This was yesterday night, and im driving my friends wife home and its a two lanes on each side. Im driving my 87 tbird turbo, auto so its not as fast as the stick, 50hp difference. So there is a car in front of me and he puts his left turn signal. I glance to my rear, and saw its clear, put my signal on and made a lane change to the right lane and quickly into the left lane where i was. So im looking in my rearview mirror, and see a Toyota SUV, going from the right lane to the left lane very quickly. No, i didn't cut him off. And i see him going up to my bumper and tailgating me. Theres a stop light approaching and he decides to get into the right lane. It was some yuppie in the SUV, of coarse. Im telling my friends wife im going to drag race him, and the road turns into a one lane because of a bridge. So he is about a car length ahead of me at the light, because most people need that much of a head start. The light turns green and hes first. I catch up to him with my 4cylinder turbo. I was able to get in front of him. The road turns back into a two lane road and i get back to the normal speed limit, 30. The guy gets to my side and says "you want to f*$$K around" so she gets the window up and the guy gets behind me and is tailgating me with his brights on for about a mile eventhough there are no cars around, and yes he can pass me. I wish there was a cop around to give him a ticket. After that mile he takes a right to his suburban yuppie home. My friend tells me he has a kid in the SUV, i guess hes a good parent.

Just wondering does anyone else get into this?

It's getting to the point where, unless I can make eye contact with the other driver, I wouldn't pull a stunt like that. Too many stupid people with BIG guns and short tempers. Something about being surrounded with 3-4000 pounds of steel and plastic seems to turn even the most timid person into a raving lunatic.

been there, done that, smarter now (I hope),
Roy

I save all my tom foolery for the races... it keeps me out of trouble with the law.

Why don't you look at your behavior from a different point of view? I think you were wrong to "race" him, get ahead of him, and then just drive the speed limit. That is extremely frustrating to someone who might be in a hury, had a bad day, or whatever. What were you trying to prove or show him? Why not just let him go by and be done with it rather than provoking a confrontation? Not to excuse his poor choice of response in tailgating you afterwards, but I would probably be pretty pissed as well if some wise a$$ made all that effort to get in front of me just to drive the speed limit, too. How would you interpret someone doing that to you? Time to practice the Golden Rule.

It sounds as you have some sort of pre-existing bias against SUVs. Not all SUV drivers are yuppies. I almost hate to admit it, but at times I'm starting to not really give a crap about what might happen to some of the idiots pulling that kind of crap around my 8600 GVWR 94 GMC K2500 Suburban, kind of in the same manner I don't worry much about the idiots who risk their lives in front of my locomotive rather than waiting a minute or two for us to pass by.

Go ahead, punk, make my day!

The individual did start the confrontation when he was tailgating me for the lane change i did, to avoid a left hand turn driver, which i did go back into my lane.

If he was in a hurry, he could have driven in the other lane, it was a 2 lane road. While he did for a while to swear, then went back behind me to tailgate me with his brights.

Anyhow, i wouldn't drag race a train, i wouldn't want to scratch one because they look so much better then a SUV.

That is a pretty train.

A couple of years ago I was on the interstate in the left lane. Speed limit here is 75 mph. A late 80's full size Bronco was in the left lane beside another car both going about 70 mph. I crowded him untill he was about 1 1/2 car lenghts ahead of the car in the rt lane. He would not pull over to the rt lane so I pulled into the rt lane to pass him. He sped up to 85 mph when I tried to pass. My E-250 full size Ford van couldn't get past him (I got to where my rear bumper was at his pass. door) by the time I came up to another car and had to pull in behind him. He let go of the steering wheel and raised his hands in the air as if to say "Got him". He slowed back down to 70 mph. I followed him so close that I couldn't even see his tailgate. He rolled down the window and threw a whole cup of coffee on my windshield (no wonder the don't let you carry guns). I backed off about 15 carlengths and waited for an opening on the right (like Richard Petty would do) and when an opening apeared, I nailed it. By the time he saw me coming, it wat too late. I cut right, passed him, cut left just in front of him and thought of slamming the brakes but I didn't. I exited about 10 miles after that. It was then that I realized what "Road Rage" felt like. It was exhausting and exilerating at the same time.

I wonder if I could get that train to fit in my garage? Wait...I think I can. I think I can. I think I can. (I think I have delusions. I think I have delusions...)

Well, I imagine you can rationalize your response to his actions any way you see fit. It still doesn't mean that two wrongs make a right. You deliberately chose to go out of your way to needlessly escalate the situation. Did you really walk away from this incident feeling good about the choices you made? Hopefully you won't one day be explaining to your friend that his wife is dying in the hospital emergency room because you "showed that SUV guy who was boss of the road", but he had it coming and man oh man was it worth it. It is my sincere hope that you learn something from this incident other how to rationalize a poor response to someone else's bad driving. Usually it's just best to back off a let it go rather than further provoking an already tense situation.

Monkeyman, let me know what your address is and I'll make it fit.

Monkeyman, I have a whole room full of trains. Here they are:

I guess that I need a hobby. Maybe I should build old plastic cars instead of train sets.

Yeah, I'd rather talk about trains too.

Another addition to the idiot category:
My sister has been driving my dad's new extended cab f-150 to work. Today, she is turning in the driveway and some butt-nugget tries to pass her! She is making a left hand turn, has one tire already in the drive way and he tries to pass on the LEFT!!! He hit the fender and flew over the hood of the truck. Then got up and started yelling at my sister. A very large neighbor saw the accident and walked over to assist, and the guy told him to f*** off and mind his own business. Then my dad came out and things went a little better. THe guy has no job, no insurance, an expired tag and no driver's license. He told my dad to "Chill out old man, I can get your truck fixed at Coopers"
Dad said that he was taking his truck back to the dealership for repairs and the punk said that my dad would just have to sue him then because he was not going to pay somebody to fix the truck.

This sucks!

BTW- My brother is a policeman for a close district. The officer on the scene knew my dad, sister and of course he knew my brother. The officer had been trying to catch the guy on the motorcycle for wreckless driving, but was never at the right place at the right time. Too bad my sister was.

[This message has been edited by Cooter (edited 05-04-2000).]

was the guy arrested?

The guy made bail and has been seen several times sitting in my parents driveway. He is trying to spook my dad into not pressing charges, but he doesnt realize who he is fooling with. This guy has no insurance on his bike, but drives a late model Silverado show truck. Hmmmm, I wonder how he would react if I backed my 3/4 ton Suburban's class 3 hitch into the side of his pretty truck? After all, I don't have insurance on it. . .

Sitting in your parent's driveway? Seems to me like that would constitute some sort of "threat", or stalking, or something. I'll bet they could put him away until trial, with no bail, if they got "creative".
On the other hand, I might just consider him "an imminent danger to life or limb", and act accordingly.

either that or we can sick Hock on 'em
Semper Fi !!!!!!

Maybe your dad should go outside and clean his gun while the guy is there. He would get the hint real freakin quick, and hey, cleaning your gun outside wasn't illegal last time I checked

My dad has had to do that before. Something about an "open bolt" UZI gets the scum out faster than Liquid Drano!

Seems to me that sitting in the driveway ought to be trespassing. Maybe next time your dad should get in his vehicle and leave real quick like.

Seems to me that "cleaning your gun" would be "escalation of force," much the same as bright lighting or riding in the left lane to p!ss someone off. He may have a gun, too, and be more willing to use it, since the cards are already against him. Call the cops on the freak and let them clean your dad's driveway.

Oh, yeah. Cool train, BN. I tend to follow the Law of Gross Tonnage in my little Plastic Poncho. Right of way doesn't mean squat when you're dead...