Allow me to share with you my ride to work, the best morning ever. The last stop before where I work is a red light, a mile from my workplace. My Prius sat quietly at the light, I didn't even have the radio on this morning. I was waiting for the light to change, as I was going straight. A semi-truck approached from my right. It was a truck for the semi-truck student driving school down the road. The truck made a right turn so he was in front of me. Those trucks crawl. I don't care about the extra minute of driving, I get to enjoy the Prius an extra minute. I do get the chance to cruise behind the truck and squeeze another .1 out of my mileage. Life is good. So the truck makes the turn and the student driver extra slowly inches up to speed. He is not going to make it to the posted 45 MPH until tomorrow. The light turns green, and I gently inch up to speed behind the truck. There is a guy behind me tailgating me, like it is going to make me go somewhere, and another car behind him. I knew what the car was behind the tailgater, but the tailgater obviously didn't. We all crawl down the road behind the semi. I am peacefully enjoying my last minute of Prius time before work, as we approach a set of railroad tracks. The semi slows down to a slower crawl. I'm continuing my cruise off of battery power, so I don't mind. I glance in my mirror to see the tailgater as he swings out, and blows around me and the semi, passing on a double yellow line and across railroad tracks. OK, so he was in a hurry. If you want to do something stupid, have at it. However, if the tailgater had been less concerned about what was in front of him and more concerned about what was behind him, he just might have noticed the police car in his mirror. As my peaceful bliss turns to amazement over the stupidity that was just displayed, justice is served. The police car hits his lights and siren, swings around both of us, and goes down and pulls speedy over... right in front of my work place. I get the added enjoyment of getting out of my car, and watching the numbskull hand over his license and registration, right across from my parking spot. And better yet, I can see the flashing lights from my desk. Quite possibly the best workday ever. And they say that Friday the 13th is unlucky. I don't have triskaidekaphobia. (Fear of the number 13.) But I'll bet speedy does. Hey, have a great day everybody!!!
s w e e t !!! Nice heartwarming (well written) story. Thanks for sharing. Makes all our mornings a bit better. :thumb:
That should be a Prius commercial. In my younger years, I used to drive like the driver in your story. All it did was get me tickets and a couple of accidents. The Prius makes me happy to drive slow.
That *is* a good morning indeed. I always hope tailgaters/obnoxious rageaholics will get pulled over. I did have the nice experience of being tailgated then passed by a big Acura MDX on my way to the beach a few weeks ago. That MDX must have been going about 85+ because the speed limit on this stretch of hwy was 70. Anyway, about 15 or 20 mi down the road I see the blinking lights of a cop car. And lo and behold who is pulled over getting a speeding ticket? The Acura MDX driver. Not so far ahead of the pack now, eh MDX? :rockon:
Great story ! You always wonder why the police seem to never be around when someone does something stupid like that. It is nice to know that they are around every once in a while and it is always nice to know that they do get their just rewards every now and then.
Smile and wave to the officer as he blows by. Great story. I have to warn people for name-calling, but someone who passes a student driver on a double-yellow while being followed by an officer is a nimrod.
Yesterday I even had someone behind me talking on a cell phone (not even handsfree) going into the parking garage honk at me so they could get around me to go 50 feet faster than I did and not even for the same parking spot.
Reminds me of another little story... a number of years ago, my sister was heading home from high school. The route home happens to pass by an elementary school - one where there is ALWAYS a cop (seriously, like 4 out of every 5 week days a cop is sitting there between 3 and 5 PM). She did the right thing, slowed down to the posted school zone speed limit. A jerk from her class, however, wasn't in the mood... she was about halfway through the school zone when he sped up behind her, slammed on the brakes, and started tailgating her, swerving back and forth out of impatience. The cop pulled out from the school and hit his lights. The jerk got tickets for speeding in a school zone, following too closely, and reckless driving. He didn't get to drive the rest of that year, or his senior year.
