgets) and students then cheating on the test that they give. This is something that teens are going to do for the rest of their lives, the average American drives around an hour each day, and they don't have a better eduction system than this? Something must be done and unfortunately, many industry "experts" think that raising the driving age is the way to go, what a shame.

I think we need to keep this kid around.^^