Safe Speed Forums

The campaign for genuine road safety
It is currently Thu Mar 28, 2024 13:39

All times are UTC [ DST ]




Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 11 posts ] 
Author Message
PostPosted: Mon Dec 20, 2010 18:53 
Offline
Member
Member

Joined: Fri Oct 26, 2007 19:08
Posts: 3434
I don't know what it's like in other parts of the country but I have yet to see any minor or major "prangs" as I drive around our local roads.

A couple of years ago, it wasn't uncommon to see a few within a few miles of each other, on the odd icy days that we would get.

Maybe last winter and this one have actually opened people's eyes and made them drive better or learn how to.

Admittedly, our LA have done a wonderful job (although there did seem to be less done this weekend than most), let's hope this is the start of something new.

_________________
My views do not represent Safespeed but those of a driver who has driven for 39 yrs, in all conditions, at all times of the day & night on every type of road and covered well over a million miles, so knows a bit about what makes for safety on the road,what is really dangerous and needs to be observed when driving and quite frankly, the speedo is way down on my list of things to observe to negotiate Britain's roads safely, but I don't expect some fool who sits behind a desk all day to appreciate that.


Top
 Profile Send private message  
 
PostPosted: Mon Dec 20, 2010 20:26 
Offline
Gold Member
Gold Member
User avatar

Joined: Wed Dec 08, 2004 14:26
Posts: 4364
Location: Hampshire/Wiltshire Border
I have to disagree with you here. I have seen a lot of people who have no idea that their car won't stop on ice coming up side roads to T-junctions much too fast and sliding out.

However, the thing that bugs me most is the stupidity in parking in dangerous vulnerable places. How about right opposite the T at a downhill junction or just to the left or right of a junction in exactly the place where you would slide into if you understeered. This thoughlessness leaves me stunned.

_________________
Malcolm W.
The views expressed in this post are personal opinions and do not represent the views of Safespeed.


Top
 Profile Send private message  
 
PostPosted: Mon Dec 20, 2010 23:56 
Offline
User
User avatar

Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 00:15
Posts: 5232
Location: Windermere
Yesterday I saw an old Landy pick up drive into a car park far too fast, and as the driver took the tight turn around the end of an aisle, it of course spun off line sideways, narrowly missing the parked cars in the line.

I have not seen any better driving - just cringeworthy over caution, and cars abandoned in the most ridiculous places!
I followed one driver for three miles, who braked every time a vehicle coming the other way passed him!
I think he actually wet himself when he passed a bus!
Best of all are the drivers who insist on gunning the throttle and spinning the wheels, expecting their vehicle to eventually set off!

_________________
Time to take responsibility for our actions.. and don't be afraid of speaking out!


Top
 Profile Send private message  
 
PostPosted: Tue Dec 21, 2010 00:29 
Offline
Life Member
Life Member
User avatar

Joined: Thu Jun 22, 2006 13:54
Posts: 1711
Location: NW Kent
Ernest Marsh wrote:
Best of all are the drivers who insist on gunning the throttle and spinning the wheels, expecting their vehicle to eventually set off!


:oops: Just for fun you understand.

Though in my defence, it does set off quite well providing it is only a couple of wheels spinning. :)

I have been playing around with the idea of using the front wheels to pull me out of under steer into a full drift then power on neutral steering to pull me around the corner. Normally I would unwind the steering and come off the throttle (if on it) to regain grip and tighten a line, however I have found that adding more lock and some throttle can pull the front end around and let me point the car in the direction I want to go. The car may well be sliding sideways at this point, but some gentle throttle seems to work well at changing the direction of the slide and eventually pulling the car straight.

This at 5mph and with plenty of room I might add.

_________________
Driving fast is for a particular time and place, I can do it I just only do it occasionally because I am a gentleman.
- James May


Top
 Profile Send private message  
 
PostPosted: Tue Dec 21, 2010 00:29 
Offline
Member
Member

Joined: Fri Oct 26, 2007 19:08
Posts: 3434
i must admit, that we still have a few "20s plenty" and a dab of the brakes every slight bend , no matter how high the ambient temp or how clear the roads are,muppets, but the majority of drivers that I've seen this year, are driving at reasonable speeds without braking much and (apart from a car parked neatly in a field tonight) no little bumps at every roundabout, which seemed to be the norm a few years ago.

_________________
My views do not represent Safespeed but those of a driver who has driven for 39 yrs, in all conditions, at all times of the day & night on every type of road and covered well over a million miles, so knows a bit about what makes for safety on the road,what is really dangerous and needs to be observed when driving and quite frankly, the speedo is way down on my list of things to observe to negotiate Britain's roads safely, but I don't expect some fool who sits behind a desk all day to appreciate that.


Top
 Profile Send private message  
 
PostPosted: Tue Dec 21, 2010 00:33 
Offline
Member
Member

Joined: Fri Oct 26, 2007 19:08
Posts: 3434
Quote:



I have been playing around with the idea of using the front wheels to pull me out of under steer into a full drift then power on neutral steering to pull me around the corner. Normally I would unwind the steering and come off the throttle (if on it) to regain grip and tighten a line, however I have found that adding more lock and some throttle can pull the front end around and let me point the car in the direction I want to go. The car may well be sliding sideways at this point, but some gentle throttle seems to work well at changing the direction of the slide and eventually pulling the car straight.

This at 5mph and with plenty of room I might add.


You can't beat a well balanced rear wheel drive in these conditions...;-)

_________________
My views do not represent Safespeed but those of a driver who has driven for 39 yrs, in all conditions, at all times of the day & night on every type of road and covered well over a million miles, so knows a bit about what makes for safety on the road,what is really dangerous and needs to be observed when driving and quite frankly, the speedo is way down on my list of things to observe to negotiate Britain's roads safely, but I don't expect some fool who sits behind a desk all day to appreciate that.


Top
 Profile Send private message  
 
PostPosted: Tue Dec 21, 2010 08:38 
Offline
User
User avatar

Joined: Tue Feb 15, 2005 00:15
Posts: 5232
Location: Windermere
I drove into a shop car park on Sunday to find approximately 10 inches of snow - and around 20 vehicles parked erratically.

Three drivers were attempting to manouvre, and holding me up - the first had his reversing light lit, was spinning his wheels madly while I waited patiently at a safe distance back for him to exit the end space he was in - he could have gone forward out OR reverse.

When I finally drove around him while he gave it a rest, I came up behind a PT Cruiser trying to drive along the line of parked cars. Full left lock, wheels spinning at high speed, he was S L O W L Y edging forwards - but seemed unaware of his lock until the front end drifted in towards the parked cars - at which point he reversed back slightly and repeated the manouvre all over again!

Eventually he made it to to a space when he let the revs drop, and I then simply drove past in second gear using the clutch to stop from stalling, and parked in the next available space. Meanwhile a Renault Scenic behind us was rocking backwards and forwards half in and half out of a space... I thought he was trying to get out at first.
When I came out of the shop 15 minutes later, he had a shovel and was digging the snow away from behind the car. :lol:

I was able to reverse back, put lock on and spin the front of my car through 90 degrees within it's length plus a few inches, and then simply drive cautiously out of the car park (his car was halfway across the roadway and my space)!
I don't think I would have trusted any of them out on the road in traffic - and Southport was full of others just like them over the weekend!

_________________
Time to take responsibility for our actions.. and don't be afraid of speaking out!


Top
 Profile Send private message  
 
PostPosted: Tue Dec 21, 2010 15:02 
Offline
Friend of Safe Speed
Friend of Safe Speed
User avatar

Joined: Sun Jun 26, 2005 16:51
Posts: 1323
Location: Stafford - a short distance past hope
On Saturday I drove from Stafford to Worcester and back (picking up number 2 son). The M6 was fine but the M5 south of Brum was like the arctic (entire road covered in long stretches). I noted a few things - people joining the motorway expecting people to move out for them when there was only one lane clear (! I had a nasty moment with one of those), people driving too fast (saw one chap lose it and hit the central reservation - fortunately he didn't collect anyone else), and people not realising that if you change lanes in such conditions the "heap" between lanes will cause you problems unless you are very careful...

I decided to drive back up the "A" roads - a new problem: panicky people driving so slowly they kept getting stuck, people who slowed down going uphill and also got stuck, people who didn't remember to turn the TCS off when slowing down on a slippery gradient...

The 100 mile round trip took 5 hours driving time...

_________________
I won't slave for beggar's pay,
likewise gold and jewels,
but I would slave to learn the way
to sink your ship of fools


Top
 Profile Send private message  
 
PostPosted: Tue Dec 21, 2010 19:22 
Offline
Life Member
Life Member
User avatar

Joined: Thu Jun 22, 2006 13:54
Posts: 1711
Location: NW Kent
graball wrote:

You can't beat a well balanced rear wheel drive in these conditions...;-)


AWD rather than RWD I am afraid, though the 50/50 torque split does make it a little tail happy as there is very little weight transfer in these conditions.

_________________
Driving fast is for a particular time and place, I can do it I just only do it occasionally because I am a gentleman.
- James May


Top
 Profile Send private message  
 
PostPosted: Tue Dec 21, 2010 19:56 
Offline
Life Member
Life Member

Joined: Sat Mar 27, 2004 13:50
Posts: 2643
A few years ago I was travelling from Birmingham to Bristol in heavy snow. As the M5 had been shut, the A roads very quickly snarled up to the point that very little was moving anywhere.
So I took to the lanes - fortunately most others avoided them like the plague, so they were, for the most part, covered in virgin snow.

_________________
Only when ideology, prejudice and dogma are set aside does the truth emerge - Kepler


Top
 Profile Send private message  
 
PostPosted: Tue Dec 21, 2010 21:07 
Offline
Member
Member

Joined: Fri Oct 26, 2007 19:08
Posts: 3434
Quote:
so they were, for the most part, covered in virgin snow.



LOVELY.... ;-)


We are still getting the "20s plenty" brigade, writing in to our local paper, bemoaning the fact, that so many people are driving madly because they aren't sticking to 15-20MPH.

You would think that, when they saw that they are in a severe minroity, on clear, well gritted roads at midday, that they might realise they are the ones in the wrong.

_________________
My views do not represent Safespeed but those of a driver who has driven for 39 yrs, in all conditions, at all times of the day & night on every type of road and covered well over a million miles, so knows a bit about what makes for safety on the road,what is really dangerous and needs to be observed when driving and quite frankly, the speedo is way down on my list of things to observe to negotiate Britain's roads safely, but I don't expect some fool who sits behind a desk all day to appreciate that.


Top
 Profile Send private message  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 11 posts ] 

All times are UTC [ DST ]


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 3 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You can post attachments in this forum

Search for:
Jump to:  
cron
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group
[ Time : 0.017s | 15 Queries | GZIP : Off ]