What do you love about driving???

Dennis Smith wrote : Thats why we call people in Wisconsin driving with Illinois licesne plates F@#king Illinois Bastards.

So that's what FIB stands for ! Chicago Tribune had an article about 2 months ago about driving around IL- WI border and different pet peves and gripes between the two states and FIB was mentioned as what WI people refer to us as, now I know what FIB stands for......thanks you tellin me yougoddamn cheese head........

LOL

========= Harryface =========

1991 Pontiac Bonneville LE, 3800 V6 _~_~_~_~276,100 miles_~_~_ ~_~_

I stll remember my trip from Mpls out to Bosston in 1976. We took US 20 rather than pay the tolls. Took 22 hours to go 1600 miles, but we saw a lot more of the country than we would've on the Tollways.

Highlights were cruising thru Cleveland, down the main drag, at 70 mph at 2 am. (just like everyone else, including the cops) and of course a blink or you'll miss it run thru Fredonia, NY....

Tell me about it...

Wir welle bleiwe wat mir sin (Letzebuergesch)

only when theres other people on the road and in my way, otherwise I'm just fine.

Yes its a problem, they can both be doing the speed limit in the same lane. driving a line abreast is a bad idea anyways, it leaves them both with one less place to manuever, and if one of them has to swerve to avoid something, they are most likely going to hit the other.

Now I'm curious. What're some of the gripes IL drivers have with WI drivers?

Yes, people turning into whatever lane they please really gets me too. I ALWAYS turn to the nearst and signal and move to the next.

Oh, and not using turn signals. Even in turning lanes it's the law here. As probably most anywhere.

I lived in Wisconsin once. Oh man, I'm sorry about that gas tax too. It was terrible!!!

The last couple years, I've made trips to Dallas. Dallas, and Oklahoma City never bothered me. It was crowded, and traffic more aggressive, but peole knew what they were doing. It was Kansas City and Kansas in general that got me. Good grief!! Seemed like if they weren't just stupid, they had to make an effort at least to piss you off. I'm not really trying to generalize Kansas, so don't take offfense anyone from there. But has been my driving experience all times that I've passed through.

Tony

My point is it is not a passing lane any more than the right lane is a passing lane. They're just lanes. A lot of folks seem to have the imperception that the concept of the expressways and interstates carries over onto more mundane roadways. It doesn't. When turning off the road is allowed to the left, or cars from the left are allowed to turn onto the road and head in your direction with you, the left lane _might_ even be considered less ideal than the right lane for going faster, passing or whatever. But in any case, code says they're just lanes.

Also, if two cars next to each other are doing the speed limit, fast/passing lane or not, the only way one should get ahead of the other is if the other one slows down; according to the law anyway. So even when there is a "rule" that one lane is considered a passing lane (like on an interstate), why should drivers be expected to obey that rule so that other drivers can ignore the speed limit rule? In short, why does it always seem like the rule to break is always the one that suits the complainer best?

I don't mean to really direct this at you Bonneville. I'm just taking the opportunity to stimulate discussion and learn wisdom from new sources.

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You bring up a good point. It is wisest for them not to travel neck and neck abrest like that. But it is for those reasons you just mention; not because others feel entitled to exceed the speed limit and expect everyone to get out of there way to accomodate it.

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Failing that we can both pick on Iwoa drivers.

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Yeah I hear ya. Another one that gets to me is the person who tries to be nice, but only ends up being stupid. The thing I'm talking about is when you have 2 (or more I suppose) lanes going one direction. There is someone from the oncoming over to the left wanting to turn left across your lanes. Then you get this good samaritan idiot who decides that they are going to "authorize" the turning person to come on across. They never freaking bother to consider that there is another lane (or lanes) which have no such knowledge of this grand plan. And remember, because of angles involved and the possible traffic backed up behind the friendly idiot, it is often difficult or impossible for the turning person from the other way to see the cars that are heading full speed ahead in the lanes, and visa-versa.

I once almost ended up taking a dirt nap due to one of these geniuses. I was driving a motor cycle along in the right lane of the two lanes going in my direction. There was an intersection ahead, maybe half a block, with a red light. My lane was pretty much clear up to the intersection where there were just about 2 cars waiting at the light. The left lane had a fairly long line of cars backed up. This is a completely normal sight to see as you approach this intersection when it is red, because the left lane is left turn only at the intersection, and that's the way to the mall. Anyway I'm just coasting down from about 25mph (realizing a little ways ahead I will be stopped at a red light) when my brain senses something is wrong with the picture. In split second timing, my brain notices that there is a gap of about 1 car length or so in the line of cars sitting. Now keep in mind this was not noticeable until almost being upon it, due to the angles of vision involved. Instinctively I my right hand and foot begin applying the brakes. And good thing too because in the next fraction of the second a lady is turning across my lane right in front of me, trying to get into a driveway which enters a bank parking lot! No antilock brakes on my two wheel ride, and I end up locking up the brakes. My rear end begins to slide out from the back and come forward on the right hand side. The startled lady who was turning in front of me stopped her car (right across my lane blocking the entire thing). I came to a stop literally just inches from her car with my bike parallel to her car and perpendicular to my lane. I'm in a position to look right at the do-gooder genius who almost got me killed. But I'm too full of adrenaline to speak or communicate. Then the lady goes into the bank, and the idiot and the rest of the line of cars start moving because the light turned green. Normally I would be pretty pissed off after something like that, but I just pulled myself together, drove on and was glad to be alive.

Had that stunt been pulled with the light just turned green, I would not have been already slowing down and would have hit; and done so at higher speed. Like I said, very possibly resulting in a dirt nap or at the very least, some delectable collection of serious injuries which I could have savored for weeks. All thanks to the well meaning ignoramus who has no respect for the rules of the road.

Moral of the story I guess is; respect the rules of the road. Do not disregard them neither for selfish or even altruistic reasons. The rules of the road are to keep us safe.

On Thu, 5 Feb 2004 15:06:50 -0600 (CST), snipped-for-privacy@webtv.net (Tony V.) wrote:

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I w> My point is it is not a passing lane any more than the right lane is a

I'm talking interstate, not city roads and a person can do the speed limit in the lane or lanes to the right just as well. Speaking of stuff that tick us off, moronic motorcyclist that think they can create lanes burn me up.

I've been calling you a FIB for years. Didn't you notice? :-)

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

Yeah. I try to avoid the highway when I'm driving my '71 T/A. I have a hard time keeping up spinning the 455 HO past 4,000 RPM and sucking down a gallon of gas every 8-12 miles. I used up 4.5 gallons just driving from Madison to Oconomowoc!

But isn't the point of a TA with the 455 to drive fast? Don't matter what the mpg is when yer wailing at cruisin power...

Wir welle bleiwe wat mir sin (Letzebuergesch)

Not that I was really thinking along those lines back at the time, but now thinking about it I think probably not. Technically an accident didn't happen. It is what is called a near miss. Probably thoe only thing that could have been done would have been to cite the woman turning acros mty lane for failure to yeild right of way or something. The genius who gave her the "permission" to do it probably isn't citable for anything. On the other hand, had I been injured the genius might have been able to be sued but it's hard to say. The person was trying to do something nice for someone but it's still dangerous to deviate from ther traffic rules.

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If a fellow driver wishes to keep me from speeding, or keep me bottled up in a pack of drivers/cellphone users/make-up appliers, then they had better apply to the police academy first. People who are dumb enough to drive two abreast for no reason....you don't WANT TO BE NEAR! Distance and speed can be your greatest assets for staying alive in traffic. Average drivers today have less brainpower than the computers in the vehicles they're driving! Ever see a Soccer-Mom S.U.V. go 30 mph through a snow squall in the left lane with 10 people packed up behind? Because she doesn't KNOW which knob turns on the 4x4?! Ever see people reading books or watching TV while driving?

Was waiting at an on ramp meter light one day, two abreast w/the guy next to me. He's boppin' along with his headphones one waiting like all of us for his chance to get to the light and enter the freeway. There at the light sits a MN Trooper, watching so people don;t run the light. Guy see him and reaches over to put his seatbelt on. Trooper sees him with 'phones on and waves him over. No reply. Hits his horn and waves, no reply. Hits the lights, sirens and FD truck horn (LOUD) no reply.

Gets outta car, knocks on guys window and writes him several tickets.

headphone use is illegal in MN, guy thought when he saw the cop he should put his belt on, but forgot the other thing, LOL

Wir welle bleiwe wat mir sin (Letzebuergesch)

Exceeding the speed limit is proven to be one of the most dangerous driving habits. Speed kills. Granted, it makes a difference of by how much in excess, and the reflexes of the driver and performance of the vehicle but the basic idea is sound. Higher speed equals less reaction time.

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SgtSilicon wrote in alt.autos.gm

In Washington State there are signs all over the freeways telling you to pull off to the side if you have a fenderbender. And one day an accident happened right in front of the only driveway into our apartment complex, blocking the whole thing. Nobody could get in or out. It was a very minor fenderbender, not even any broken glass. I asked the drivers to move their cars off the street and to the side of the driveway so everybody could go on their way. They at first said no, because they did not want to leave the scene of an accident. Finally they did pull over, and the traffic jam disappeared. The police had no problem with it, either. Minor accident, no injuries, pull over. If there are injuries, or if one of the cars is undriveable, then leave the cars where they sit.