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Karma Strikes an Aggressive Driver (part Deaux)
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 2014-09-10 1:53 PM |
New user  246   madison, Wisconsin |  Subject: Karma Strikes an Aggressive Driver (part Deaux)I didn't want to hijack the other thread but it reminded me of this tale. I've been piling on running miles this year. More than any other year. Interestingly, I've had more run-ins with cars whilst running than I ever had whilst running or biking before. Three times I've had actual contact with cars. I was in the right of way 100% of the time. (WI 340.01) Anyway, my wife and I were running the other day and came to a corner where we, in the end, needed to be at the diagonal corner. There were 3 seconds left on the ped light so I told her "let's go left, then right". As I ran out into the cross walk, a car decided to make a right turn without stopping, or looking to the right. I put my hand on her hood and did this funny spastic dance to avoid her bumper breaking my knees. After clearing her I noticed that there was a cop in the lane directly beside her. This was the third incident of the summer and I wasn't hurt so I kept going, turning right to make the second half of our diagonal cross. There was a green light but we hadn't gotten there in time to get a walk light. When I got across the intersection, I heard the "blip-blip" of the police car. CRAP! This guy is really pulling me over for crossing against a walk signal. I looked back only to find he had the car pulled over. YES! Karma=1 Idiot driver=0 I have a friend/acquaintance who is a cop, and he told me that the driver could have been fined anywhere from a $144 failure to yield traffic violation to a $1500 hit and run FELONY. |
| 2014-09-10 2:17 PM in reply to: pwoolson |
754 | Subject: RE: Karma Strikes an Aggressive Driver (part Deaux) I am glad to hear that the cop did something about it. I have learned to never trust a car at a red light, especially if there isn't a designated lane for right turns or if they are in the right turn lane. So many of them only look left for cars, and never look right for people in the crosswalk. |
| 2014-09-10 2:33 PM in reply to: happyscientist |
Member 2689 Denver, CO | Subject: RE: Karma Strikes an Aggressive Driver (part Deaux) I have to admit that I've been guilty of occasionally failing to look out for pedestrians when turning in the direction of traffic flow, either on one-way streets or when turning right. *Thankfully* I've never had any problems, but I find that I'm MUCH more careful now that I'm also out there running and riding. |
| 2014-09-10 2:39 PM in reply to: pwoolson |
Member 242 Co Louth, Ireland | Subject: RE: Karma Strikes an Aggressive Driver (part Deaux) Have had a similar incident here in Ireland - albeit on the other side of the road. Managed to get my 2 hands onto the bonnet (hood!) and feet off the ground before it hit my knees! |
| 2014-09-10 2:42 PM in reply to: grahamclarke_6 |
New user 246 madison, Wisconsin | Subject: RE: Karma Strikes an Aggressive Driver (part Deaux) Originally posted by grahamclarke_6 Have had a similar incident here in Ireland - albeit on the other side of the road. Managed to get my 2 hands onto the bonnet (hood!) and feet off the ground before it hit my knees! That night I had a nightmare about the car clipping my knees and just folding them in half the way they shouldn't bend. *shudder* |
| 2014-09-10 2:56 PM in reply to: pwoolson |
1502 Katy, Texas | Subject: RE: Karma Strikes an Aggressive Driver (part Deaux) I'm jumping from the other thread to join in here too. I was living in Ft. Lauderdale before moving to the Keys and it is 1,000 times worse. I was hit twice by cars in the same manner as the OP, no harm and was able to use my hands to get my body out of the way, but scary non the less. Both times I was on the sidewalk and they were coming out of a driveway and just never stopped or looked. The second time was a Doctor and the reason he didn't see me was that he was reading someones chart!!! I slammed on the window and yelled "what's the first line of the Hippocratic oath!!!" and he took off up the road. I thought that was a hell of a zinger and thought the first line was something about "do no harm"...but I was wrong. Oh well, still scared the crap out of him and maybe got him to pay attention. Since moving here it's a lot better, but mostly because I now do the majority of my running around a park that has no crossing traffic. The biking on the other hand is still a bit of the wild west. |
| 2014-09-10 3:45 PM in reply to: 3mar |
Extreme Veteran 856 Detroit, Michigan | Subject: RE: Karma Strikes an Aggressive Driver (part Deaux) Originally posted by 3mar I'm jumping from the other thread to join in here too. I was living in Ft. Lauderdale before moving to the Keys and it is 1,000 times worse. I was hit twice by cars in the same manner as the OP, no harm and was able to use my hands to get my body out of the way, but scary non the less. Both times I was on the sidewalk and they were coming out of a driveway and just never stopped or looked. The second time was a Doctor and the reason he didn't see me was that he was reading someones chart!!! I slammed on the window and yelled "what's the first line of the Hippocratic oath!!!" and he took off up the road. I thought that was a hell of a zinger and thought the first line was something about "do no harm"...but I was wrong. Oh well, still scared the crap out of him and maybe got him to pay attention. Since moving here it's a lot better, but mostly because I now do the majority of my running around a park that has no crossing traffic. The biking on the other hand is still a bit of the wild west. First off, I am glad you are OK. But I have this mental image of you pounding on someone's window, screaming at the top of your lungs, "Hippocratic Oath, MF'er!" and it is making me laugh. I stick to popular running routes and areas with a lot of pedestrians, but still encounter the occasional turning-right-looking-left driver... Ugh! |
| 2014-09-11 3:14 PM in reply to: pwoolson |
Veteran 629 Grapevine, TX | Subject: RE: Karma Strikes an Aggressive Driver (part Deaux) Drivers doing the "no look right turn" is such a natural thing (for them) that you really can't get angry at them. I used to, but its pointless. The motorist world in many areas just does not include time to look to the right. The culprit is often the right-on-red law, which works great until a pedestrian wants to cross the other way, but even if that was repealed, there's still stop signs and so on. (Where I"m originally from, there is no right on red, and pedestrians have a much easier time). The only real solution is for runners to assume the driver doesn't see them, and to assume around a blind corner that a driver is coming to do a rolling right on red/stop sign without looking. Keep your pace for the races - a few seconds on a training run is well worth avoiding an accident. Ask anyone who's actually been hit. Having said that, I'm full of joy knowing the cops stopped that driver. |
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