Time for a reality check and a safety lesson. Whether you like it or not.

Wow. Now we only need to convince the ladies of the world of this, the most inspired truth I have heard today.

Quite possibly also the world's best pickup line.

 

Wreck 1; Oh My God! Did that car get sandwiched in between 2 trucks?



This Feb a family died in a car less than a mile from my home. It was snowing. Roads were messy. They tried to get on an off ramp. Rolled their car over and smashed it on top of themselves. I was sitting in my car watching the ambulance arrive.



It had the lights on. But wasn't in any hurry.



Many years back, I went Christmas shopping with the family. We played a game. See who could count the most cars in the ditch. We counted over 50 on a 25 mile stretch of road.


It got very quiet in the vehicle after that.

 

Lol thats part of the problem not the solution

 

That time it was both.. ,

 

The thing I always keep in mind and I tell other drivers.., is trucks are too big and too heavy to be reactionary, you have to be anticipatory if you want to be safe.. what I mean by that is if you drive reactionary.. by the time you realize a situatituation and respond it is too late... you may not have enough time and space to avoid the situation... but, if you are anticipatory... you are looking far ahead and when you see something that may be a situation you are already starting to avoid it... maybe by slowing down a bit, covering your brakes.. you are already responding even while you are still assessing the situation.. well in advance...

In my opinion.. I would rather slow down a bit and realize it is nothing and speed back up.. then to keep my speed up and realize OH SH....t I need to stop.... and not have room...

Now, yesterday was a great day... I just kept being in my trucing zen zone... that is where I am just rolling along with plenty of room all around me... sure packs would catch up to me.. but I just let them roll on by.. and soon there I was again rolling along with plenty of room in front of me, beside me and behind me... that is how I like it.. then I just follow the road and can actually take in the scenery as I am scanning my mirrors....

One other thing I do... I chew mint gum or have mints to suck on... mint awakens you and helps you stay alert... as well as freshens your breath...

Oh, and, I always sit up.. no slouching... sitting up helps keep you alert and focusec as well as it burns more calories then slouching.... you see so many drivers slouching and with bad posture... not good for you... hinders your circulation and makes you drowsy... then you just drive like a dazed zombie...

 

This is the video I like. See the number of bobtails? Driving a bobtail on slick roads is LETHAL! However, the bobtails were able to maintain control and avoid the carnage. If a bobtail can maintain control in icy weather, why are there trucks with trailers involved in the carnage in the other videos?

First rule of safe driving: You have to be able to stop in the distance that you can see. If you cannot stop within that distance you are SPEEDING and TAILGATING, RECKLESS DRIVING and DRIVING TOO FAST FOR ROAD CONDITIONS.

The general public drives down the road looking 20 ft past the end of their hood. You cannot stop a car in 20 feet. Hence, we see bad accidents every day of the week and twice on Sundays. So then these get into a truck with the same preconceived notion that they are good drivers and instead of looking 20 ft down the road, they look a truck length ahead. You cannot stop a truck in a trucklength at highway speed.

Safety personnel at trucking companies will tell you how long it takes for the brain to recognize danger, and how long it takes for your reflexes to react, how long it takes for the brakes to do their job, and they come up with numbers and throw them at us and attempt to tell you and me how to drive. Screw that. I look for something else.

Had a driver get fired from the company for rear ending a pickup. He had a dash cam, and his argument was that the pickup did not have working brake lights. In the video, he comes up on a slower truck. His steers are equal with the slow truck's trailer when 2 cars ahead of the slow truck, a car loses a wheel. The pickup slams on the brakes to avoid the wheel. The car that lost the wheel kids to the right shoulder, the wheel flies into the median. The car in front of the slow truck slams on the brakes. The slow truck slams on the brakes. The truck in the fast lane flies by the slow truck and nosedives a trucklength from the pickup. CRASH!

But Six, the pickup didn't have any tailights! That's not fair!

Welcome to our world.

Several things. There were 2 cars and a pickup riding side by side. You see it every day. You guys already said don't run with the pack, remember? The slow truck had probably backed out when the 3 idiots went riding side by side.

How do you know they were idiots, Six?

Is it safe riding side by side? Or do you leave yourself an out? Only idiots ride side by side. Either pass or fall behind. I'm not referring to big truck dragracing that the bottomfeeder drivers have to endure, they have no choice. Whenever you see 3 idiots in close proximity of each other, an accident is imminent! What should you do? What did he do? Charged full steam ahead until he got a trucklength away and slammed on the brakes. Where is his attention? A trucklength ahead of him.

You ever see a truck come within a trucklength of another truck, before he switches lanes to pass? If you are following another big rig that closely, what can you see? Nothing but his trailer. So you're nearly blind. So you speed up and jump out into the hammer lane and pull beside the truck only to realize that there's another truck coming down the on ramp. Most of the time nothing happens. The truck being passed puts on the binders to let the truck on. But what happens if there is something wrong?
If you have a 70 mph truck, and rolling at 65 and you're passing a 62 mph truck, why are you within a trucklength before you go to the left lane? Speed up and jump out early. Don't dragrace if you have motor ( idiot rules apply if you do). Get by and then resume your speed. So jump out at 2 truck lengths and suddenly you can see what's in front of the slow truck. If there's someone coming on the on ramp, tap your brakes and give him an out. Common courtesy, right? How many times have you ever see a courteous driver involved in an accident? Not too often. How many times have you seen a courteous driver at fault in an accident? Never.

 

The people taking the video could have went further down the road and warned the oncoming traffic to slow down and stop. Could have prevented about one half of the accident from happening. But video was more important!

 

Oh I know I know I know!!! As soon as the conditions are beyond your own capabilities??

 

And how would you know the answer to that if your confidence is beyond your capabilities?