Topic: Driving Can Be Frustrating (Read 33720 times)

Mongrel · « **Reply #260 on:** September 20, 2011, 10:20:04 AM »

In some places in the US, the mere existence of a cyclist is an inherent threat to the lifestyle of every god-fearing car-driving champion of manhood. Get your beer bottles, rocks etc. Catching sight of a cyclist shakes the very foundations of such men's minds.

Doesn't seem like a dude on a bicycle would represent any sort of crushing existential threat, but then again neither did Woody Guthrie's guitar, right?

Royal☭ · « **Reply #261 on:** September 20, 2011, 10:20:49 AM »

People usually honk and yell at me while I'm on the sidewalk, too! (Note: I don't really advocate riding on the sidewalk, as it often interferes with pedestrians, but sometimes a road is just too terrifying)

Quote from: Mongrel on September 20, 2011, 10:20:04 AM

In some places in the US, the mere existence of a cyclist is an inherent threat to the lifestyle of every god-fearing car-driving champion of manhood. Get your beer bottles, rocks etc. Catching sight of a cyclist shakes the very foundations of such men's minds.

Doesn't seem like a dude on a bicycle would represent any sort of crushing existential threat, but then again neither did Woody Guthrie's guitar, right?

Save Arlington TX

Thad · « **Reply #262 on:** September 20, 2011, 01:45:35 PM »

Quote from: Mongrel on September 20, 2011, 10:20:04 AM

Doesn't seem like a dude on a bicycle would represent any sort of crushing existential threat, but then again neither did Woody Guthrie's guitar, right?

That machine killed fascists.

patito · « **Reply #263 on:** September 20, 2011, 02:41:44 PM »

I get pretty nervous when driving around cyclists, because their vehicle of choice only has two wheels, how unstable is that, they could have at least made them with three.

Mongrel · « **Reply #264 on:** September 20, 2011, 03:04:34 PM »

Quote from: Thad on September 20, 2011, 01:45:35 PM

Quote from: Mongrel on September 20, 2011, 10:20:04 AM
Doesn't seem like a dude on a bicycle would represent any sort of crushing existential threat, but then again neither did Woody Guthrie's guitar, right?

That machine killed fascists.

Ted Belmont · « **Reply #265 on:** September 21, 2011, 07:36:20 PM »

Also, it should be noted that I ride on the shoulder the entire way to and from work, with the sole exception of a half-mile or so stretch on the way back where there IS no shoulder, and it just goes ROAD | DITCH. Ironically, it was during this stretch that I was yelled at to "GET OFF THE ROAD".

Thad · « **Reply #266 on:** December 13, 2011, 01:53:25 PM »

Car and Driver: How To: Adjust Your Mirrors to Avoid Blind Spots (via lifehacker via bb)

Kashan · « **Reply #267 on:** December 13, 2011, 02:13:27 PM »

Huh, that's how I was taught to have my mirrors when I first learned to drive. I just thought that was how they were supposed to be.

Thad · « **Reply #268 on:** December 20, 2011, 09:07:51 AM »

Nobody ever told me to do it that way. I think people commonly, and naturally, assume that the side mirrors are for showing the lane next to them. Setting them up the way I just posted is counterintuitive, because you can barely see anything next to you; you can see 1 and 2 lanes over, but not much that's actually directly relevant to your driving.

Framing it as "this is supposed to be a continuous view from the rearview mirror" is a bit of, if you'll pardon the expression, a paradigm shift, but once you look at it that way it really makes a hell of a lot of sense. I've had my mirrors set that way for a week or so now, and I find I'm using them a lot more and looking over my shoulder less. It really is better.

Beat Bandit · « **Reply #269 on:** February 07, 2012, 01:59:27 PM »

Hey douchbags, STOP and YIELD signs are not fucking interchangeable.

Thad · « **Reply #270 on:** March 16, 2012, 10:28:25 AM »

The freeway exit I take every morning on my way to work is a little awkwardly-designed, and you can always tell when you're behind someone who doesn't take this route every day.

There are two right-hand turn lanes. The one on the left merges into traffic; the one on the right doesn't, it goes into a new lane.

Now, there's signage; for the left lane there's a "YIELD" sign and for the right there's "YIELD FOR PEDESTRIANS ONLY". This makes sense if you think about it, but it doesn't stick out if you've never taken this exit before.

So you can tell the guys who don't travel this route daily because they're sitting there in the fucking right-hand lane trying to figure out if the lane is clear. It is. It always is. Unless somebody is changing lanes right the hell in front of you (which, TBF, I've seen happen).

And yes, this is irritating. But hey, guy a few cars back leaning on his horn? Yeah, notice how I just gave a quick tap on mine? That's all you need to do.

Mongrel · « **Reply #271 on:** March 16, 2012, 10:38:16 AM »

That reminds me that yesterday I got off a freeway exit I don't usually get off onto. There are three lanes on the downtown road you wind up on, after a left turn.

Now there are streetcar tracks throughout the city. Most of which double as a lane of regular car traffic as well, but a few are on raised right-of-ways where cars aren't supposed to drive. So I turned onto the leftmost lane of the three which has tracks on it, but seconds later that lane rose up, clearly indicating I'd turned onto an exclusive right-of-way.

So the only thing I could do was badass stunt jump off the raised lane. Heh.

Thad · « **Reply #272 on:** April 02, 2012, 06:41:53 AM »

Hey you, with the out-of-state plates.

I realize that we are driving east and the sun is directly in our eyes and it is hard to see.

What I don't understand is how that prevents you from checking your blind spot, which is NOT in the direction of the sun.

Because THERE IS A FUCKING CAR IN THE SPOT YOU ARE TRYING TO LANE-CHANGE INTO, YOU CRAZY ASSHOLE.

Ted Belmont · « **Reply #273 on:** April 02, 2012, 06:54:44 AM »

A while back I was driving on the interstate to my parents house, and I almost got hit by some asshole who cut over into my lane without even checking his blind spot; this despite the fact that there were hardly any other cars on the road, so there wasn't even any reason for him to change lanes. He was going at least 15 mph over the limit and swerving a bit, too. A mile or so up the road, I saw him again, pulled over to the side, with an unmarked police car behind him.

Ted Belmont · « **Reply #274 on:** April 25, 2012, 08:07:53 AM »

On the way to work this morning, some guy actually jumped out of his car on the freeway to scream at me.

Mongrel · « **Reply #275 on:** April 25, 2012, 02:08:44 PM »

That's an acheivement unlock, I think.

McDohl · « **Reply #276 on:** April 25, 2012, 06:13:27 PM »

Quote from: Mongrel on April 25, 2012, 02:08:44 PM

That's an acheivement unlock, I think.

Ba-DONK! 5g - Road Ragequit

Beat Bandit · « **Reply #277 on:** July 20, 2012, 12:03:22 PM »

I was in my first literal gridlock today. Fortunately it was small enough scale that after a second to set in I was able to get out of my car and inform the driver of the korean church van that he had to fucking move.

Mongrel · « **Reply #278 on:** July 20, 2012, 02:58:10 PM »

Boy oh boy it was fun driving home today with my pupils dilated all the way open.

I went for an eye exam, which I thought was mostly just going to be a consult over eye fatigue. Oh hey, it would have been nice to let me know in advance (i.e. before I rode to you office on a freaking motorbike) that you were gonna use the drops. Oh hey, it would have been nice to let me know that these things take six hours to wear off.

I waited a good while, but eventually went home when the guy who's house I was parked in front of started to really wonder why the creepy biker nerd had been sitting on the curb in front of his house for the past three hours.

At that point it wasn't so bad. Except for the couple of blocks of westward travel... SET THE CONTROLS FOR THE HEART OF THE SUN.

Thad · « **Reply #279 on:** July 20, 2012, 03:19:26 PM »

Hm -- 'round here they always make you sign a form upfront consenting to the dilation, and warn you how long it lasts.

I don't do it unless I've got a ride home.

Actually I'm within walking distance of my current eye doctor, so maybe I'll do it this year; it's been awhile.

Course, "walking distance" depends rather a lot on the weather forecast.

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Author Topic: Driving Can Be Frustrating (Read 33720 times)