Horrible crash in Lakewood CO, I70 closed both directions. 12 vehicles 4 semi huge fire

Yep, been down that grade plenty of times. Looks flat, but the earth is tilted.

I wonder whether this was a situation created by the idiocy of "never shift on a downgrade"? Yes, there are uphill pulls before you hit those signs. What's the right thing to do?...

...DOWNSHIFT!!!

"(gasp!)"

Yep, learn to upshift or downshift going uphill or downhill.

Tell all those DOT and safety folks to go #### themselves. Learn how to control your truck.

 

Ive had a incident where I had run out my brakes on I-68 western maryland into West Virginia by the third gap (Pass) it was clear that my brakes were gone. Pouring blue smoke everywhere.

What I did that day was my fault running the hills as if they did not exist then physics taught me that you only have so much brakes. So much for hubris. Too hot to stop too. They would flame then burn the truck down. What I ended up doing was allowing her to drift anywhere between 25 and 35 at most in a low enough gear so that the next two or three downgrades into WVa itself did not matter. It took about 3 hours drifting before they quit smoking (Announcing to the world what a dum dum I was...) and Hurricane WVa 76 to see if there is lasting damage done to them. Some glazing on drums and so on. Some pads were bad. (Duh...) company paid to replace the bad ones and on into Ky.

That was probably my most serious day in mountain work and it happened to be with that dollar truck I talked about before. Uphill at 70 down at 80 no big deal until (100+) several hills later the using of brakes when they got steeper and steeper overcame the cooling in between. It was a learning experience. (And not necessary. I had so much truck then that I thought the mountain no longer mattered. Roll it. HA...)

 

Accidents also comes from anything in life within the previous 72 hours (Or three days.) if you had a phone domestic with angry wife at home 2000 miles away who ran off with Mr Rich and took the kids etc and you are angry enough to chew nails well, you are in a position now to have a pretty good wreck. Your mind would not be safe or right.

Sometimes with spouse in training one of the first things I would ask her, any problems in your mind before we go? There has to be no problems on her mind before we go. If so, she would not take instruction from me at that point. And sometimes if there is a problem bad enough no go until its solved. Even if it took a extra day or two. Better that than killing or hurting people.

 

God forbid a truck ever get away from me. Straight into the ditch we go

 

On that stretch, though, the ditch is more likely to be a rock wall. Or maybe a 100 foot deep gully.

 

So, dead or alive but in prison for 60 years were the options there?

 

all i can do is cross my fingers and hope I go quickly and not hurt anyone else in the process. wouldn't be able to live with myself aint no way

 

If I had to choose between a pack of cars stopped or whatever people are in my way and over the side for a 100 foot fall Im taking the fall. Not necessarily with the truck. I might be out of there with road burn before it hit.

Ive already been just about blown off the bay bridge in Maryland once in a storm versus my empty container, threw all of it against the rail and proceeded to push it over. (That's a lethal 234 foot drop to water which is basically hard concrete. Not a death I want) I was on the fuel tank and contemplating that steel decking which is grid, a mass of sharp edging when it came back down onto it's wheels. So I already know that if I had to choose, one of the three ways would be out of there once the truck is headed over the edge of the world so to speak. I'll do that first before hitting anyone.

I have had a habit of taking cars out when I don't see them and they are right there in cabovers. Not so much in conventional. There is a big difference to Colorado with its wide open spaces and miles to think about maybe stopping?

This dum dum had miles and miles to think maybe he should stop. But no, he got so wrapped up in his sad story and kept rolling. Something is wrong with that one in my opinion and there he is sitting in the hoosgow wondering wtf? And people died? Or were hurt? TSk. He should have stopped first chance.

 

I've been in a couple situations where I reacted in ways that I later thought was the stupidest thing possible. You really just don't know what you'll do until you're there. We all know, or say, what we'd do, but until you're looking at it in the face and you're working almost purely on instinct?

 

Did you notice that wide shoulder with gravel too in my picture I uploaded? That would have been a magic flying carpet and a perfect spot to stop. At least stop the #### thing. That shoulder is like two lanes wide and a mile on. Beautiful. A gift from DOT when they built that road. And a wall to rub on too.

But int he end he's a youngster and probably not trained sufficently. Or worse his langauge problems. There is a reason they require drivers to know english in either writing or reading before coming out here.

To another poster regarding escape ramps. I have a picture somewhere from Spotted Wolf, East of San Diego. That sign had a pretty crayon diagram showing everything. Even the grade profile. The second ramp had a additional sign, if you are over 30 mph you must take this ramp because you will not survive the curve immediately beyond. Which is on the left median with a rock cliff and about a 50 foot fall before you hit it. There is some wreckage left down there to this day.