Dozey Drivers
Posted: Fri Jul 29, 2005 6:56 pm
O.K., I know this isn't really bike related, but it illustrates just how dangerous cage drivers can be(are).
At work today, I was driving out of a lease location that was about a mile off road. During this drive, there were some serious washouts in the trail that caused heavy racking of my truck. One of there gyrations caused my tailgate to open. The operator following me in his truck figured it would be funny to see how much stuff fell out, so didn't bother warning me it was open. Also, I have a full tool box on the back and can't see out of the back of the truck so I had no idea it was open.
Anyways, once I came to the hiway, I stopped, looked and made my turn onto the pavement. Since I do look in my mirrors alot, I saw the car battery I was carrying hit the gound and skid out into the lane. I also saw the line of cars coming up behind me in the distance. So I stopped, backed up onto the shoulder so my door was even with the battery laying in the road. I got out to pick it up, but the traffic was coming closer now, so I stood beside my truck, waving them around.
The lead vehicle was coming straight down the lane. Now, there is a big silver truck parked on the shoulder, me in my refelective-striped coveralls waving my arms and standing beside the truck and the battery all in plain veiw for at least 2 miles on this 2 lane hiway. The idiot in front(driving a ford Focus econo-box) wasn't even trying to avoid this mess, even though the other lane was clear, also for a couple of miles, and I'm starting to look for a way out of the line of fire. Good thing too, the fool center-punched that battery with the passengerside front tire.
I was diving back into the truck(I seen it coming) but still mangaged to get soaked with acid when he hit it. So the line of cars passes and Buddy is stopped on the shoulder up ahead. I'm out in the hiway, picking up lead plates and plastic shards while looking for more suicidal fools coming my way. Buddy turns around and drives back and asks me what happened.
I am pretty wound up so I start telling him, in my not so friendly way, that 'I can't believe you hit that battery, you idiot!!!'
He says 'What battery?'
'You didn't see that big black thing right in the middle of the road?'
'no...'
'Well did you see me standing there waving my arms?'
'no...'
' did you see my truck?'
'no...'
'Can you see period?'
'uuhhh, yeah....'
'Well, Buddy, you just center-punched a battery and exploded it all over me and my truck!!!'
'oh...... at least it didn't damage my car.' As I stand there holding his inner fenderwell....
'Yeeaahhh.... here, you want this back?' holding his wheelwell out to him
'No, that's not mine.'
"O.K....you might want to go wash your car.'
'Why?'
'Nevermind.......'
And he gets in and drives off.....and I clean up any evidence of this mess. While doing that, I keep thinking that the guy looks familar to me. He was about 55-60, not particularly bright looking, and he had a bunch of candy trays loaded in his car. So I drive back to the shop and am telling my buddy about all this, when I look over and notice the 'pay by honor-system' candy trays that a local bussiness puts in our coffee room.......
Bing!!!! Now I recongnize the guy, he's the guy who comes around every 2 weeks to collect the money and re-stock the candy!!!! 
He never asked me my name, who I worked for, took my license plate # or anything, like I would have done. After all, I was responsible, the battery fell out of my truck...... I think he must have been drunk. Or else really stupid. Whatever, I dodged a bullet there. Whew....
So I go home, shower and go wash the truck. I got some mild burns on my leftside, lost a bit of paint on the truck and wasted a set of coveralls......
So this is the kind of attentive drivers there are out on our roads. Also, I should mention, that there were 4 cars and trucks in that line of vehicles behind battery-boy, and not one of them stopped, swerved or slowed down for any of this, and they were running nose-to-tail.
NEVER trust a cage when riding!!!!!!
At work today, I was driving out of a lease location that was about a mile off road. During this drive, there were some serious washouts in the trail that caused heavy racking of my truck. One of there gyrations caused my tailgate to open. The operator following me in his truck figured it would be funny to see how much stuff fell out, so didn't bother warning me it was open. Also, I have a full tool box on the back and can't see out of the back of the truck so I had no idea it was open.
Anyways, once I came to the hiway, I stopped, looked and made my turn onto the pavement. Since I do look in my mirrors alot, I saw the car battery I was carrying hit the gound and skid out into the lane. I also saw the line of cars coming up behind me in the distance. So I stopped, backed up onto the shoulder so my door was even with the battery laying in the road. I got out to pick it up, but the traffic was coming closer now, so I stood beside my truck, waving them around.
The lead vehicle was coming straight down the lane. Now, there is a big silver truck parked on the shoulder, me in my refelective-striped coveralls waving my arms and standing beside the truck and the battery all in plain veiw for at least 2 miles on this 2 lane hiway. The idiot in front(driving a ford Focus econo-box) wasn't even trying to avoid this mess, even though the other lane was clear, also for a couple of miles, and I'm starting to look for a way out of the line of fire. Good thing too, the fool center-punched that battery with the passengerside front tire.
I was diving back into the truck(I seen it coming) but still mangaged to get soaked with acid when he hit it. So the line of cars passes and Buddy is stopped on the shoulder up ahead. I'm out in the hiway, picking up lead plates and plastic shards while looking for more suicidal fools coming my way. Buddy turns around and drives back and asks me what happened.
I am pretty wound up so I start telling him, in my not so friendly way, that 'I can't believe you hit that battery, you idiot!!!'
He says 'What battery?'
'You didn't see that big black thing right in the middle of the road?'
'no...'
'Well did you see me standing there waving my arms?'
'no...'
' did you see my truck?'
'no...'
'Can you see period?'
'uuhhh, yeah....'
'Well, Buddy, you just center-punched a battery and exploded it all over me and my truck!!!'
'oh...... at least it didn't damage my car.' As I stand there holding his inner fenderwell....
'Yeeaahhh.... here, you want this back?' holding his wheelwell out to him
'No, that's not mine.'
"O.K....you might want to go wash your car.'
'Why?'
'Nevermind.......'
And he gets in and drives off.....and I clean up any evidence of this mess. While doing that, I keep thinking that the guy looks familar to me. He was about 55-60, not particularly bright looking, and he had a bunch of candy trays loaded in his car. So I drive back to the shop and am telling my buddy about all this, when I look over and notice the 'pay by honor-system' candy trays that a local bussiness puts in our coffee room.......
Bing!!!! Now I recongnize the guy, he's the guy who comes around every 2 weeks to collect the money and re-stock the candy!!!! He never asked me my name, who I worked for, took my license plate # or anything, like I would have done. After all, I was responsible, the battery fell out of my truck...... I think he must have been drunk. Or else really stupid. Whatever, I dodged a bullet there. Whew....
So I go home, shower and go wash the truck. I got some mild burns on my leftside, lost a bit of paint on the truck and wasted a set of coveralls......
So this is the kind of attentive drivers there are out on our roads. Also, I should mention, that there were 4 cars and trucks in that line of vehicles behind battery-boy, and not one of them stopped, swerved or slowed down for any of this, and they were running nose-to-tail.
NEVER trust a cage when riding!!!!!!
