Should I expect more from a professional driver?

Maybe he spotted an obstacle/danger in the road and moved over to miss it. Which was the right thing to do at the time. I've done that myself a numerous times. Cinder blocks, potholes, black ice, furniture, etc etc etc. Guess this never occurred to the wannabe. And the wannabe was so focused on playing "gotcha" that he completely missed seeing the obstacle himself.

Good grief this thread is a lot of nothing about nothing.

 

Bergy...you wanted opinions , and you sure got plenty of them..from one end of the spectrum to the other. I'm thrilled to see a potential driver want to learn just what being a real pro is. I don't think I can add too much to this that hasn't already been covered from both ends , and the middle , but I'll try and add to the conversation. The way I see it , the hand that wants to be respected and thought of as a professional by his peers and other motorists , has to 1st be willing to take a long , long look in the mirror. Sure if you begin driving you are gonna see many drivers , old & new that have no respect for themselves or others...gonna happen , you can't stop it , been going on as long as there have been trucks on the roads , Probably since the time of the stage coaches and freighting companies of the 1800's. You can't MAKE folks do what's right . it can't be done by putting rules/regulations in place....people are gonna be people. Now , I've said that to say this....once you do start a driving career , you MUST be able to let the things that aren't really any thing more than an inconvenience roll of your back. That guy you called in on was as far as we know from the description driving in a LEGAL manner....holding up traffic ..maybe , aggravating for some ..sure...but not ( as you described it) un-safe.

That's the key here....you're gonna see , smell, and hear all kinds of things when you start driving...some are gonna make you laugh , some are gonna make you cry , some are gonna make you so frustrated that you'll scream....Now , remember the statement I made about the mirror...It's how you learn to handle those things you'll see , smell , hear that makes you a pro...you have to learn that you are often pulling a 48 ft or a 53 ft bill-board down the road , and folks are gonna see just how you react to things , and you'll never know it. If you witness a blatant safety issue...then by all means report it....A driver who you witness drinking in his truck then leave shortly afterward...a driver hitting a parked vehicle and leaving the scene...etc. But, hogging a lane , however sometimes wrong and sometimes aggravating is not a real reason for a call....

 

The same circumstances and tactics are obvious through Vegas. You can't worry about impeding traffic in a truck. In the opinion of motorists there's only 2 speeds at which a truck may be operated; too fast or too slow.

If you're managing the speed limit, the people you might be holding up are creating their own "problem/s", but I'll give you $1M if you can convince just 1 speeding motorist of that. Something about motor vehicles seems to render even the most intelligent among us 2 sacks o' hammers stupid.

 

To be fair, that might be due to ignoring his question: "So my question is - how do you feel about bad truck drivers?" The vast majority of truck drivers are very, very bad truck drivers, so...

 

That is understandable.....however note that you ARE doing the speed limit.

I will take a swag here and GUESS the driver he called in on was well under the speed limit and was just riding.

Ya know...the ones we cuss out on the radio and talk about on THIS forum unkindly....

 

How about Saddletramp? His posts / replies are just plain STRANGE at times

As for calling in everything you see out on the roads it could turn into a full time job in some areas and 90% of the time its likely a wasted call.

 

OK that's funny as hell!

I was parked at the j in Albuquerque once and was talking to a heavy hauler who had parked next to the light pole in the back row and had wedged his Peterbilt into the space behind the light pole so his nose wasn't sticking out. He told me several drivers had given him grief about it. He did it for the same reasons you did. Plus he said, you can't park a truck in that spot anyways due to the light pole. He was only able to get in there because his trailer was a gooseneck. Some drivers seriously do need to mind their own business, lol.

 

While I think the OP is wrong for calling the company over the truck staying in the left lane, those who are saying the truck had the league right to just drive in the left lane without passing other vehicles or moving right when other traffic was going faster are also wrong. All but 5 states (and Puerto Rico) have laws about driving in the left lane (http://jalopnik.com/5501615/left+lane-passing-laws-a-state+by+state-map or http://www.mit.edu/~jfc/right.html) requiring you to move right if impeding traffic or staying right unless passing/turning.

New Jersey just doubled its fines for failing to stay right last year (http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/20...ee_fines_double_for_failing_to_move_over.html) and Texas is also increasing its enforcement of the law (http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=9315437). They are starting to increase the enforcement of it as it is seen as a safety issue and the cause of many road rage incidents.

Granted, you do not see those laws enforced much like they do in Europe (try hanging out in the left lane on the Autobahn and see what happens) but there is the requirement to move to the right in most states, especially if you are impeding traffic.

 

I am a new driver myself. However I have had the opportuunity to ride with my boyfriend on and off for 3 years before I joined him permanently. So I already had seen alot out here on the road. U reallyy should take those rose colored glasses off when you druve. What world do you come frm where everybody is polite and courteous? U have to have patience and common sense about people and the situation. Good luck....dont be a snitch...use good judgement. This is someones livelyhood u are messing with. And where is it "legal" for a big truck ti get in the HOV lane?

 

And all 50 states have speed limits...

Exactly. There's something about motor vehicles that renders even the most intelligent among us 2 sacks o' hammers stupid. "Your driving made me mad" is preposterously illogical. And, those who believe it is so would never consider the opinion of another regarding their own "driving" as possessing any merit whatsoever. "You can mind your own flippin' business. My right to drive like a moron shall not be infringed."