[Shotimes] Almost lost it, aka death by phone

[D Potter]

"We don't need no stinkin' driving classes".

DP


----- Original Message -----
From: "Ron Nottingham" <nottingham@alltel.net>
To: <shotimes@autox.team.net>
Sent: Sunday, December 15, 2002 8:15 AM
Subject: Re: [Shotimes] Almost lost it, aka death by phone


> Naw, morons on cell phones while driving cars ain't dangerous.  And
> certainly, morons on cell phones driving SUV's going 90mph ain't
dangerous.
> I'm not going to say anything more about cell phones and driving.  You
> guys/gals all know my position on this...
>
> Ron N. - Dalton, GA
> 90 SHO
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "D Potter" <jpotter8@bellsouth.net>
>
>
> > By an absolute margin of utter luck I am still here tonight. I was at my
> > inlaw's this evening to help my aged father-in-law who is suffering from
> > Alzheimer's. The time came to leave, and I and my wife left in our
> respective
> > cars since we drove there separately. My boy begged to ride with mom
when
> we
> > left, and I relented, even though I wanted to take him with me to the
> corner
> > store on the way home. Had he been with me, I'd have been a touch
> distracted,
> > and this may have been the end of both of us.
> >
> > The inlaw's neighborhood has a dedicated light that changes right away
to
> let
> > them onto the main 5-lane drag. The light changes a bit quickly, so I
tend
> to
> > look before pulling out in case someone has not noticed the light
turning
> red.
> > As usual, I pulled up to the light and the other immediately turned to
> yellow
> > for the cross traffic. I noticed vehicles in both directions moving
> quickly
> > towards the intersection, and decided to wait not for the light, but for
> all
> > cars to come to a stop before proceeding. I can do this as the light
stays
> > green until you exit the street, and I have seen a few cars on several
> > occasions not make the stop due to excessive speed, so I felt it prudent
> that
> > I wait a second.
> >
> > A few seconds passed, and two lines of cars proceeding in opposite
> directions
> > came to a stop before me. I let out the clutch and the SHO starts moving
> > towards the intersection. I hit the bump that's right before the end of
> the
> > street and know the nose of my car is just starting into the first lane
of
> > cross-traffic, when I see a flash of white out of my left peripheral
> vision,
> > then a white, black and red blur in front of me. I didn't have enough
time
> to
> > react to the vision for it was gone before I had even yanked my foot off
> the
> > gas, let alone snap in the clutch. It took me a full two seconds, with
my
> car
> > still rolling slowly into the cross-traffic lanes to snap myself out of
> the
> > sudden shock and confirm what had happened. A large SUV, specifically a
> black
> > Navigator, had blown the light. What was even more frightening was the
> fact
> > that the driver didn't even hit the brakes as he sped off down the road
in
> > this congested area of the city.
> >
> > I wasn't going to be able to get out of the car for at least ten minutes
> for
> > fear of wetting my pants, so I made a quick right turn and took off
after
> the
> > SUV after partially clearing my head. A few red lights down the road I
> quickly
> > caught the vehicle, and took down the plate number. Gee, the driver was
on
> a
> > cell-phone. I was mad and wanted to get out and yell at the moron and
> maybe
> > hit him, but I kept reminding myself that a day in court will be more of
> an
> > inconvienence. I turned back, called the police, and filed a wreckless
> driving
> > report with them. A summons will be sent.
> >
> > While giving my account of the incident to the officer, a few things
were
> > noted. The entrance to my inlaw's neighborhood has a typical set of
walls
> on
> > either side of the road. The walls are set beyond the minimum distance
> from
> > the crossing road to allow for good vision, per law. I had looked to the
> left
> > and right before pulling out, and didn't see the vehicle because it was
so
> far
> > down the road that it was obstructed by the wall to my left. The cop had
> me
> > put my car where it had been as I was waiting for the light, and sat in
it
> to
> > determine how far down the road the SUV had been when I looked to the
> left.
> > Based upon my recollection of how much time elapsed before I began to
pull
> > away, he estimated that the SUV was moving at least 70mph but not more
> than
> > 100 mph on this 45mph street. Not nice words flowed through my head upon
> > hearing this. I was comforted only in the fact that 25+ over can = loss
of
> > license.
> >
> > Even though I thoroughly believe that cell phones are a distraction and
> should
> > not be allowed for use by persons in control of moving cars, I am not
> relating
> > this to inflame this old debate. I will, however, throw this in the face
> of
> > this driver. If my son had not insisted on riding with mom, both him and
I
> > would surely be at the morgue this evening due to this idiot's bad
> judgement
> > call. I'm sure his lawyer will say he was in a heated conversation, or
had
> > just received really bad news, to attempt to justify his lack of
attention
> to
> > the road, but this is exactly why cell phones should not be used by
people
> > operating vehicles. I look forward to grilling this idiot over the
coals.
> This
> > is about more than my own anger. It's about the safety of my family. I
> plan on
> > setting precedent in this county where driving problems are seen as a
way
> to
> > make revenue for the courthouse and nothing more. I plan on holding the
> courts
> > accountable for their inactions. I see unsafe vehicles and inattentive
> drivers
> > all the time, yet the vast majoritiy of the cars that get pulled over
are
> > those that exceed the speed limit.
> >
> > As a teenager, during the 80's, I used to cycle down these roads to this
> same
> > neighborhood to see what was, at the time, my girlfriend (now wife).
When
> I
> > returned to the area in '93 after exiting the military, I noted that,
> while
> > the traffic had increased by maybe 10%, it was almost twice as difficult
> to
> > navigate the roads safely by bike. Why? Because I had to keep a constant
> > vigilance with my rear view mirror for passing cars. What was I looking
> for?
> > People with their arms angled up towards their head...
> >
> > OK, so maybe I  DID bring the issue up a little bit. Sorry, I guess I'm
> still
> > a little wired nearly 11 hours later. I'm having difficulty weighing the
> 1% of
> > people that can drive while on the phone against the 99% that can't. I'm
> for
> > freedom as much as possible, but only within reason. There are other
> things
> > that bother me, like the fact that anyone with a driver's license and
> enough
> > cash can walk away from a dealer with a 6400lb vehicle. No one ever
> mentions
> > how much distance is required to achieve a complete stop from 60mph when
> > selling an SUV, nor do they talk about blind spots. I guess they
actually
> want
> > to sell these things, because if they took the time to explain to a
> > prospective buyer how easy it is for their SUV to tear through the
average
> > mid-size sedan and smear the occupants all over the road, they might be
> less
> > inclined to buy one if not at least encouraged to not drive them at
55mph
> > through 35mph zones. I remember the old days of SUV's, when the only
name
> in
> > the game was the Suburban, and it typically was seen moving at least
10mph
> > slower than any other vehicle. 10 car lengths gap from one behind you
was
> not
> > uncommon. Now, they are on your bumper, and your interior is lit like
> daytime
> > while driving at night. I see them fly down my street, going 45 ina 25,
so
> > they can make it to church on time across the street. They hit the
corner
> and
> > gun it, often leaving a small squeel of rubber in the process. I can't
let
> my
> > boy play in the side yard on Sundays due to these people. Mass must be
> damn
> > good there, more important than life itself.
> >
> > Enough of my ramblings (did anyone really make it this far?), they are
> just my
> > opinions, take them for what they are worth. I'm going to bed now if I
can
> > sleep.
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