DW is a horrible driver

[Morricol61]

I always prefer the seat with the steering wheel. His driving makes me nervous but I relax totally when I am driving. He taught me to drive nearly 40 years ago but I think he's too easily distracted, drives too aggressively and close to the vehicle in front. He even takes it personally when another driver passes him on the motorway and speeds up until he can pass them and get in front again. I tend to sit in the passenger seat applying the imaginary brakes and hoping he gets tired and wants me to drive. I even ask how he is feeling, is he getting drowsy. Desperate housewife.

[painterbill]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Morricol61 I always prefer the seat with the steering wheel. Her driving makes me nervous but I relax totally when I am driving.

In the mid 90's-mid 2000's I belong to an off road race team that primarily raced the Baja 1000 with most of my driving/co-driving duties during the nighttime hours. We raced at that time a two seat buggy with driver/co-driver and one of the quirky rules of "physics" that we always talked about (sometimes mid-race running parallel to a steep drop off/cliff) was how the passenger seat always travels 10-15 mph faster than the drivers seat. I have never been a good passenger so I tend to do most of the driving duties with the DW but when she drives I try my hardest to be a good passenger and not a co-driver. I imagine the new safety technology(lane assist, collision avoidance, etc) is in our not too distant future.

[folivier]

I'm not an aggressive driver....the only problem I have is all the darn slow people that won't get out of my way!!

[grasshopper]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bestwifeever He also doesn’t see a problem on a two-lane road to drive straddling the center if no one is coming—one memorable night he went a couple of miles in the oncoming lane waiting I guess for an oncoming car to show up and need it (I finally spoke up). He has never had an accident, though. Fortunately he doesn’t really like to drive so I do most of it.

My name is grasshopper I am a center line straddler. I drive miles and miles like this. it gives me a half a second of warning when some critter bolts from the side of the road. Or so I tell Ms g.

[ERD50]

I find that many drivers are not aggressive enough. Sometimes, avoiding an accident isn't a matter of hitting the brakes, you might want to take aggressive action to get out of the way. Including hitting the horn, which I find many people seem afraid to do.

I've avoided being rear-ended by hitting the horn, looking both ways, and flooring it right through the red light. I'd rather explain it to the cop/judge than deal with the accident.

And another time, in a parking garage, someone stopped ahead of me, and just started backing up to be able to turn left instead of right, and almost backed into me. Again, I was quick enough on the horn, and (knowing no one was behind me) throwing it in reverse and quickly backing up 10 feet.

I know for sure that in each case, DW (and many other drivers I know), would just freeze and gasp.

You should always keep that "mental diary" going, and look for ways out of potential accidents as you drive. It keeps you aware/alert, and might save your life, or at least a trip to the body shop.

-ERD50

[NYEXPAT]

I am not sure my Wife can ride a bicycle!

[folivier]

I had 27 years training in the Smith System of Defensive Driving. One of the tenets was "always leave yourself an out". IOW like ERD50 said keep your eyes moving and always look for an escape route.
Now get outta my way! Honk Honk

[scrabbler1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ERD50 I find that many drivers are not aggressive enough. Sometimes, avoiding an accident isn't a matter of hitting the brakes, you might want to take aggressive action to get out of the way. Including hitting the horn, which I find many people seem afraid to do. ..... And another time, in a parking garage, someone stopped ahead of me, and just started backing up to be able to turn left instead of right, and almost backed into me. Again, I was quick enough on the horn, and (knowing no one was behind me) throwing it in reverse and quickly backing up 10 feet. -ERD50

Parking lots and garages are risky places for these things to happen, for sure. Twice in my life, I have been backing out of parking spots only to see someone across the aisle from me begin backing out when I was already halfway out of my spot. The other car kept backing out slowly, somehow unaware that another car (mine) was already in his way. I did the only assuredly safe thing I could do to avoid a collision, albeit a very small one: I put the car back into a forward gear (I was driving a stick the first time, so I needed to do some fast, fancy footwork and handiwork to shift from reverse to first gear and get the car moving forward again) and returned into my partially vacated parking spot. The other car never stopped backing up and ended up in the area I had just vacated, probably clueless to what I had done to prevent a little bumpsy.

[MRG]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ERD50 I find that many drivers are not aggressive enough. Sometimes, avoiding an accident isn't a matter of hitting the brakes, you might want to take aggressive action to get out of the way. Including hitting the horn, which I find many people seem afraid to do. I've avoided being rear-ended by hitting the horn, looking both ways, and flooring it right through the red light. I'd rather explain it to the cop/judge than deal with the accident. And another time, in a parking garage, someone stopped ahead of me, and just started backing up to be able to turn left instead of right, and almost backed into me. Again, I was quick enough on the horn, and (knowing no one was behind me) throwing it in reverse and quickly backing up 10 feet. I know for sure that in each case, DW (and many other drivers I know), would just freeze and gasp. You should always keep that "mental diary" going, and look for ways out of potential accidents as you drive. It keeps you aware/alert, and might save your life, or at least a trip to the body shop. -ERD50

+1

I saved getting rear ended by a driver at a high rate of speed by violating the law. Got a ticket too! Was worth every dime and point to not get hit.