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Other good techniques include watching about 1/4 mile up the road to see what the general traffic flow is doing, instead of just a couple cars directly in front of you.

Driving for what's happening behind you: this means adjusting your following distance to give more space in front of your car if you're being tailgated, and in so doing, giving the tailgater some more stopping distance if the traffic flow comes to an abrupt halt. This allows you to slow down over a greater distance so the clown behind you can realize things are stopping -without hitting you in the process.

And when everything comes to a stop on the freeway, leave some extra distance between yourself and the car in front, in case someone is going to come skidding into you because they didn't notice the whole freeway had stopped until it was too late.
This can give you some options to move, either forward a bit to give them more skidding distance (and so come to a stop without the help of your bumper) or if there's an opportunity, to drive out of the lane and let the skidding car have more room -or let 'em hit somebody else.

Finally if you see you are going to get rear ended while sitting still in a backup, DO stand on your brakes once you've made the evasive adjustments above. Your car is going to get bubble-gummed anyhow and no advantage in getting the guy in front of you involved in the litigation against you for rear-ending him when you're pushed into that car.
-Also you have better support in the rear of your seat against a rear-end collision than you have in front of you against a front-end collision. -Thirdly it's better to have to fix the back, where there is some crunch-space than fix the front where the delicate suspension and engine sections are. You can usually drive with the back end crunched; with the radiator wrecked and hood in your face you are done.
 
I drive a lifted 3/4 ton truck. I watch what's going on several car lengths ahead of me. I also keep my mirrors adjusted. I have a plan "B" at all times. I am not that concerned with the car in front of me. I'm more concerned with the action down the road that he can't see that is going to catch him of guard. When I see something going on down the road that concerns me I make my adjustments to keep moving. Riding my brakes isn't driving. My plan when I fire up the diesel is to get where I need to go efficiently and shut it off. Holding hands on the freeway creating a rolling blockade is BS!! Let's go people!!!
 
Merge with the gas pedal not the brake pedal! If you need to flip your rear view mirror because of my properly adjusted headlights; you are in the wrong lane.
 
whatever pain you feel while driving - its amplified if you are a public transit driver. those guys are friggin saints. the spearmint gum they deal with on a daily basis would no doubt cause full on, and I do mean full on, road rage to some drivers. when I was going to college I drove a dump truck and other big trucks and I got cut off, driven around etc - to the point where I almost had a roll over - even that is not close to what these guys deal with

if you ride a bus - thank your driver.
 
no thanks. i had a city bus driver pull out in front of me from a side street and i t-boned the bus. put me in the hospital, totaled my car.

it has been my observation that so called "professional" drivers, such as truck drivers, are no better than any other person on the road. i have observed them lane shop, cut people off, tailgate (which is a whole lot more dangerous and stupid because then are driving a vehicle that weighs in the tens of tons instead of two tons) and all the other bad driving habits that 95+% of drivers on the road engage in.

and it shouldn't be surprising either - after all, they come from the same pool of humans as other drivers, and they learned how to drive a car before they learned how to drive a truck. it is a very unusual "professional" driver who will say "oh crap, I was a stupid inconsiderate and crappy driver before, but now I drive a truck or bus so I am going to stop doing all those bad things and be a better driver".

No - most people think they are good drivers, so they would continue to do the same things while driving a truck or bus that they did while driving a car. I see it all the time.
 
I try and have at least 3 car lengths in the morning commute but in the afternoon I am riding the a s s of the guy in front of me as I do not want some other a s s hat to cut in front of me.

As for the 2 wheeled pricks well I had one give me the finger when he was pushing the issue in the bike lane...WTF I even gave him extra room and he gave me the finger... well needless to say he got a little extra black smoke out of the rear of my F350:D I felt so bad I took the next turn just so I could go back and do it again:D I hate those guys.....
 
no thanks. i had a city bus driver pull out in front of me from a side street and i t-boned the bus. put me in the hospital, totaled my car.

it has been my observation that so called "professional" drivers, such as truck drivers, are no better than any other person on the road. i have observed them lane shop, cut people off, tailgate (which is a whole lot more dangerous and stupid because then are driving a vehicle that weighs in the tens of tons instead of two tons) and all the other bad driving habits that 95+% of drivers on the road engage in.

and it shouldn't be surprising either - after all, they come from the same pool of humans as other drivers, and they learned how to drive a car before they learned how to drive a truck. it is a very unusual "professional" driver who will say "oh crap, I was a stupid inconsiderate and crappy driver before, but now I drive a truck or bus so I am going to stop doing all those bad things and be a better driver".

No - most people think they are good drivers, so they would continue to do the same things while driving a truck or bus that they did while driving a car. I see it all the time.


I've been riding the bus for almost 2 years now - no doubt there are examples of I remember when..... but these guys repeatedly just take it. It could be much worse. Are they all saints? no. Do all subaru drivers suck.. no (but most do).

We share the same chemistry for the most part but to be honest I have seen that professional drivers ARE better. Do some suck? of course. You cannot coral the lot and broad brush behavior.
 
I try and have at least 3 car lengths in the morning commute but in the afternoon I am riding the a s s of the guy in front of me as I do not want some other a s s hat to cut in front of me.

As for the 2 wheeled pricks well I had one give me the finger when he was pushing the issue in the bike lane...WTF I even gave him extra room and he gave me the finger... well needless to say he got a little extra black smoke out of the rear of my F350:D I felt so bad I took the next turn just so I could go back and do it again:D I hate those guys.....

not sure where all the hatred has come for bikers. you guys should be happy they are all not driving. I share the road and have never had a problem except once. I lived in portland for many years.

they are much better than most drivers. in fact for the years i was pedaling I had beer cans thrown at me, a gun pulled on me. numerous fingers and horns and of course the pricks in diesel trucks that slam the pedal down to make a ton of black smoke. its always funny that you guys never stop - if you were you'll get much more than you bargained for. And....to prove my point above. large trucks and buses never a problem in fact the best carrier is May's trucking. Those guys were awesome - always lots of room and always courteous.

next time your driving - give bikers room...it's hard work pedaling. OH, I'm willing to betg that my diesel truck is bigger than yours although its on DEF so you wont get the same black smoke as yours - keep truckin.
 
not sure where all the hatred has come for bikers. you guys should be happy they are all not driving. I share the road and have never had a problem except once. I lived in portland for many years.

they are much better than most drivers. in fact for the years i was pedaling I had beer cans thrown at me, a gun pulled on me. numerous fingers and horns and of course the pricks in diesel trucks that slam the pedal down to make a ton of black smoke. its always funny that you guys never stop - if you were you'll get much more than you bargained for. And....to prove my point above. large trucks and buses never a problem in fact the best carrier is May's trucking. Those guys were awesome - always lots of room and always courteous.

next time your driving - give bikers room...it's hard work pedaling. OH, I'm willing to betg that my diesel truck is bigger than yours although its on DEF so you wont get the same black smoke as yours - keep truckin.


What's the point of having a big diesel if you can't roll a little coal every now and then? :D

I keep 2-3 seconds behind people when the kids and wife are in the Excursion with me. But when I'm in my truck, alone, I tend to drive a little more aggressively. Swapping lanes quickly, a little tailgating here and there, maybe some screaming at other "idiots" (I am one, so I can call them that). But, haven't had a speeding ticket since 1997 (in my PINTO) and only one wreck that was caused more by the way the road was laid out than negligence.
 
I've been riding the bus for almost 2 years now - no doubt there are examples of I remember when..... but these guys repeatedly just take it. It could be much worse. Are they all saints? no. Do all subaru drivers suck.. no (but most do).

We share the same chemistry for the most part but to be honest I have seen that professional drivers ARE

better. Do some suck? of course. You cannot coral the lot and broad brush behavior.

I resemble the Subaru part!
 
I used to ride bicycles a lot before my back wouldn't let me anymore. I also had a lot of problems with cars - things thrown at me, chasing me, etc.

I always give pedestrians, bicyclists and motorcyclists extra attention, space and care.

That said, a lot of them are idiots.

Jaywalkers when there is a safe lighted crosswalk within 50 feet - just plain lazy.

Walking down a dark unlighted road with dark clothing and almost no shoulder to walk on.

I once saw a person (older teenager at least by the size, it was hard to tell) riding a skateboard in a bicycle lane that was between two car lanes (a turn lane and a regular lane), riding against the flow of traffic, during heavy rush hour traffic, in the dark, in the rain, with dark clothes.

Bicyclists - at the very least many of them (most?) ignore right of way and rules of the road. They ride right through traffic lights and signs. They ignore pedestrians in crosswalks or on a sidewalk. They ride on sidewalks where people are walking when there is room for a bike on the street.

Motorcyclists - lane shopping, swerving in and out of traffic, tailgating, riding too fast for conditions, very loud pipes. Now I admit, save for tailgating and lane shopping, I have done all of those with my bikes, although I was always a bit more conservative about moving through traffic. For the most part a 500 pound street bike is a lot less dangerous to other vehicles at 80 MPH than a car is at 55 MPH due to the much smaller mass, but that doesn't mean they aren't idiots.

As for diesel pickups with black smoke - my big truck, a Dodge 3500 with Cummins and 12' flatbed is as large and heavy as most any pickup on the road. It never belches black smoke - as a former diesel mech I can say with authority that black smoke from a diesel is just unburnt fuel - it just means your fuel injection system is not working properly. It also means you are an idiot for thinking it is cool to do that.
 
I leave enough space that another car can't slip in. If you leave a car length gap ; a car will slip into it. Now you back off more than a car length again and another car slides in. Pretty soon you are just the guy letting everyone in front of you. I'm not that guy!

The problem is that, depending on the speed you're travelling, with only a car length, you won't have time to stop in an emergency. I drive a company vehicle, I'm required to leave 4-6 seconds between myself and the cars in front of me - if I don't, I can lose my right to drive that vehicle. So, I've been doing this for years. I know people will pull into that space - sometimes. If they do, I back off just a bit and get the space back. Guess what, I still get where I'm going in the time I planned. It's a head-game to think that another driver getting in front of you is robbing you of something. That space cushion is there to protect you, don't close the gap just because you don't want some prick pulling in front of you. Trust me, do it for a while and it won't even bother you any more. I've already avoided a number of accidents where folks ahead of me slammed on the brakes and I had plenty of time to react and stop. I'll stick with using the gap.
 
I used to ride bicycles a lot before my back wouldn't let me anymore. I also had a lot of problems with cars - things thrown at me, chasing me, etc.

I always give pedestrians, bicyclists and motorcyclists extra attention, space and care.

That said, a lot of them are idiots.

Jaywalkers when there is a safe lighted crosswalk within 50 feet - just plain lazy.

Walking down a dark unlighted road with dark clothing and almost no shoulder to walk on.

I once saw a person (older teenager at least by the size, it was hard to tell) riding a skateboard in a bicycle lane that was between two car lanes (a turn lane and a regular lane), riding against the flow of traffic, during heavy rush hour traffic, in the dark, in the rain, with dark clothes.

Bicyclists - at the very least many of them (most?) ignore right of way and rules of the road. They ride right through traffic lights and signs. They ignore pedestrians in crosswalks or on a sidewalk. They ride on sidewalks where people are walking when there is room for a bike on the street.

Motorcyclists - lane shopping, swerving in and out of traffic, tailgating, riding too fast for conditions, very loud pipes. Now I admit, save for tailgating and lane shopping, I have done all of those with my bikes, although I was always a bit more conservative about moving through traffic. For the most part a 500 pound street bike is a lot less dangerous to other vehicles at 80 MPH than a car is at 55 MPH due to the much smaller mass, but that doesn't mean they aren't idiots.

As for diesel pickups with black smoke - my big truck, a Dodge 3500 with Cummins and 12' flatbed is as large and heavy as most any pickup on the road. It never belches black smoke - as a former diesel mech I can say with authority that black smoke from a diesel is just unburnt fuel - it just means your fuel injection system is not working properly. It also means you are an idiot for thinking it is cool to do that.

If its too black/loud, you're too old/bubblegumy
 
If its too black/loud, you're too old/bubblegumy
I *am* too old. But then most 60 year olds don't ride around on loud Ducatis either (I have sold it - I have a lot more fun on my dirt bikes).

I have always thought that people who show off with tattoos, piercings, loud pipes and non-functional leather on Harleys, and yes, people who lay down a layer of smoke from their diesel pickup, were idiots.

Age does have a little to do with it - I more or less outgrew most such displays of trying to get attention from others when I got into my 20s and 30s. So yes, I think of these things as a sign of immaturity.
 
The problem is that, depending on the speed you're travelling, with only a car length, you won't have time to stop in an emergency. I drive a company vehicle, I'm required to leave 4-6 seconds between myself and the cars in front of me - if I don't, I can lose my right to drive that vehicle. So, I've been doing this for years. I know people will pull into that space - sometimes. If they do, I back off just a bit and get the space back. Guess what, I still get where I'm going in the time I planned. It's a head-game to think that another driver getting in front of you is robbing you of something. That space cushion is there to protect you, don't close the gap just because you don't want some prick pulling in front of you. Trust me, do it for a while and it won't even bother you any more. I've already avoided a number of accidents where folks ahead of me slammed on the brakes and I had plenty of time to react and stop. I'll stick with using the gap.
Try using that logic while waiting in line a restaurant and don't complain about how long it takes to get seated. I'll gladly slip into the space you provide every time. Please stay to the right while counting.
 
black smoke is unburned fuel but it typically comes from tuned trucks like those with a banks or EDGE system like I had in my last Ford. Look at the diesels at that race they all belch black smoke.

Keep in mind the examples cited are those that stick out in your head - the thousands of times you see everything working well, bicyclists doing what they should, walkers obeying lights, drivers obeying speed limits and being courteous never get recognized. We draw on the few examples and call it "everytime" "all of them are idiots" when in fact its the small percentage is what you are referring to. Nevertheless that's the human experience. We all do it.



I used to ride bicycles a lot before my back wouldn't let me anymore. I also had a lot of problems with cars - things thrown at me, chasing me, etc.

I always give pedestrians, bicyclists and motorcyclists extra attention, space and care.

That said, a lot of them are idiots.

Jaywalkers when there is a safe lighted crosswalk within 50 feet - just plain lazy.

Walking down a dark unlighted road with dark clothing and almost no shoulder to walk on.

I once saw a person (older teenager at least by the size, it was hard to tell) riding a skateboard in a bicycle lane that was between two car lanes (a turn lane and a regular lane), riding against the flow of traffic, during heavy rush hour traffic, in the dark, in the rain, with dark clothes.

Bicyclists - at the very least many of them (most?) ignore right of way and rules of the road. They ride right through traffic lights and signs. They ignore pedestrians in crosswalks or on a sidewalk. They ride on sidewalks where people are walking when there is room for a bike on the street.

Motorcyclists - lane shopping, swerving in and out of traffic, tailgating, riding too fast for conditions, very loud pipes. Now I admit, save for tailgating and lane shopping, I have done all of those with my bikes, although I was always a bit more conservative about moving through traffic. For the most part a 500 pound street bike is a lot less dangerous to other vehicles at 80 MPH than a car is at 55 MPH due to the much smaller mass, but that doesn't mean they aren't idiots.

As for diesel pickups with black smoke - my big truck, a Dodge 3500 with Cummins and 12' flatbed is as large and heavy as most any pickup on the road. It never belches black smoke - as a former diesel mech I can say with authority that black smoke from a diesel is just unburnt fuel - it just means your fuel injection system is not working properly. It also means you are an idiot for thinking it is cool to do that.
 
I *am* too old. But then most 60 year olds don't ride around on loud Ducatis either (I have sold it - I have a lot more fun on my dirt bikes).

I have always thought that people who show off with tattoos, piercings, loud pipes and non-functional leather on Harleys, and yes, people who lay down a layer of smoke from their diesel pickup, were idiots.

Age does have a little to do with it - I more or less outgrew most such displays of trying to get attention from others when I got into my 20s and 30s. So yes, I think of these things as a sign of immaturity.

nicely put - although the only problem in your response is you sold your Ducati.
 
nicely put - although the only problem in your response is you sold your Ducati.
I sold it because it wasn't getting ridden - I have more fun on my dirt bikes - not because I am too old to ride it.

I love the sound of a 90 deg. V-twin with good pipes - it was the most fun street bike I have ever owned. If I didn't have a use for the money I would have kept it, but I always have something else I can spend the money on - right now I am shopping for a tractor.
 

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