Road Rage, Then vs Now

gathermewool

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In my 20's I'd toy with tailgaters and play the NASCAR-style of tailgating game to prevent jerks from cutting me off from the right. I actually spent the better part o 24 hours doing this on a road trip to FL (lots of traffic at every major city, all day and all night, for some reason) and I'd bet my blood pressure was through the roof, not to mention the wear and tear on my FXT. I justified the latter bad behavior because these same highways seemed more often than not to be only two lanes AND the right lane always seemed to be filled with those going less than the speed limit. I figured I was attentive enough, smart enough or whatever enough to handle this style of driving, even with my young son in the car.

In the past, I've gotten out of my car and "had words" with other drivers, though always when I was alone.

I used to drive well in excess of the speed limit and would pass people, even if the lanes were painted solid yellow, if they were going less than I thought was fast enough. I would "street race" in my STI when in my 20's and early 30's.

/

Those days are gone!

Nowadays, I stick to the right lane (middle if available) only, even if it means mostly going slower than I want to. I don't tailgate ANYONE and when people tailgate me I'll speed up and go faster than I want, if necessary (e.g., on single-lane roads, not to exceed ~5 MPH over the speed limit.) If there is a safe place for someone to pass me, I'll slow down as soon as I see them enter the oncoming lane to pass me. I will NEVER, EVER get out of my vehicle to confront someone. If someone wants to do more than talk about something, regardless of fault, I plan to enter my vehicle, lock the doors, and wait for the authorities to arrive. I'm sure I can yolk up most of the people I might encounter, but is that worth the risk of being stabbed, shot or provoked into something that might somehow be turned against me in a court of law? NO!!!

What about the rest of you? Have you finally seen the light or do you still mess with the jerkenheimers of the world? Worse, are you one of the impatient jerkenheimers? Why is that?
 
No other driver controls my emotions or my blood pressure. I drive defensively and watch way down the road ahead of me. There is a lot of mental illness out there and they are driving vehicles. I don't engage or escalate .
 
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Originally Posted by spasm3
No other driver controls my emotions or my blood pressure. I drive defensively and watch way down the road ahead of me. There is a lot of mental illness out there and they are driving vehicles. I don't engage or escalate .

Egggggsactly👌
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted by spasm3
No other driver controls my emotions or my blood pressure. I drive defensively and watch way down the road ahead of me. There is a lot of mental illness out there and they are driving vehicles. I don't engage or escalate .


Exactly!

I also love it when I'm coasting to a red light and the guy five car-lengths or more behind me beats me to the light by a lot...
 
Originally Posted by gathermewool
In my 20's I'd toy with tailgaters and play the NASCAR-style of tailgating game to prevent jerks from cutting me off from the right. I actually spent the better part o 24 hours doing this on a road trip to FL (lots of traffic at every major city, all day and all night, for some reason) and I'd bet my blood pressure was through the roof, not to mention the wear and tear on my FXT. I justified the latter bad behavior because these same highways seemed more often than not to be only two lanes AND the right lane always seemed to be filled with those going less than the speed limit. I figured I was attentive enough, smart enough or whatever enough to handle this style of driving, even with my young son in the car.

In the past, I've gotten out of my car and "had words" with other drivers, though always when I was alone.

I used to drive well in excess of the speed limit and would pass people, even if the lanes were painted solid yellow, if they were going less than I thought was fast enough. I would "street race" in my STI when in my 20's and early 30's.

/

Those days are gone!

Nowadays, I stick to the right lane (middle if available) only, even if it means mostly going slower than I want to. I don't tailgate ANYONE and when people tailgate me I'll speed up and go faster than I want, if necessary (e.g., on single-lane roads, not to exceed ~5 MPH over the speed limit.) If there is a safe place for someone to pass me, I'll slow down as soon as I see them enter the oncoming lane to pass me. I will NEVER, EVER get out of my vehicle to confront someone. If someone wants to do more than talk about something, regardless of fault, I plan to enter my vehicle, lock the doors, and wait for the authorities to arrive. I'm sure I can yolk up most of the people I might encounter, but is that worth the risk of being stabbed, shot or provoked into something that might somehow be turned against me in a court of law? NO!!!

What about the rest of you? Have you finally seen the light or do you still mess with the jerkenheimers of the world? Worse, are you one of the impatient jerkenheimers? Why is that?

Some guy in a Q50a tried to get around me on the freeway to take my lane. I let him as it was a bit wet out, and we were coming up on some cars ahead of us and I suspect his brakes were better than mine as he was in a car and I was in an SUV not known for amazing brakes. Then we took the cloverleaf and I tried to get around him. He blocked me NASCAR style even though I had t he speed to easily muscle past him. But that's the game. I wasn't mad, and he didn't drive or act like it afterward, either. Dude wasn't a jerk, IMO, nor did he behave erratically or anything of the sort. Just a bit of fun with the limits dialed way back in deference to conditions.
 
Originally Posted by Ws6
Some guy in a Q50a tried to get around me on the freeway to take my lane. I let him as it was a bit wet out, and we were coming up on some cars ahead of us and I suspect his brakes were better than mine as he was in a car and I was in an SUV not known for amazing brakes. Then we took the cloverleaf and I tried to get around him. He blocked me NASCAR style even though I had t he speed to easily muscle past him. But that's the game. I wasn't mad, and he didn't drive or act like it afterward, either. Dude wasn't a jerk, IMO, nor did he behave erratically or anything of the sort. Just a bit of fun with the limits dialed way back in deference to conditions.

I've played these games too in the past, but yea, this isn't really what I'm talking about 99% of the time. The kind of jamokes I'm talking about will end up on the rumble strips as they pass you, because they're not really in control of their vehicle. I bet even those of us who don't really pay attention know what I'm talking about when I mention aggressive drivers who over-compensate or don't know the limits of their vehicle.

e.g., I've had a Mirage try to outmaneuver my STI in traffic. I once had an F150 turn sideways in the snow against my Civic with snow tires (this was the biggest WTH moment of my life, actually, as this jamoke almost took at two other cars in his endeavor to show my little Civic what he could do). These interactions were pre-ordaned. Those who know the limits of their vehicles are few and far between.
 
With all of this said, I'll be the first to admit that I've made mistakes. I once raced my buddy's Sable with my little Toyota 1.5L deathtrap as a teen and ended up in a snow drift. I once took my STI to its actual limits and almost ended up dead; luckily, the STI and summer tires were better than me and saved my life when I went beyond MY personal limits. I learned a lot from my mistakes along the way, but I feel as if there are many people on the road who have never learned their lesson or continue to drive like maniacs, regardless of however many close calls they might have been through.

Maybe a better thread title would have been: driving like an idiot: have you learned your lesson?
 
I am a lot more relaxed now that I don't feel the need to defend my turf, speed or drive like a sphincter.. A side benefit is I have not been pulled over by the police for many years.
 
I'll be the first to admit I was no angel on the road either. I went from being quite careful in high school to a little bit of a speed demon in college. Which was a bit funny since the speedo in my first cavalier ended at 85 MPH!
lol.gif


After my son was born I gran[a drove after that. As he got older now in the last few years, I've got a tiny bit of that "speed" back. But I am much more laid back at the wheel now. I figure after a few choice words in my car I just get over it......
 
Nope. I just play the long game and hang in the middle of the pack. If a bunch of JDM's are running I'll join in but I do all my high speed runs on PlayStation 4.
 
Commercial driving made me change the way I drive now. And that having a box behind me means I don't have to see traffic behind me or that moron sniffing my mansfield bar.
 
I have to say I gave a guy driving like a World Champion a prolonged number one ranking which he saw... He was driving very stupid in heavy traffic. And then trying to go around me which never ever was going to work... Well that World Champion fell in behind me... I did a u turn just to see if dumb dumb was following me. Yes. Well I decided to take numb nuts on a tour of the back roads at a normal pace... I know the back roads extremely well where I grew up. Eventually making it out to Rte 17 again heading south. Then another World Champion cane out into his left lane... And that was a stupid move... I got on the brakes so that numb nuts would not be running into that champion... At this point Jr must have figured I was not totally trying to be a total bad guy... He then gave up his nonsense. I told the people at the garage that I took my car to that World Champion was going to be a looonnnggg drive through the back roads if he would have kept following me. This happened 2 years ago.

I had another cat around my area deliberately drive like a jack donkey trying to start stuff... He started out tailgating me rather bad... Eventually after I had passed a bunch of vehicles... I got over and moron Jr drove on... Then when I saw that moron Jr was going to get trapped behind slower traffic coming into Rte 199 I slowed down to let him get in front of me... Then that Jack donkey tried being stupid and hitting his brakes a bit hard ... Funny... Because I was no where near as close as that moron was to me earlier... Was not even difficult for me to not have a issue. Just another idiot on the road starting stuff just to be a moron.

It happens...

However in general I do try to work with people around me... I let people in front of me... Or I roll out of the gas to let them in front of me if they are catching someone quicker than first thought... I try to get out if people's way if I am in the left lane... Say I'm going 79 mph in a 70 mph zone and I am catching and passing people rather quickly... Then a cat comes along rolling up kind of quick... I get over and out of their way. But if that right lane is bumper to bumper to bumper .. and I'm rolling past those vehicles fairly quick... That cat is going to have to wait until there's a good opening on the right lane.... I try to get over if someone is merging onto the highway... Get from the right lane over to the left to make it easier for them... Amazes me how often people will not do that...

When I have driven on longer trips say up to Vermont, Barryville NY on the Delaware river or Charleston South Carolina... I have made sure to maintain that type of a attitude... To work with those around me... And I did overall really enjoy those drives... 7 plus hours of driving in all those times.

Though it is tough to do that with people driving super fast aka 85+ mph in a 55 mph zone around 695 around Baltimore... And I'm going 70 mph trying not to get in the way too bad.
 
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Originally Posted by gathermewool
With all of this said, I'll be the first to admit that I've made mistakes. I once raced my buddy's Sable with my little Toyota 1.5L deathtrap as a teen and ended up in a snow drift. I once took my STI to its actual limits and almost ended up dead; luckily, the STI and summer tires were better than me and saved my life when I went beyond MY personal limits. I learned a lot from my mistakes along the way, but I feel as if there are many people on the road who have never learned their lesson or continue to drive like maniacs, regardless of however many close calls they might have been through.

Maybe a better thread title would have been: driving like an idiot: have you learned your lesson?

Oh, lol, yah. If you haven't actually spun a sports car, are you really driving? Or just commuting. For sure learnt when I was a kid with an Lt1 fbody. Torque teaches lessons.
 
Originally Posted by gathermewool
I've played these games too in the past, but yea, this isn't really what I'm talking about 99% of the time. The kind of jamokes I'm talking about will end up on the rumble strips as they pass you, because they're not really in control of their vehicle. I bet even those of us who don't really pay attention know what I'm talking about when I mention aggressive drivers who over-compensate or don't know the limits of their vehicle.

e.g., I've had a Mirage try to outmaneuver my STI in traffic. I once had an F150 turn sideways in the snow against my Civic with snow tires (this was the biggest WTH moment of my life, actually, as this jamoke almost took at two other cars in his endeavor to show my little Civic what he could do). These interactions were pre-ordaned. Those who know the limits of their vehicles are few and far between.

Beating faster vehicles is a game of chess. Many times they trap themselves behind others, and if you pay attention you leave them far behind without trying to hard. Otherwise, it's just hp vs weight, other than the twisties, where most people simply have very little experience. You can see it in the lines they "hold"(most cant even hold a bad entry/exit). Many times I've used corners to gain on sports cars even in my cx5. Experience with performance is HUGE.

Also been outhandled by sr20det s240 in my ws.6. It was a very sloppy car, and the 240 guy knew his stuff. No way to beat physics there. Same with a modded s2k and my 370z tightly sprung...terribly damped. On the street it was a disappointment.
 
It just translates into a good way to get shot, stabbed or run over. Even in the sticks up here on the northern border you will still occasionally find some dude who's mummy didn't love him enough flying on speed or whatever. Some [censored] off woman in Swanton vermont in 2013 chased a guy down who cut her off. This was at dinner time . She screamed at him until he had enough and emptied his pistol into her. That in a small town no less. Then there's the just plain crazy ones off their meds. One can only imagine the number of PMS and menopausal women are around adding to🧟the crazy.
When you work customs at land border crossing you come to see just how many hysterical , whacked out , drugged out critters are out there. Strangely and as always I take heat for saying it ,you'll find the women as far the more dangerous if you put the gun part aside. The car itself is far more dangerous than any gun and you don't need to grab for it to do horrible things.
Ive had one sitting there screaming at me that we killed her son while one our genius's stood in front of her car commanding her to stay put. She was power braking the whole time...¬. Younger girls too wound up to the max because they got dumped or caught their boyfriend with someone else, straight out of their minds. We had to bring them in and sit down till they cooled off . And oh the mouth on them. One was so wild that she stormed out burning so much rubber that we figured we better alert the staties. Sure enough caught in the low triple digits 30 miles later still out of her head.
Then there's grandpa / Grandma. Yea they get into the act as well. Middle stage ( I'm assuming ) Alzheimer's or dementia. I've had them lost in space usually haven driven literally all day long trying to find a relative to visit. They'd get the city mixed up with a towns name on a map ( how many Franklin or Jefferson counties, cities vills in the name ect are there,) and wind up in the wrong state. They get agitated frustrated and scared too .
I had one guy drift by the port at 2am on a Sunday. I blew the siren and he stopped then peppered me with stones burning out as he fled while I was approaching the car. All the on duty patrols in the county couldn't find this lone car on one of but a few small roads for a couple hours. Finally I get a call from a nearby Border patrol unit saying he had the guy and would bring him by and it wasn't going to be an arrest situation. He'd gone way way south right through the dragnet and was back again not far from my station. Go figure. Sure enough some old guy lost with mixed up destination names lost and dog tired. I called his daughter in Ohio 🤗and we set him up with a nearby motel where she could collect him later. Oh and there were others similar but different all lost disoriented and if nothing else dangerous from their exhaustion.
So just when you thought all you needed to dodge out there was drunks here is a glimpse of the rest of us out there all driving a ton or more of steel. Thus about the time you decide to corner someone and give them a piece of your mind remember these sorts are ALL OUT THERE any time any day. Just smile and put some distance between you 🤗. It's just not worth the aggravation or worse.
 
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road rage is not something to practice but something to defend against - its usually better to slow down and let them pass but its also a good idea to keep 'something' in the car just incase they try to force you to stop.
 
Originally Posted by Olas
road rage is not something to practice but something to defend against - its usually better to slow down and let them pass but its also a good idea to keep 'something' in the car just incase they try to force you to stop.


YEE YEE!
[Linked Image]
 
I have one of those in my pick up … but around here you'd have to be able to stop a .40 incoming to think it's self defense
 
I had a road rage incident in my early thirties and decided it was stupid.

Got so mad a BMW on highway cut in front of me crossing two lanes with very little space(not much), I drove to close somewhat purposely and then they slammed brakes. We contacted/bumped I drove off as he proceeded to do the same thing to the right lane. Never looked back.

Wake up call I never drove like that again. Nothing came of it.
 
In my Mustang I never really drove fast or aggressive on any regular basis, in fact I drove slower than the speed limit on the interstate. The most fun I had with that car besides the acceleration rush was messing with people. Usually these were people who were trying to cut in line, speed excessively, weave in and out of traffic, etc.

My favorite memory was a guy riding a Harley Davidson on the interstate around midnight. Dude was hauling and I was in the left lane slowly passing an 18 wheeler. As soon as I passed I moved over and the motorcyclist took off and I sped up just to see how fast he was going. He looked over to switch lanes and saw I was there and sped up even more until his bike started to wobble, which was around 90 mph. We both slowed down and I resumed my cruise control speed of 67 mph. He fell behind me and I passed another 18 wheeler and moved over into the right lane. He saw I had my window down and as he passed me, revved his motor and just about made my left ear drum deaf. Only thing was he revved it a little much and he had a huge backfire. We ended taking the same exit and went our separate ways.
 
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