Bad Drivers

While I am home safely from a 724 mile trip to a wedding south of
Roanoke, Virginia, I remained amazed at the terrible driving habits of
people from Virginia and Connecticut.

We drove the RS6 down on Thursday with Biblical rain storms all the
way. Cow ****in' on a flat rock? Try the entire herd! Traffic was
light, so things went fairly well. But, coming home on
Sunday.........

It was impossible to move most Virginia drivers from the fast lane. A
hand-held nuclear device would not have helped. One woman in a Saturn
insisted on staying in the fast lane while driving 62 mph. She had
traffic backed up for 200 yards in both lanes. I finally managed to
pass her (after about ten other cars/semis did) on the right side.
I'm sure she felt that she was not breaking any laws, but by not
staying to the right, she was.

She wasn't the only one. It was like a swarm of left lane bandits
came out of the Virginia hills and took up station in the left lane
driving below the speed limit. When a trailer truck passes you going
up hill, you have *got* to see the error of your ways. But no, not
those Virginia drivers. Lane discipline means nothing to them. And
where the hell are the cops? These drivers are holding up traffic.
The worst place you want to be while driving is in a large pod of
moving cars/trucks. Get the hell out of the way and let the traffic
find its rhythm. The left lane hogs are far more dangerous by holding
up traffic than someone speeding 10 or 15 mpy over the speed limit.

And Connecticut! Same thing, only bigger yuppie style cars, and you
have to contend with left lane exits. Who is the brilliant traffic
engineer to dreamed that one up?

Anyway, rant mode off. Flame suit on.

Dave
RS6

Dave LaCourse wrote:

[snip sad tale of common occurance]

>
> Anyway, rant mode off. Flame suit on.
>

No flames here, Dave. Go to rec.autos.driving - this is the biggest
issue for folks over there. LLBs and folks oblivious to their
surroundings are a blight on our roadways.

Over there, the term used for the Saturn occupant (not to call her a
driver in any sense) is MFFY - me first, fsck you.

I get it driving here in WA as well - the I-5 corridor is filled with
folks who cannot grasp the state law saying "keep right except to
pass." (KRETP). Oh, and those brain-dead "enablers" - the folks that
will let anyone zoom up and cut into line, or wave at you at an
intersection where they legally have the right of way, but feel the
need to show "courtesy."

Yes, r.a.d. is the place where we talk about this...

E.P.

On Mon, 11 Jul 2005 16:55:45 -0700, gcmschemist wrote:

>
>
> Dave LaCourse wrote:
>
> [snip sad tale of common occurance]
>
>>
>> Anyway, rant mode off. Flame suit on.
>>
>
> No flames here, Dave. Go to rec.autos.driving - this is the biggest
> issue for folks over there. LLBs and folks oblivious to their
> surroundings are a blight on our roadways.
>
> Over there, the term used for the Saturn occupant (not to call her a
> driver in any sense) is MFFY - me first, fsck you.
>
> I get it driving here in WA as well - the I-5 corridor is filled with
> folks who cannot grasp the state law saying "keep right except to
> pass." (KRETP). Oh, and those brain-dead "enablers" - the folks that
> will let anyone zoom up and cut into line, or wave at you at an
> intersection where they legally have the right of way, but feel the
> need to show "courtesy."
>
> Yes, r.a.d. is the place where we talk about this...
>
> E.P.

I agree, most of america is infested with poor, rude drivers, lacking
manners and road skills, I too have spent many years in Europe driving and
having to unlearn much of what I have seen in the US. As far east as
Greece and Isreal they drive far better than they do here. I think part of
it is the proliferation of the automatic transmission. ( Standing by for
flaming) many people that should not have drivers licenses drive these
vehicles.

David Timothy Jones wrote:

>... I think part of
>it is the proliferation of the automatic transmission. ( Standing by for
>flaming) many people that should not have drivers licenses drive these
>vehicles.

There's some truth in that. Moving a car (note: not _driving_ it)
becomes like using a toy. This is slowly coming up here too, but it's
not as bad yet.


Regards

Wolfgang

On Tue, 19 Jul 2005 23:09:23 -0400, David Timothy Jones
> wrote:

>I think part of
>it is the proliferation of the automatic transmission. ( Standing by for
>flaming) many people that should not have drivers licenses drive these
>vehicles.

d;o)
I taught both of my daughters (age 43 and 37) how to drive using
"three on the tree" in an old pick-up. The first cars they owned had
5 speeds. One ended up teaching her husband how to drive a stick.

My two oldest grandsons drive Audis - 94 S4, and 2000 A6.

Dave

On Wed, 20 Jul 2005 14:27:06 -0400, Dave LaCourse
> wrote:

>On Tue, 19 Jul 2005 23:09:23 -0400, David Timothy Jones
> wrote:
>
>>I think part of
>>it is the proliferation of the automatic transmission. ( Standing by for
>>flaming) many people that should not have drivers licenses drive these
>>vehicles.
>
>d;o)
>I taught both of my daughters (age 43 and 37) how to drive using
>"three on the tree" in an old pick-up. The first cars they owned had
>5 speeds. One ended up teaching her husband how to drive a stick.
>
>My two oldest grandsons drive Audis - 94 S4, and 2000 A6.

I also learned how to drive with a stick shift, in a ubiquitous VW
Beetle; my parents wouldn't let me drive the Olds Delta 88 automatic.
Now I'm on my third Audi/VW product, a 98.5 A4, preceded by a 95
Passat VRX and an 85 4000S (I loved that old Audi and really should
have kept her, but the breaking door handles were starting to make me
crazy).

The message >
from Dave LaCourse > contains these words:

> I finally managed to
> pass her (after about ten other cars/semis did) on the right side.

I thought you were allowed to pass on either side in the US?

--
Skipweasel.
Ivor Cutler - "Never knowingly understood."

On Tue, 12 Jul 2005 07:27:37 +0100, Guy King >
wrote:

>The message >
>from Dave LaCourse > contains these words:
>
>> I finally managed to
>> pass her (after about ten other cars/semis did) on the right side.
>
>I thought you were allowed to pass on either side in the US?

No, you're supposed to pass on the left only.

The message >
from KLS > contains these words:

> >I thought you were allowed to pass on either side in the US?

> No, you're supposed to pass on the left only.

Ah. There goes another myth!

--
Skipweasel.
Ivor Cutler - "Never knowingly understood."

On Tue, 12 Jul 2005 13:28:39 +0100, Guy King >
wrote:

>The message >
>from KLS > contains these words:
>
>> >I thought you were allowed to pass on either side in the US?
>
>> No, you're supposed to pass on the left only.
>
>Ah. There goes another myth!

Actually, you can pass on the right. Folks do it all the time. But,
if there is someone in the right lane going about the same speed as
the jerk in the left lane, it creates a traffic jam. People were
passing the offending woman on the right, blowing their horns as they
did so.

Dave