FJRocket
Doctor Throckenstein !!!
Ok, another quasi interesting story about the bone heads out there.... Not a near death experience. More like Twilight Zone time.
I went for a ride in my new gear, behind my new modulator. Trying to get used to all this stuff. Felt like I was in a straight jacket being interrogated or brainwashed with flashing lights. But that's another story.
I was in traffic behind a pickup after dark last night. He was going very fast, trying to "push" (it seems) a very old van to go the speed limit (and catch up with a semi). I was ready to pass both of them at the earliest sane opportunity, but was pretty leary. It was a two lane state highway in the hills. Lots of blind sweeping curves with elevation change and heavy foliage. Overcast, starting to fog, very dark night, and I didn't know the road.
The guy in the pickup was not THAT close on the van's ass, but evidently the van didn't like the pickup, because he slowed WAY down on purpose. And of course I'm waiting for a hole, but also watching the soap opera in front of me. All of a sudden I see the brake lights of the pickup go on, and the bed shift skyward. Not the flipping over skyward, but the heavy braking skyward. I'm covered and I activate ALL my ABS. Fortunately no one is behind me. No metal is bent, no blood spilled nothing happened. That got a "hmmmmph..." and a rolled eye from me. Shaking my head at the stupidity of people.
We all start going again, and I'm REALLY wanting to get around these chuckleheads, but thinking in the back of my brain that I need to be REALLY careful with this situation. So we get moving along at almost 10 miles an hour under the speed limit. Catching the semi, actually going up the hill. I'm over at the centerline watching for an opportunity to blast around everyone (without success). And yes, I was probably STILL a little too close, but not THAT close.
All of a sudden, I see RED LIGHTS, TAIL GATE going skywards and the red pickup going sideways. The van jammed it's brakes to the hilt, evidently, and the truck was sliding to avoid hitting the van. Of course I grabbed everything I had again.
Somehow, I ended up on the right shoulder (it was a left hand curve), which was almost an entire lane wide and nicely paved. The van and the truck had come to a complete stop. Both in the middle of the road, just a bit over the center line, as far as I could tell.
You ever have that high gear brain thing kick in? Adrenaline takes over, you're thinking at the speed of light? (maybe the speed of molasis in my case) I hadn't even come to a complete stop, knew I was going to be right of everybody who HAD stopped, and I saw a clear path around them all. My brain said NO, not on the right. My adrenaline said YES, get the fuck away from these people, take the shoulder. In that split second, I let off the brakes and went around the two assholes. I figured at the least I could out accelerate them (especially the 40ish year old pos van) before anyone moved.
It was wierd, I knew I shouldn't pass on the right, and it was blind on the left (oncoming, double yellow). At the same time, I was not going to stop and EVEN get involved. Heck, these two may have just come from a bar, be ex-lovers, competing assassins, whatever. I just knew I had to clear out. And I didn't want to do a 180. So I took the path of least resistance and I skated right passed them both. Then I caught the semi and was quickly around him, too.
I tried to look back to see what happened, but that was a hill or two back, so there was nothing to see. I don't know what brought all that on, I just know I'm glad I got away from the insanity.
You know, it's tough enough staying alive by accident, let alone trying not to get killed on purpose.
I went for a ride in my new gear, behind my new modulator. Trying to get used to all this stuff. Felt like I was in a straight jacket being interrogated or brainwashed with flashing lights. But that's another story.
I was in traffic behind a pickup after dark last night. He was going very fast, trying to "push" (it seems) a very old van to go the speed limit (and catch up with a semi). I was ready to pass both of them at the earliest sane opportunity, but was pretty leary. It was a two lane state highway in the hills. Lots of blind sweeping curves with elevation change and heavy foliage. Overcast, starting to fog, very dark night, and I didn't know the road.
The guy in the pickup was not THAT close on the van's ass, but evidently the van didn't like the pickup, because he slowed WAY down on purpose. And of course I'm waiting for a hole, but also watching the soap opera in front of me. All of a sudden I see the brake lights of the pickup go on, and the bed shift skyward. Not the flipping over skyward, but the heavy braking skyward. I'm covered and I activate ALL my ABS. Fortunately no one is behind me. No metal is bent, no blood spilled nothing happened. That got a "hmmmmph..." and a rolled eye from me. Shaking my head at the stupidity of people.
We all start going again, and I'm REALLY wanting to get around these chuckleheads, but thinking in the back of my brain that I need to be REALLY careful with this situation. So we get moving along at almost 10 miles an hour under the speed limit. Catching the semi, actually going up the hill. I'm over at the centerline watching for an opportunity to blast around everyone (without success). And yes, I was probably STILL a little too close, but not THAT close.
All of a sudden, I see RED LIGHTS, TAIL GATE going skywards and the red pickup going sideways. The van jammed it's brakes to the hilt, evidently, and the truck was sliding to avoid hitting the van. Of course I grabbed everything I had again.
Somehow, I ended up on the right shoulder (it was a left hand curve), which was almost an entire lane wide and nicely paved. The van and the truck had come to a complete stop. Both in the middle of the road, just a bit over the center line, as far as I could tell.
You ever have that high gear brain thing kick in? Adrenaline takes over, you're thinking at the speed of light? (maybe the speed of molasis in my case) I hadn't even come to a complete stop, knew I was going to be right of everybody who HAD stopped, and I saw a clear path around them all. My brain said NO, not on the right. My adrenaline said YES, get the fuck away from these people, take the shoulder. In that split second, I let off the brakes and went around the two assholes. I figured at the least I could out accelerate them (especially the 40ish year old pos van) before anyone moved.
It was wierd, I knew I shouldn't pass on the right, and it was blind on the left (oncoming, double yellow). At the same time, I was not going to stop and EVEN get involved. Heck, these two may have just come from a bar, be ex-lovers, competing assassins, whatever. I just knew I had to clear out. And I didn't want to do a 180. So I took the path of least resistance and I skated right passed them both. Then I caught the semi and was quickly around him, too.
I tried to look back to see what happened, but that was a hill or two back, so there was nothing to see. I don't know what brought all that on, I just know I'm glad I got away from the insanity.
You know, it's tough enough staying alive by accident, let alone trying not to get killed on purpose.
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May be in the market for a brake conversion to one handed application, ala linked system. Lemme know if any ideas are out there.
