Driving

[Greg_TX]

Ride my ass and I will pace the car to my right, or do a brake check.

If you're being tailgated, these are two things you shouldn't do. Pacing will just piss off the tailgater that much more and they're likely to ride you even closer. A brake check is just silly (no offense); the person tailgating you is putting you and themselves in danger by driving recklessly and trying to get in your back seat - hitting the brakes just makes a bad situation worse. They may back off, or they may not, but you're just asking for a collision by hitting the brakes.

By the way, if you think that sucks in a car, try riding a motorcycle with someone just a couple of feet behind you. I had some jackass ride up on me for a couple of miles and because of traffic there was no place I could go to get out of the way. I was behind a left-lane camper, the two lanes to my right were full, and the truck was right on my tire. I finally ended up splitting the lanes between camper-boy and the middle lane to get away from truck behind me and got outta there. Talk about annoying - a good mile of clear road ahead of all this, but everyone had to wad themselves up into a rolling roadblock.

 

[Hoji]

Oh I am well aware of what I should and shouldn't do if being tailgated. And what I choose to do is pace or brake check. I have a very safe car, airbags, and great insurance.

 

[Greg_TX]

Oh I am well aware of what I should and shouldn't do if being tailgated. And what I choose to do is pace or brake check. I have a very safe car, airbags, and great insurance.

With all due respect then, you're part of the problem. People that drive in formation and block up traffic behind them in order to prove a point are creating more problems then they think they're solving. If you want to teach drivers a lesson, join the police academy.

 

[country_boy]

The one thing that makes me mad is people that tailgate me in a one lane 40 mph road and its 40 and only 40 the police watch it closely. Im not going to speed up. Suck it up and quit tailgating me. I agree with what yall are saying, thats why I dont go into austin very much, much less I 35. I still wanna know what the traffic will be like in Austin/Round Rock when Samsung and Dell move away.

 

[Shorts]

Hoji is right. If I'm passing a car, wait your damn turn to let me pass and then move over.


As for pacing the cars, cruise control is both good and evil. Some vehicles have excellent cruise control to keep a very steady speed including up and down hills. Some cars have crappy controls that have lag before the car paces up to the set speed.

It's Murphy's Law that what it is time for you to pass the car in front of you there will be some tard speeding up in the left lane who wants to pass at the exact same time. You either cut them off or you tap brakes out of cruise mode.

This weekend I went to San Antonio and back. Don't get me started on drivers. I got a good rant build up but I'll spare it.

I hate that I can't drive the highways by myself. There is always some idiot that feels he must follow my every acceleration or deceleration. Leave me alone! I do get a good laugh when I see how slow I can get the idiot to go because he is so intent on my bumper than driving his own car. Today it was 55mph.

That reminds me, I need to get my bumper built.

And yes, I've made tailgaters eat iron.

 

[Greg_TX]

If you're actually passing with the intent of moving over, then that's all good. Deliberately impeding traffic to teach someone a lesson just makes it worse for everyone else.

 

[Greg_TX]

The one thing that makes me mad is people that tailgate me in a one lane 40 mph road and its 40 and only 40 the police watch it closely.

Hopfully they'll pass you and find out the hard way about the po-po waiting for them. Be sure to honk and wave as you pass them while they're getting a ticket - they hate that.

 

[Shorts]

If you're actually passing with the intent of moving over, then that's all good. Deliberately impeding traffic to teach someone a lesson just makes it worse for everyone else.

And you can judge my intent how? What is the threshold for deliberately impeding traffic? What is an acceptable time to pass a car? How fast does the guy in front of you have to go so he doesn't trip your senses?

The timing you have in mind may not be the other guys. How about hassling dipwad in the right lane who doesn't like to be passed so he speeds up to stay even with the guy in the left lane? But who do you blame, the guy in the left lane right? So then the guy in the left lane must either speed way up and risk a ticket just to pass dipwad, or try to fall back, pull in behind dipwad just to appease you on his butt because you need to pass now too. Meanwhile dipwad has slowed back down again as you sit behind him while the line of 10 cars tries to go by.

 

[Greg_TX]

And you can judge my intent how?

By observing what you eventually do, or what you appear to be trying to do.

What is the threshold for deliberately impeding traffic? What is an acceptable time to pass a car? How fast does the guy in front of you have to go so he doesn't trip your senses?

Speed is relative; it should be obvious to an observant driver (and shouldn't we all be? ) who is trying to pass and move over and who is just camping in the left lane. The latter is what I have a problem with.

The timing you have in mind may not be the other guys. How about hassling dipwad in the right lane who doesn't like to be passed so he speeds up to stay even with the guy in the left lane? But who do you blame, the guy in the left lane right?

Not necessarily; it isn't hard to figure out which driver is changing speed constantly and who is just trying to get around.

So then the guy in the left lane must either speed way up and risk a ticket just to pass dipwad, or try to fall back, pull in behind dipwad just to appease you on his butt because you need to pass now too. Meanwhile dipwad has slowed back down again as you sit behind him while the line of 10 cars tries to go by.

This goes back to an observation I made earlier - it's annoying as all hell how there can be miles of clear road ahead and behind, but for some reason everybody wants to bunch together NASCAR-style and not spread out and leave some room.

BTW, I'm not arguing from a tailgater's point of view; I've learned the hard way on the motorcycle to leave a lot of room between me and the car ahead. All it took was a few times where the car straddled a pothole or tire tread or whatever and I wasn't able to react in time to miss it.

 

[Shorts]

By observing what you eventually do, or what you appear to be trying to do.

What can a driver do differently or gain by knowing the intent? Is this where the person can decide to be angry or decide to chill out? Either way, an emotional reaction doesn't get one past the traffic impediment any faster if they cannot physically go by.



Speed is relative; it should be obvious to an observant driver (and shouldn't we all be? ) who is trying to pass and move over and who is just camping in the left lane. The latter is what I have a problem with.

There are plenty of left lane campers alright.


Not necessarily; it isn't hard to figure out which driver is changing speed constantly and who is just trying to get around.

No one said it was hard to figure it out. The complaint was about who gets mad at who for not going around someone else fast enough. Whether a person likes it or not, whether a driver notices what's going on or not, a person can't bumper car their way past whoever is blocking the lane...although that sure would be fun!



This goes back to an observation I made earlier - it's annoying as all hell how there can be miles of clear road ahead and behind, but for some reason everybody wants to bunch together NASCAR-style and not spread out and leave some room.

I hear that, I like alone, I hate packs.


BTW, I'm not arguing from a tailgater's point of view; I've learned the hard way on the motorcycle to leave a lot of room between me and the car ahead. All it took was a few times where the car straddled a pothole or tire tread or whatever and I wasn't able to react in time to miss it.


We ride as well. I'm sure like every other rider, we prefer alone and out of traffic. But have been caught in impediments. Its terrible!

 

[M. Sage]

Oh, when riding things are different. I like to be going about 5MPH faster than the speed of traffic so that I'm more visible and so that the morons in cages are easier to dodge. Harder to miss things coming at you from behind or the side, but it's much easier to miss the stuff coming from in front.

California Highway Patrol actually trains their motor officers to do this and that it's safer. Hopefully police in TX will understand, too.

I'll admit to being a driving/riding snob. There's a right way and a wrong way, and I really can't stand seeing people do it the wrong way!

I'll also admit that my fuse is far shorter when I'm on two wheels. Stuff that I'll let slide when I'm in a cage will get a horn and a finger when I'm on a bike. Probably something to do with "that crazy shit just tried to kill me!"

 

[Hoji]

With all due respect then, you're part of the problem. People that drive in formation and block up traffic behind them in order to prove a point are creating more problems then they think they're solving. If you want to teach drivers a lesson, join the police academy.

It would appear that you did not completely read my post or misunderstood my post.

If I am in the left lane passing a vehicle in the right lande driving slow, and you {not you specificly} come barreling down on my bumper, unwilling to wait the 4 or 5 seconds it will take me to pass the vehicle I am passing, I will make you wait or I will brake check you.Period.
Police officers are there to enforce the law, not "teach lessons" and any that think otherwise should look for another line of work.

I am not part of the problem, ignorant pus heads who are so impatient and tailgate at 75 mph are the problem.

 

[Shorts]

Oh, when riding things are different. I like to be going about 5MPH faster than the speed of traffic so that I'm more visible and so that the morons in cages are easier to dodge. Harder to miss things coming at you from behind or the side, but it's much easier to miss the stuff coming from in front.

California Highway Patrol actually trains their motor officers to do this and that it's safer. Hopefully police in TX will understand, too.

I'll admit to being a driving/riding snob. There's a right way and a wrong way, and I really can't stand seeing people do it the wrong way!

I'll also admit that my fuse is far shorter when I'm on two wheels. Stuff that I'll let slide when I'm in a cage will get a horn and a finger when I'm on a bike. Probably something to do with "that crazy shit just tried to kill me!"

I'm pretty "active" in my helmet. It's probably a good thing we haven't always had the comm systems up.

My peeves when riding are the oncoming drivers that can't take the curves in their own lane. And tailgaters.

If I'm going to maim myself when riding, I want to be the one who caused the crash.

I noticed the different driving styles while traveling I35/I37. Corpus needs to be blown off the map and rebuilt with supersmart Data-like androids. San Antonio feels like a comfortable pair of jeans and they are malleable, good and bad. Austin is the annoying teenager I'd like to beat with a heavy stick. They are oblivious selfish idiots. Dallas is an odd organization of unspoken rules that seems scary at first but once you figure out the rules, you're golden. The roadways in between is like a mosquito infested swamp.

 

[gladi8r]

when im on my bike I stay away from the cagers even if that means speeding past em. I dont mind a ticket rather have that than some goofball on a cell phone cutting into me.

 

[Shorts]

when im on my bike I stay away from the cagers even if that means speeding past em. I dont mind a ticket rather have that than some goofball on a cell phone cutting into me.

Especially passing big rigs. Get out of that red zone as soon as possible!

Yeah, in the truck, I have more protection. I will most likely win a pissing match with any lesser vehicle. On the bike, its every man for himself!

 

[M. Sage]

I'm pretty "active" in my helmet. It's probably a good thing we haven't always had the comm systems up.

My peeves when riding are the oncoming drivers that can't take the curves in their own lane. And tailgaters.

I'm thinking about slinging an AK across my back to give the tailgaters incentive to back off. Most of them will bugger off with a hand signal, though. I use the basic "I'm braking" hand signal, but wave it forward and back.

We were on the freeway one night and someone started tailgating my wife. Couldn't have that, so I pulled up next to the woman doing it, honked at her a couple of times and when she looked over jerked my thumb over my shoulder to tell her to back off. Worked.

 

[Hoji]

I'm thinking about slinging an AK across my back to give the tailgaters incentive to back off. Most of them will bugger off with a hand signal, though. I use the basic "I'm braking" hand signal, but wave it forward and back.

We were on the freeway one night and someone started tailgating my wife. Couldn't have that, so I pulled up next to the woman doing it, honked at her a couple of times and when she looked over jerked my thumb over my shoulder to tell her to back off. Worked.

I really like this idea

 

[M. Sage]

The only problem with that idea is the advice of "if you don't want it in you, don't have it on you." It would suck to wreck with an AK slung!

 

[Greg_TX]

If I am in the left lane passing a vehicle in the right lande driving slow, and you {not you specificly} come barreling down on my bumper, unwilling to wait the 4 or 5 seconds it will take me to pass the vehicle I am passing, I will make you wait or I will brake check you.Period.

And I still think this is a bad move. Letting your emotions get the better of you and intentionally blocking a lane because you don't like what a car is doing behind you is just asking for an accident. Period. Granted, it seems that you're trying to do it the right way by passing and then moving back over when you can, and it's understandable to get pissed when someone gets up in your back seat while you're trying to clear the lane, but retaliating just makes it worse. You don't want people to tailgate because it is potentially dangerous, so your solution is to hit the brakes and force them even closer to your vehicle?

Is it possible that some of the times when this has happened the other vehicle was going faster than you thought and it might have been better to hold your lane a few seconds longer until they went by?

 

[Hoji]

And I still think this is a bad move. Letting your emotions get the better of you and intentionally blocking a lane because you don't like what a car is doing behind you is just asking for an accident. Period. Granted, it seems that you're trying to do it the right way by passing and then moving back over when you can, and it's understandable to get pissed when someone gets up in your back seat while you're trying to clear the lane, but retaliating just makes it worse. You don't want people to tailgate because it is potentially dangerous, so your solution is to hit the brakes and force them even closer to your vehicle?

Is it possible that some of the times when this has happened the other vehicle was going faster than you thought and it might have been better to hold your lane a few seconds longer until they went by?[/quote]


No.