Dumb Things Drivers Do

Was he from away?

Driving in the passing lane while not passing.

Steering by wrist on top of wheel. Perp usually male, wearing ball cap (not necessarily backwards), sporting facial expression indicating extreme boredom or mild retardation or both.

Driving well under the speed limit while oblivious to the line of traffic stacking up behind you. Most often occurs on two lane roads with few places to pass.

Hill races on Route 1. Poking along at 40-45 until a passing lane comes up then everyone is going 75, passing lane ends and it's back to 40 with the same order of vehicles.

Ah, yes, hill races. Happens all the time, why do people do that?

How about this one?
Farmington woman charged with terrorizing
The other woman reportedly had been traveling at a higher speed and had to brake when she approached Hardy’s vehicle. As she went around Hardy’s vehicle, the woman reported that Hardy yelled at her and removed a 9-millimeter handgun from her purse.
According to police, Hardy was licensed to carry a concealed weapon.

OK, so there you are, driving at a constant rate of speed. There is no one behind you. As you approach an intersection, a driver lunges out into your lane, causing you to brake, travels about 1000 feet and then slows to make a turn onto another road.

Drivers who pass you when you are comfortably driving 5-8mph above the limit on the highway, then get right back in front of you leaving barely one car-length between you, resulting in you now being a tailgater.

Also, those cheats who wait until the last possible chance to get into a forced merge, usually due to construction-induced lane closure (think entering Brunswick from the north), assuming somehow that they are entitled to be admitted into the single-lane at the last second.... they should have a bumper sticker that reads, "Do You Know Who I Am?"

Drivers who pass on the right when passing on the right either isn't allowed, or isn't advisable.

Case in point, the new construction in downtown Kennebunk. A former right passing lane on one side of a particular four-way intersection is now occupied by new curbing and sidewalk. Doesn't stop some people from driving up and over the curbing so they can pass a vehicle in front of them, waiting to turn left.

It helps if you know Lewiston streets to understand this but I will try to explain.

I was on Lisbon St. in Lewiston waiting to take a right onto Main St in my convertible. I had a red light, but right turns are allowed. I, of course, was on my cell phone and since my bluetooth had died, I had it to my ear.

A car is coming up Main St with its blinker on to take a right onto Lisbon St. The woman driving slows down as she takes a right onto Lisbon from Main and yells to me, "Hang up and drive! I'm taking a right, you could have gone."

To which I calmly but loudly replied, "If you paid more attention to your driving and less to my cell phone, you'd know you just turned down a one way street," and laughingly drove off.

Idiots and busybodies, so often are one and the same.

those cheats who wait until the last possible chance to get into a forced merge, usually due to construction-induced lane closure

A particular annoyance, that group. They might as well have a bumper sticker that says "I learned to drive in Massachusetts!"

My personal pet peeve is intersections where two parties perpendicular to each other both wish to turn left - particularly intersections such as the Falmouth exit off 295 North. Now, with a bit of courtesy, those exiting the highway and those wishing to take the entrance ramp could do so simultaneously. Nope.. for some reason, those turning onto the highway think they've the priority and block the move.

The annoyance cited by The Distributist and eagleisland was discussed in a thread from two and a half years ago.

Surprisingly, there were those who practice/defend this sordid behavior.

Much of road rage can be traced to stupid things the state does, I was headed south on 295 and where it dumps unto 95 there is a buck toll booth under construction. Well we all waited 20 minutes so I could give the one booth open a buck.

That is what the state considers my time is worth, 3 bucks an hour, people may get in an accident or get pissed, but the state needs that buck. Similar stupidities were found as we headed out of this state and beyond, but delays mean nothing to the state, only That buck.

I'll say this about out-of-state drivers, they know how to drive their roads with great skill, they are greatly practiced within their everyday routines, it is only when they come here that they lose their knowledge, as if they are on a site-seeing tour.

But I'm not impressed with their merging skills in a construction or constriction zones, they seem to refuse to do so, which leads to huge traffic jams. Same can be said of Maine drivers also, as eagleisland stated, too many in the correct lanes let these cheats in through misguided courtesy.

I remember last week and being caught up in a huge line of traffic in Naples at the swing bridge and traffic was backed up for more than a mile. It is to be expected at this time of the year. What blew our minds was when an idiot from Massachusetts decided to blow by everybody in the breakdown lane.

Oh, but he got his just desserts. My father says to me "Not to worry, there is a Cumberland County Deputy seven cars in front of us". By the time we passed them the Deputy is standing beside the guy with his ticket book in hand. Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha.

Just because it may be legal in some parts of Mass does not mean it will be everywhere else in New England.

Getting passed on the Interstate by someone going the wrong way. It's interesting what images stay in your mind--I remember this fellow clearly: looked over 70, thick glasses, confused look on his face, driving a old pickup with a dog that looked terrified in the front seat. He flashed by me before I could even blink. Fortunately for both of us, I wasn't in the passing lane...

I spent 20 plus years traveling Maine ,NH and VT roads on a daily basis for work. The dumbest,most frightening and enraging thing that happened to me is the number of times an oncoming driver pulled out saw me and continued to pass. More than once I was forced to the side of the road to save my life.
But there is one young couple on their way to the ski way one fine Saturday morning that probably have that mistake indelibly impressed in their flatland minds.Yes I did indulge in a little road rage..... turned around and chased them down.......well and the rest is history.

I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who has indulged in moron chasing. A few years ago I was driving the speed limit on a well traveled road near home, when I noticed a tailgater. It was extreme, like 3 feet off my bumper. I sped up a little, so did he; I slowed down, same. Finally I kept slowing down to a crawl, then a full stop, right in the travel lane. He was back there screaming and yelling and blowing his horn. After about 30 seconds, he actually had to back up a little, he was so close, then peeled out and zoomed around and off. Luckily there was no other traffic at the moment.

As he went around, I noticed his plate from a certain other country and knew exactly where he was going. I took a short cut that got me back to the same road a couple miles ahead. I turned toward him and drove at a leisurely pace. When I saw him and we drew close, I leaned on the horn and gave him the international salute to bad driving. His expression confirmed that he recognized me.

Dang, was he surprised.

Tailgaters.

But I just put on my right-hand blinker and pull over a bit so they can pass. They aren't worth any more of my energy than that.

They'll get their speeding tickets...only a matter of where and when. Unfortunately, nobody can replace the deer they hit...or pets. I wish them a silent good-luck.

I think I've mentioned my invention to discourage tailgaters -- a venetian blind type device in the rear window. When activated in one direction it displays a sign saying something like, "Back Off!" If that's ignored, it gets activated in the opposite direction and displays a mirrored surface. Works best at night.

This had to be about twenty years ago now. I was sitting in a traffic jam on I-95 between Biddeford and Saco. In those days I had a cb radio in the car and heard the traffic jam was more than 3 miles long. The accident was just south of the Biddeford exit.

Anyway, this idiot blows by me by driving in the breakdown lane. I radioed this information further down the line. However, there were three tractor trailer rigs parked one behind the other. So they told me and everybody else, as other drivers were letting these rig drivers where this idiot was at, what they planned on doing. The middle rig pulled down into the breakdown lane leaving himself enough space to get out when traffic starting moving again.

The car came upon this and the driver of the rig said he had pulled down into the breakdown lane because his rig was overheating. The driver of the car became overheated himself and called the State Police because the driver of the rig would not move his truck. Then just after the State Police were called, traffic started to move and the rig got back into traffic, but nobody would let the car back into line.

I also had a police scanner in my car and I remember them saying that when the Trooper arrives if he wants to talk to driver of the rig he can do that and would be happy to provide a statement.

The Trooper passed me, in the breakdown lane, while I was in this very large traffic jam. A half hour later he released the car into traffic, but he did talk to the driver of the rig and gee wiz it was a different story than that of the driver of the car. The Trooper said the driver of the rig had been communicating with other people with cb radios and they all told him this guy in the car was coming down the breakdown lane. He said he issued a fine to the driver of the car for operating his motorvehicle in an unsafe manner.

Yesterday, on Court Street in Auburn, I was on a motorcycle and was being tailgated by less than a foot. I made several attempts to initiate a conversation through both words and hand gestures. I thought I'd be successful at the stop light at the bottom of the hill, but the driver anticipated me. Apparently not a gifted conversationalist, they turned onto a side street. A bag of marbles will be standard equipment on any motorcycle I ride from now on.

I did this, oh, six or seven times. I drive a full size van, 8 cylinder, rear wheel drive, automatic - just like God intended. At home it lives outside - that is, in the winter it acquired a nice snow pack on the roof. In those days I commuted to southern points quite frequently, usually traveling Sunday afternoon. By the time I drove from home to the pike, the snow pack was sort of loose and jiggling around.

Invariably, within minutes of getting on the pike, I acquired a tailgater. No amount of semi-friendly gestures would entice the jerk to go around - in fact, he snuggled up even closer. When I had had enough, I goosed the accelerator and drove out from under the snowpack which landed on the perp's hood.

Two or three times I saw the guy later in the drive. He looked some upset.

That's great! Now if you simultaneously blind him with my rear window mirror...mission accomplished!

The AMG Legal Division reminds everyone that operating a vehicle in a manner that could injure or kill others is not endorsed, encouraged, or condoned by this forum. All comments are the sole responsibility of the posters.

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Updated: 12:38 PM
Police: West Gardiner speeder hit triple digits

By Craig Crosby ccrosby@centralmaine.com
Staff Writer

WEST GARDINER — A Rockland man ...argued he was only doing 97 miles per hour....

Matthew Catalano.....charged with criminal speed after his 2002 Pontiac Firebird was clocked at 109 miles per hour on Interstate 295...

Catalano, who said he was heading to a party, reasoned his speedometer must be slow because he thought he was only going 97 miles per hour...
...snip

Catalano was taken to the Kennebec County jail...

Sounds like his "party" money may be lacking for a wee bit...

***************

"Um, Party of One, for a steel booth, please!"

Something I like to do is flash my headlights at people who are speeding in the opposite direction. I LOVE to see them wave in gratitude and apply their brakelights as they slow down to legal speed in anticipation of the cop up ahead. Heheheheh.

I would recommend against 'grooming' whilst driving....
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Woman Crashes Car While Shaving, uh, Down There

KEY WEST -- We all know the dangers of driving while texting or talking on a cell phone.

Now Florida Keys law enforcement officers add a new caution: Don't try to shave your privates while driving, either.

Florida Highway Patrol troopers say a [an accident] was caused by a 37-year-old woman driver who was shaving her bikini area while her ex-husband took the wheel …

It wasn't a close shave -- it was a total wreck.

Full Story:
Source-- KTLA News

You win, Punk. Hands down. Or pants down. Or whatever. I don't even want to think about what the car looked like after the barber was done.

Years ago I had a friend who chewed tobacco, well we were headed down Rt1 when this car started to tailgate. After all the usual attempts to get him to stop tailgating my friend casually spit out the window, no more tailgater.