> -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:brin-l-bounces@;mccmedia.com]On > Behalf Of Deborah Harrell > Sent: Friday, October 18, 2002 5:49 PM
... > RULES OF DRIVING IN DENVER > > 1) A right lane construction closure is just a game to > see how many people can cut in line by passing you on > the right as you sit in the left lane waiting for the > same jerks to squeeze their way back in before hitting > construction barrels. Bonus points are awarded for > getting out of your car and moving the barrels. [We > have a dreadful, massive construction project going on > now; it is appropriately called 'T-REX.') As far as I know, it's true pretty much everywhere that you're *supposed* to use all lanes when there's a merge coming up. After all, that reduces the backup. It's just bizarre to me that people think it is somehow polite to fail to use all available lanes, thus increasing the backup behind them. I recall seeing advertisements from the CHP, IIRC, telling people to use the lanes up to the merge point, then taking turns in a "zipper" fashion. Obviously, the ads didn't work. I vaguely even recall seeing highway signs to that effect somewhere in the East, but they didn't seem to work, either. It's particularly exciting in the area of the Caldecott Tunnels, where they switch the center bore to accommodate the heavier traffic, so there are often two lanes that go away as you approach... going up-hill, which creates lots of gaps due to the people who aren't watching their speed. And that's another one that bugs me... the bozos who zoom by me, only to fail to pay attention when they reach a hill, so I have to pass them, only to have them zoom by me when it dawns on them that it's necessary to press a bit harder on the gas pedal to maintain speed on a hill. (I might add that people who pay attention to my driving sometimes think I'm using cruise control when I'm not. Ever since I learned to fly, I'm far more sensitive to the effects of hills and the need to add or reduce power. Flying an airplane properly requires that...) > 2) Turn signals provide clues as to your next move in > the road battle, so never use them. [One of my > transplanted Louisiana friends was actually pulled > over by a state trooper for failure to signal; she had > _no_ idea that she had done anything wrong (drivers in > Louisiana rarely signal), and burst into tears. He let > her off with a warning. She is careful to signal at > least 90% of the time now.] That's certainly true here in California, for the most part. I habitually signal and do my lane change even if the next person back accelerates to cut me off. I sometimes receive the Hawaiian blessing sign as a result. I guess that's my passive-aggressive side coming out, but I do not commit the most common P-A driving maneuver -- to drive at the speed limit in the fast lane while people pass on the right. Around here, that'll get you killed, I suspect. The joke is that going 65 on I-280 between San Jose and San Francisco will earn you a parking ticket. I've actually been told by a CHP officer that they tolerate more speeding on 280 than elsewhere, but they're quite intolerate of aggressive driving, especially following too close as an incentive for the car in front of you to change lanes. Just pass on the right, she told me. > 3) Under no circumstances should you leave a safe > distance between you and the car in front of you no > matter how fast you are going. If you do, the space > will be filled by somebody else putting you in a more > dangerous situation. [Dallas drivers adhere to this > one as well.] That's another one where I've gotten advice from a cop. And it is... do your best to maintain as much space as you can, but sometimes you just can't keep a safe space, or even enough space for another car to pull into. I'd like a dashboard camera to record the idiot who I just *know* is going to pull an inch in front of me, then slam on the brakes, resulting in damage to both of our cars. But at least as the hitter, rather than the hittee, I won't get whiplash (again). > 4) The faster you drive through a red light, the less > your chance is of getting hit. [In New Orleans, > locals know that you _never_ drive when the light > turns green; you look both ways first.] Et Paris, aussi. Must be a French thing. Anybody here familiar with the Pittsburgh left turn? I had forgotten about it and just about nailed somebody in an intersection when visting the summer before last. Compared with California, few intersections in Pittsburgh have left turn arrows. There's an unwritten rule that the first car at the light, if turning left, gets to turn as soon as the light turns green. Boy, is that a surprise when you're driving the opposite direction, looking a green light that seems to suggest that the other guy is supposed to yield the right of way. > 6) Braking is to be done as hard and as late as > possible to insure that your anti-lock braking system > kicks in and gives you a relaxing foot massage as the > brake pedal pulsates. [Extra points if done on ice! > Most of the FWD crowd hasn't figured out that 4-wheel > _drive_ doesn't equal 4-wheel *brake.* But it > frequently does = breakage...] Oh, yeah, around Denver. Driving there on slippery roads is actually scarier than Lake Tahoe when it's full of snow and flatlanders... probably because there are so many more idiots in Colorado with 4WD, imagining that since their vehicles can *go* faster in snow, they must also stop faster. Wrong. And I'm with Debbi about areas with pedestrians. I really try to keep to the limit in residential areas, near schools, etc. And sometimes I wish I was armed when I see others failing to do the same. I'm forever recalling "The World According to Garp," when Garp would see people speeding through his neighborhood. I'm tempted to be that guy sometimes. Well... no postings in a long time and now a largely irrelevant one. Hmm. Here's my excuse: I finally have a new company gaining steam. Writing lots of code and working on the biz plan with a new partner (definitely an improvement over the last partner!). Nick _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
