Safe Speed Forums

Folks,

Driving home late tonight, through an unfamiliar village, a strange thing happened. We were doing about 25mph as we went down the long high street. Suddenly a car tooted from behind and then sped past us. The car then slowed down, 30, 25, 20 and then gradually to a crawling pace. We had to slow down as well and this took a long time, maybe quarter of a mile. I then indicated to overtake and the car suddenly sped off again.

My wife found the experience quite scary. My guess is that this driver was 'teaching us a lesson' for driving slowly.

This has happened to me once before, and that time a car slowed to a halt in front of us and just sat there. That was also very late at night and there was no one else around. Spooky.

Is this a new kind of road rage?

C.

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More rules and regulations please! (Not)

Did you flash your lights at the driver that had overtaken you?

Did you make a rude gesture at the driver?

I was once a passenger in a car that was overtaken, the person driving decided to repeatedly flash his lights at the overtaker and make a hand gesture similar to Gareth Hunt in a coffee commercial. The overtaking car did an emergency stop at this and the driver got out and attempted to put his fist through the window of the car I was in (I repeat - as a passenger).

Not saying the behaviour of the overtaker in this case was acceptable but there's also no reason to flash repeatedly at an overtaking driver simply because you don't like being overtaken.

Of course I'm not saying this was the case here but I have to ask!

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Magistrates rule #1: "Never let justice get in the way of a conviction."

Squirrel,

Nope, in neither case did I flash lights or anything else. All I did was to lock the car doors with the central locking switch and keep a reasonable braking distance from the car in front.

I was wondering if this pulling in front and slowing down manoevre is a well known tactic, intended to intimidate. In the case of the car which actually stopped in front of me, we were there on a deserted road, two cars stationary with the engines running, for about a minute. My wife thought it was like something out of the film 'Duel' and I must admit that I expected the worst.

Of course, getting out of the car and coming over for a punch up does raise the stakes considerably, whereas slowing or stopping is just a frightener with no further consequences. It's clever.

C.

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More rules and regulations please! (Not)

Its not clever, its cowardly. Clever would be taking his number plate.

i think if that happened to me i'd have the camera out pretty quickly.

Mind Driver,

I wasn't saying I was clever, but that the blocking driver is clever, as that tactic frightens others without breaking any laws. There is no law against going slow or even stopping, unless the road is completely obstructed. Photographing his/her number wouldn't mean anything in traffic law as far as I can see, it seems more psychological. The message is pretty clear, but how to prove it?

C.

PS - Hmm, if you could get a camera on the mobile phone out quick enough, the other driver would see the flash in the dark. They would know you had their number. But who thinks that quickly? - not me I'm afraid.

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More rules and regulations please! (Not)

i'm sure there are plenty of things they could be done for..... obstructing the highway ? ....dangerous/inconsiderate driving ? ... public order ? threatening behaviour ?

If you went to the police they would, no doubt, prosecute you for holding the phone while your engine was running. This is how alienated we have become.

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

I'm saying the blocking driver isn't clever, he's cowardly. I'm not saying a punch up is in order but if you have a problem with someone using your car in an inappropriate manner 'to teach them a lesson' is stupid. You have a problem with someone talk it out face to face, if you aren't willing to do that let it go. I'm aware of the irony of posting this on an internet forum.

You should be careful, some people act totally irrationally.

In one instance I know of, a driver was trying to overtake a 'slow' driver, but had difficulty due to the road (not straight and long enough).

The driver was doing some aggressive driving, up close, pulling out then back in etc.

The person behind this driver flashed their lights in order to say 'what are you doing/leave them alone' type thing. Next thing that happens, is the aggressive driver slams on the brakes, making the person behind flashing their lights go straight into them.

You could argue the person flashing their lights was too close, but the fact that the agressive driver deliberatly slammed on the brakes on purpose shows how frightening some people are, and actual road rage is alive and well, it's most definatly not a myth.

You have to ask, what sort of person deliberatly does that and creates an accident?

While they are incredibly annoying and dangerous, and there is huge temptation to 'teach them a lesson' - be it through whatever means - it's not worth it.

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If you think everyone else around you is driving badly, perhaps it's time to examine your own driving.

Pratnersip,

I think you have the right idea. As soon as we realise that we have attracted the attention of an angry/irrational/mischievous driver we should keep very cool.

If this happens to me again, I will indicate and pull into the kerb. If another driver wishes to harrass me then they will have to get out of their car to do it, which is the best place for a hothead driver - out of their car!

IMHO acting out a dispute at the wheel of a car is the worst form of driving known to man.

C.

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More rules and regulations please! (Not)

Yep, also bear in mind these people can be just as dangerous outside a car. I'm sure everyone has heard of instances of murders due to roadrage.

I know there is a huge temptation to talk to, or even have a go at someone who has just done something stupid, possibly even driven dangerously and endangered family/friends in the car.

In actual fact, with someone whom has just acted in such a manner there will be no convincing them they were wrong, especially when fired up.

Best you can do, is take the licence no. and report it to the police. Make a note of the time, place and exactly what they did, and importantly what you did.

There is no point risking damage to your car (or yourself) in arguing with idiots like this. By and large though, they are bullies in the car and gutless out of it.



Totally agree, and anyone found doing this should be banned. Sadly, this is not the case in many instances known to me.

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If you think everyone else around you is driving badly, perhaps it's time to examine your own driving.

Due to my urge to travel at no less than 10MpH over the posted speed 'limit' when there are no pedestrians about, from time to time I wind up behind drivers who

a) are perfectly content to drive at the posted 'limit'
b) are effectively blocking my progress due to road conditions and their road position (they tend to take up more space than they require)

I now consider this behavior prima facie evidence of an obliviousness that borders on recklessness, and at my first opportunity, I simply put as much distance between myself and ... the dazed and confused.

When I was younger, I admit I was dumb enough to mistake the indifference and/or unawareness of the driver in front of me as a deliberate attempt to 'play the cop' and slow me down. It took a few years for me to realize that the vast majority of reasons why most people wind up in my way are all related to a lack of rear awareness, and that the likelihood they were holding me up on purpose was less than one in ten thousand.

Even then, however, I knew my priorities well. It would be a waste of my time to pass the other driver, only to then slow him down 'in retribution', as I'd only be slowing myself down more.

Why would I want to slow myself down? For that matter, why would I want to slow anyone else down? People who slow others down are encouraging traffic tantrums and road retribution. As I see it, it's very rare that I'm ever in anyone's way when I drive, and I can count the number of times I've been surprised from behind on one hand.

Which leads to these questions:

How often are 'victims' of road rage unaware of how their own obliviousness was simply taken as a personal affront by the wrong driver?

Knowing full well that the culpability lies with the one who threw the traffic tantrum in the first place, why do so many people continue to behave in a manner so as to antagonize others?

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The Rules for ALL ROAD USERS:
1) No one gets hurt
2) Nothing gets hit, except to protect others; see Rule#1
3) The Laws of Physics are invincible and immutable - so-called 'laws' of men are not
4) You are always immediately and ultimately responsible for your safety first, then proximately responsible for everyone's
Do not let other road users' mistakes become yours, nor yours become others
5) The rest, including laws of the land, is thoughtful observation, prescience, etiquette, decorum, and cooperation

Define what you mean by 'victims' since you put it in quotes?

Of course there are people that unintentionally antogonise others. Maybe they shouldn't be driving, but the very simple fact of the matter is, if someone gets angry/annoyed enough to do anything dangerous on the road becuase of it, then they are even worse drivers than those that 'antagonised' them.


I really don't go for the approach of 'Well they were being annoying to that person, that's why they did such a dangerous manouver.'

I hear it a lot, and it's the poorest excuse I can think of.

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If you think everyone else around you is driving badly, perhaps it's time to examine your own driving.

~20 years ago my brother and I (both young and foolish at the time) were driving along the Weymouth to Bridport coast road, which back then was a great NSL driver's road (not any more... ). We were caught behind someone who was perfectly happy to drive at about 35 mph for some considerable miles, with no intention of aiding us to pass him.

My brother finally got past about a mile short of our village and then said "let's see how he likes being held up", and slowed to about 20 (on a clear, good quality NSL road, remember) for the rest of the journey.

The other driver didn't react in any way to this and just continued on his merry way when we pulled off. Oblivious or asleep was my diagnosis.

But of course, anyone who wishes to progress at a quicker rate than the driver in front of them is automatically the "bad one", regardless of circumstances.
A post i read on this site a while back about how a self confessed slow driver should not have his right to drive slow violated by other drivers and at the same time condoned violating any drivers right who wished to progress quicker than they.
I admit I get sick to the back teeth of "flashy light" drivers who play hell if you overtake them or make them take their eyes of their speedo for a second.
Drivers make mistakes, I see it a lot doing 40,000 miles a year, time spent beeping your horn or flashing your lights is time not spent evading / reacting to anothers mistake

This very much depends on whether the quicker driver wishes to exceed the speed limit. Driving at the limit one should feel no shame in preventing following drivers from passing. Driving below the limit one should make every attempt too let following drivers pass.

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When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race. H.G. Wells
When I see a youth in a motor car I do d.c.brown

Preventing?

Except of course that by doing so you would be guilty of the offence of either careless and inconsiderate driving, or in an extreme interpretation, dangerous driving.

... people that unintentionally antagonise others.[/quote]There's your answer right there, when a driver does not realize that they have unintentionally left at least one other driver with no choice but to modify their driving to suit the former driver's choice.Allow me to add that I pretty much agree with that sentiment. Specifically, drivers that are easily provoked into changing their priorities from getting somewhere safely to threatening other drivers [and themselves] with their driving are the ones who shouldn't be driving.I don't go for it either. Specifically regarding myself, 'getting back at them' is an inexcusable waste of my time. I am not easily provoked into changing my driving priorities (see sig below).

I also go out of my way not to unwittingly drive in such a way as to give weak-willed drivers a reason to change their driving priorities. This is a rarer sentiment. I am significantly outnumbered by drivers who excuse their lack of awareness and point their finger at the guy who took it personally and gave the wrong response, while I circumvent several of these incidents daily by driving so as to not be in anyone's way whenever reasonably possible.

_________________
The Rules for ALL ROAD USERS:
1) No one gets hurt
2) Nothing gets hit, except to protect others; see Rule#1
3) The Laws of Physics are invincible and immutable - so-called 'laws' of men are not
4) You are always immediately and ultimately responsible for your safety first, then proximately responsible for everyone's
Do not let other road users' mistakes become yours, nor yours become others
5) The rest, including laws of the land, is thoughtful observation, prescience, etiquette, decorum, and cooperation