Posted on 03/10/2010 8:07:54 AM PST by Jakarta ex-pat
They say that the most lethal weapon that most of us will ever "use" is the car. Here are 3 stories which you are free to add to.
"Sod you then"!, said Pat, and retreated to the back while her friend took the seat next to the driver. Needless to say, an accident occurred, and the passenger next to the driver was severely injured ( the driver was unscathed, as was Pat)
The second story also relates to my cousins, specifically my Aunt Joan. Uncle Norris and his 3 kids were driving home one evening when whoosh! a moped speeds past them. " look at that stupid idiot" remarks my uncle.
As they pulled into their driveway, there's Aunt Joan, late for preparing dinner, disembarking.
Finally, one of my own.
I'm driving on a Jakarta toll road, and suddenly the traffic stops. I decrease speed, but looking into my rear view mirror ( the most important part of a car IMHO), a truck is heading for me at full pelt.
A split second decision puts me into the middle lane ( I was in the "fast lane") and although he rams me, he also takes out a BMW, which lessens the blow.
Two things:
1. Sod?
2. Full “pelt”?
Sounds British or something.
But, beyond that I don’t understand the point of this post.
With all the news from Toyota mishaps recently, I wondered whether anyone had any interesting stories related to the title...
sorry you didn't get the point. Philip
PS. I'm not sure of the origins of sod, except with the phrase Sod's law.
Full pelt meant at high speed, but has its origins in medieval cavalry.
I could never recomend this FOX 9 news special enough. Its just over 7 min but it is worth every second.
FOX 9 Special - ROOM TO LIVE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xP41apGRXk
The “gone global” ad you will share with everyone you know that drives
EMBRACE LIFE
There’s a ‘sodoff’ FR keyword.
First time I heard the term was in the phrase ‘Sod off, swampy.’ from http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1344874/posts
I recall returning to college at the end of Christmas break, in a snow storm that had left quite a bit of slushy, wet snow on the interstate highway. Traffic had slowed to a crawl, all lined up in the “tracks,” with no one willing to chance getting out of them and onto the untracked snow in the left lane.
A large black Lincoln sedan with Kentucky tags came blowing past, slopping wet snow all over everybody’s windshield, with the occupants making faces, pointing and laughing at the wimps crawling along.
We all had the pleasure of watching those faces turn surprised, shocked and then whiten with fear, as the car did several 360 degree turns and went into the median, clipping quite a few aluminum reflector posts as it went.
Nothing serious, no injuries that I could tell, but then again, no one came running to see if they were OK, either.
It was karmic.
We were driving on a two lane highway in California several years ago. Traffic was heavy and there wasn’t any opportunity to pass. A car full of teenagers came roaring past us on the dirt shoulder passing 30 or 40 cars. They were doing at least 80. Pretty soon traffic came to a complete stop. They had flipped their car a mile or two in front of us. The car war really mangled and I never found out if any of them were killed.
I was just funnin’ ya. I should have used a smiley.
I’ve had lots of close calls (many on my motorcycle), but most (not all) were my fault. But I also have the skill to make sure they are only CLOSE.
Regarding the Toyota thing. I have no doubt that once the news on the “sticky throttles” broke, Toyota and the government were very aware of, and had many meetings about, the fact that many people would try to fake this for money. I’m sure every case is seen from that perspective - even if there is loss of life.
I’m 56. I suspect that most men that have been driving as long as I have have at one time or another had a “sticky throttle”. Anything from the motor shifting due to a broken motor mount to a floor mat getting stuck under the gas pedal to a broken spring. We don’t blame the manufacturer unless it is a “clear” design defect. That is, one that they knew about and knew that it would affect lots of people - and the cost of mitigating is low.
I threw that last line in because it is a critical part of this. After all, cars could be much safer if they threw another 100 grand into each car. Safety is always a tradeoff.
:-)
Chuck Norris lost both his legs in a car accident....and still managed to walk it off.
How fast is ‘full pelt’ on a moped?
It’s more of a sound than a speed, lol. About 120 decibels, slightly faster than a bicycle.
Knowing Aunt Joan, it would have been might fast ( over 40 years ago).
might= mighty
Was driving in rush hour traffic on the freeway. Several cars ahead of me someone was severely tailgating. The car in front of him slams on his brakes, coming to a full stop on the interstate. The tailgater slams on his brakes.
Guy behind the tailgater is driving a pickup truck, and has to follow suit or hit the back of the tailgater.
Nobody has rear ended anyone.
However the tire that was in the back of the pickup truck launches into the air, flies over the tailgater’s car and lands on the roof of the car that originally slammed on his brakes to a full stop on the freeway.
Good call. Yes, certainly here in Jakarta, the greatest menace on the road is certainly the "biker."
I rarely drive now, except on Sundays.
Thank god I have an excellent 'supir' ( chauffeur).
In ‘67 I lived on Mercer Island right next to the old toll booths on I-90. They had reversible lanes back then. Every week or two some guy would get on the freeway there and not notice and move into the “passing lane” and WHAM, a head on. The sound is really something. It is not a crash. It is a loud “thud” with “crash” aftertones.
Any way. I was in 7th grade. One day my bro and I are playing catch and we hear that sound and go up to take a look (we were down a 30’ hill from the road). There was a 1965 baracuda with five teenagers. The windshield was gone and the frame was like a picture frame with a photo of five faces all with eyes shut and completely washed in blood. All of their faces were approximately in the same verticle plane as the dashboard. The car was very much shortenedbetween the dashboard and the front . . It had hit a forest green government Plymouth with one guy who was injured but coherent.
What had happened was that a carload of teenagers in a pretty new Baracuda fastback had just entered the freeway, probably floored it and moved into the passing lane going westbound, except it was right after school and rush hour, so the lane was eastbound. The road veered right before entering the floating bridge, and went head on to an east bound government worker coming home from work.
I heard and saw lots of accidents while we lived there and arrived there usually within less than a minute after the thud. This was just the worst.
I assume that most or all of the teenagers were dead.
While at the gas station we heard and saw several emergency vehicles and police cars, all with sirens blasting pass by on the freeway. When I got back on the freeway the traffic was backed up to a stand still. It took about fifteen minutes to go about a mile where we found what was causing the back up. There in a tangled mass of wreckage were the two cars and the van I had been previously following.
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