04-04-2008, 09:13 AM
Preparing to get on the interstate this morning, I noticed a van closing in on me really fast, so I put my turn signal on extremely early to warn the driver that I'd be slowing down soon. When I noticed that the van appeared to have not even begun to slow down, I began to brake very lightly as I was now approaching my turn and they obviously needed more warning that I would be stopping.
I progressively increased the brakes so I could slow down to make my turn and noticed she was slowing down, but I didn't think it would be enough, and sure enough, it wasn't. I was still going about 5 mph upon impact, she was going an estimated 15 from my point of veiw.
A light scratch on my trailer hitch, small damage to her bumper, and one very pissed off Dave were about the extent of the damage. Her excuse was that she just ran out of space (while pointing at my hitch; yeah, that 6 inches was going to give you enough room to stop), not to mention the 1/8 mile of warning that I gave her.
Considering the damage, time for the cops to get there, etc., I decided to suggest that the next time she sees a blinker and brake lights, that she probably ought to slow down some rather than closing her eyes and hoping they turn before she hits them, and then head on to work. I thought about it a lot on my way in, and I've put a few observations together and I actually think she might have been drunk, so now I'm really kicking myself that I didn't call the cops...
Cliff's notes: Stupidity strikes again, minimal damage to all parties involved.
Apparently, whenever I am driving a vehicle, said vehicle must take on some kind of transparent form. In less than a year, I have been rear-ended twice and merged into once. Every time, I had my lights on to make myself more visible and 2 out of 3 was aware of the situation, giving me the ability to react and mitigate the amount of damage inflicted.
Sorry for the rant, but I'm getting very sick of this bullshit. Does anybody know the legality of putting a spike on a trailer hitch to inflict maximum damage on somebody that hits you?...
I progressively increased the brakes so I could slow down to make my turn and noticed she was slowing down, but I didn't think it would be enough, and sure enough, it wasn't. I was still going about 5 mph upon impact, she was going an estimated 15 from my point of veiw.
A light scratch on my trailer hitch, small damage to her bumper, and one very pissed off Dave were about the extent of the damage. Her excuse was that she just ran out of space (while pointing at my hitch; yeah, that 6 inches was going to give you enough room to stop), not to mention the 1/8 mile of warning that I gave her.
Considering the damage, time for the cops to get there, etc., I decided to suggest that the next time she sees a blinker and brake lights, that she probably ought to slow down some rather than closing her eyes and hoping they turn before she hits them, and then head on to work. I thought about it a lot on my way in, and I've put a few observations together and I actually think she might have been drunk, so now I'm really kicking myself that I didn't call the cops...
Cliff's notes: Stupidity strikes again, minimal damage to all parties involved.
Apparently, whenever I am driving a vehicle, said vehicle must take on some kind of transparent form. In less than a year, I have been rear-ended twice and merged into once. Every time, I had my lights on to make myself more visible and 2 out of 3 was aware of the situation, giving me the ability to react and mitigate the amount of damage inflicted.
Sorry for the rant, but I'm getting very sick of this bullshit. Does anybody know the legality of putting a spike on a trailer hitch to inflict maximum damage on somebody that hits you?...