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Looking For Opinions About Incident In Rush Hour Today

Smurfysmiles

Smurfysmiles

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Sep 30, 2007
Messages
3,938
On my way home today, I was in a 40 mph zone and the car in front of me was going 35 mph. I tried to speed up a little to try to get around but couldn''t so I backed down and waited for my next opportunity. Being that it was rush hour and raining, I knew better than to try to speed around people because that is just asking for trouble. The guy started slamming on his brakes every 5 seconds or so, so I backed off more and slowed down; then he started slowing down and still kept slamming on his brakes. I finally had a chance to pass and sped back up to 40 mph. I stopped next to him at the stop light and he started pointing at a notepad he had saying he was a cop and he was going to write me up for speeding and reckless driving. I don''t if he really was a cop or not; or if he was just some guy trying to screw with my head (which is what my husband thinks). After the light turned green he sped off way faster than he was originally going as well. Which makes us think he was just an angry nut, there''s a lot of those here. I wish I had asked to see his badge too, then I''d know for sure.

I''m really concerned because in Colorado reckless driving is a VERY serious criminal charge. It''s as bad as a DUI. I personally didn''t think I was being reckless apart from trying to pass sooner than I could, but then backed down...Anyways, any thoughts you all have on this would be appreciated...

I haven''t been able to get this off my mind all night, I''m such a wreck. I even emailed the sheriff about what happened to see if it what happened could even be considered reckless and also that if there is someone out there using their police occupation as an excuse for road rage that they are now alerted. I''m sure he''ll just write back that I will have to wait and see if I get a citation in the mail. My dad reckons if I really had been driving recklessly the person would have done more.... I don''t know what to think, but I read that in Colorado if you are accused of reckless driving that you have to go to jail for a year and/or have your license suspended for 90 days :-\ Not to mention it would stay on your record forever.
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Smurfy, I wouldn''t worry . . . it sounds like you didn''t do anything wrong and this guy was just being a jerk. I seriously doubt he was a cop. Besides, even if he was a cop, what can he write you up for? Since he was only doing 35 in a 40 zone, and you were behind him, you couldn''t have been speeding. Also, I don''t think pulling up a little closer to see if you can get around someone, and then backing off when you see that you can''t, counts as reckless driving. If he IS a cop, and if you DO get a ticket in the mail, I would definitely go to court and contest it. Good luck, and let us know what (if anything) happens!
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Smurfy, breathe. I don''t think 40 mph in most instances can be considered reckless driving. If you had done what you wanted to do-sped up and gotten around him, then THAT would have been reckless. He sounds like a lunatic.
 
I'd seriously doubt you have anything to worry about Smurfy. Even if you do get a citation, I'd contest it. You didn't do anything wrong.

Some people are lunatics when they get behind the wheel, this idiot was just trying to rattle you.
 
I wouldn''t worry either. He sounds like he was just a nut job.
 
Even if he WAS a cop - he''d have a hell of a time proving what you did was reckless or even wrong for that matter (considering he would have been off duty and therefore couldnt pull you over or write you a ticket anyways). What''s he gonna do, give your information to his boss and say write her a ticket? Sounds pretty far fetched to me, he just did it to scare you - some people are just a**h****.
 
Here''s what I think:
1. He may have thought you were tailgating him (did you have your left blinker on, indicating that you wanted to pass?).
2. His repeatedly putting his foot on his brake to get you to back off could also be seen as reckless driving on his part, imho.
3. He was a jerk, not a cop.
 
Not a cop. A cop wouldn''t risk himself or you to prove a point by slamming on his brakes.

Also, he doesn''t have your license number so he couldn''t get you for anything. He''s have a heck of a time proving it was smurfy driving even if he had your plate numbers.

Creep creep creep.
 
Yeah, I agree with the others. I wouldn''t worry about it. You weren''t doing anything wrong except perhaps driving too close to him (which is why he kept putting on his brakes). I wouldn''t give it another thought. Reckless driving at 35-40 mph? Uh, no.
 
Smurfy

My thoughts:

1) you backed off. If you had been a reckless driver you would have sped around him and put people in danger.
2) A cop is not going to continually slam on brakes and slowing down. Especially if you backed off.
3) Off duty cops are NOT allowed to act. AT ALL. They have to be ON DUTY to do ANYTHING to people. So If you do get a citation I would be going to court.
4) What kind of cop writes on a note pad that he is a cop
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You''re fine sweety. Relax. Breathe. Flick him off in your head. Go take a bath and soak.
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I wouldn''t worry either. He was just ticked off. He wasn''t a cop, but even if he was he couldn''t write you up off duty like that. He is just messing with your head. Don''t let him in.
 
Well first of all, and I with the board here when someone messes with our BELOVED Smurfy even though she is improved (that was a joke directed at her screen name. END OF JOKE ALERT) We should all get riled up. So I am sorry you had to deal with this in your day. We puffy heart love our smurfy.

The advocate in me has this view for you;


You mentioned it was raining. KEY WORD HERE "RAINING". BEEP BEEP BEEP!


Never go the speed limit in rain even if it is rush hour. Your brakes are not going to preform the same when it is raining no matter how new your tires are or your brake job or if you have antilock. Physics trumps all of mans inventions.

So this jerk was actually attempting to express to you, snap out of your normal routine and speed and apply the 4 second rule. No longer is one car length safe. Even if you have anti-lock brakes the teeny amount of tire rubber that is on the road is not sufficient to squarely stop you as you are used to on a sunny day. Hydroplaning and curb water is a risk that while in traffic all drivers need to heed. There is so much road oil on the roads that just a smidgen of water ads danger. Then you have an on coming larger vehicle can splash your vision away and then you are a risk to all drivers-as you have no vision so your risk all motorist, not just the nut case crazy braker in front of you-you were dealing with.

I agree he was a jerk. But I think he got caught up in trying to get the point across and remind you to stay back, and drive slower because of RAIN, when all he did was insight you to take more risks and speed and try to pass and then made you speed up to the speed limit. You never caught on to the tip. He was defending his safety zone and if you are too close you are going to see brake lights. You said you continued to attempt to pass him. (While you are safer to remain in his tire tracks/path/wake of clearing, but you were getting out there in undisturbed dangerous water. *Just a tip to rain driving to remember next time.)

While I agree there is no single person out there who should be enforcing his opinion of learned sage advice, I feel that was his motive. The fact that he left you in a dust just confirms he is what you thought "He was a jerk above all jerks". He isn't an official (he could have called backup with a badge if he was) but he was still flustered there was no other way to communicate SCARE TACTICS now that you were beside him. So I think he just allowed the anger he had to met with the SHOCK you had.

Smurfy, I wish you would next time, think of the outcome and remove yourself from the strangers little world. Detour or pull off and allow another car to get between you. And as hard as it is, don't make eye contact with the person if you ever do met up at an intersection. You never know just how much anger the nut job has to unleash. You recognized he was a live wire and yet you allowed the clock and your path to dictate that you both should remain close. When dealing with crazy, you have the upper hand. Use it. Make yourself safe and SEPERATE yourself to safety. So you would be five or ten minutes behind schedule. We all would prefer to know you are safe and late, than get an email about the emergency visit.

We all need to slow down in rain. Speed limit is not safe when even a light skim of water is present. All you need is one hydroplane in your driving life to get the point across. You will need to change your panties trust me! IT is SCARY! You instantly get spun and headed the a direction you have just come. Time travel with a bonus change of pants! (okay so one more joke alert is required here).

Lesson learned: Driving too CLOSE IS reckless driving. Ouch. I know vinegar is bitter, but again I want you safe. Sugar coating and agreeing would have been easier.

I am glad you are safe from the roads and the crazy. Cause we all puffy heart love you!
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Written with all due respect, I just wanted to provide my opinion. No offense to any one reader was intended. The hope of community wellness is safety should be paramount to all of us. If my words are headed by one reader or brought up for discussion, then it was worth the wrath that will follow. SO I am reluctantly pressing the submit button...



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Casa -- I agree with you on all counts, though I do trust Smurfy to know what is and isn''t a safe speed in the rain. Sometimes speed limits have to do with road conditions, other times with traffic conditions during peak hours. Generally yes, you certainly don''t want to be over the speed limit when it''s raining, and you probably want to be under it... but that doesn''t mean that 40 MPH is always unsafe in the rain.

But absolutely give the nut jobs wide berth if you can. There have been too many instances of harmful or even fatal road rage, including one in which a little girl was shot less than a block from my house. She was in the car with her parents and her father somehow expressed displeasure about the way some other guy was driving. She''ll be in a wheelchair for the rest of her life.
 
mission accomplished (on his behalf)... he DID rattle you!

don''t give this asshat the satisfaction. if he had any clue how frazzled he made you, he''d be so pleased with himself.

let it go. i have situations like this every couple of weeks or so and it gets to me for about 10 minutes and then i''m over it.

get over it. move on. not worth your mental time.

have some fun looking at sparkly things
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Date: 5/15/2010 10:49:07 AM
Author: VRBeauty
Casa -- I agree with you on all counts, though I do trust Smurfy to know what is and isn''t a safe speed in the rain. Sometimes speed limits have to do with road conditions, other times with traffic conditions during peak hours. Generally yes, you certainly don''t want to be over the speed limit when it''s raining, and you probably want to be under it... but that doesn''t mean that 40 MPH is always unsafe in the rain.

But absolutely give the nut jobs wide berth if you can. There have been too many instances of harmful or even fatal road rage, including one in which a little girl was shot less than a block from my house. She was in the car with her parents and her father somehow expressed displeasure about the way some other guy was driving. She''ll be in a wheelchair for the rest of her life.
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Agreed. I don''t think 40 MPH is an unreasonable speed in the rain, unless it''s super heavy rain where you can barely see in front of you, etc.

Anyway, Smurfy, if this guy was a cop, wouldn''t he have just pulled you over right there? I don''t think this is anything for you to worry about at all, he just sounds a bit looney!
 
If he was a cop, he would have written you up if you had done anything wrong (which it doesn''t sound as if you did, from your account). In my experience, cops don''t behave like that. Not to rattle, but as a woman in a car alone, you have to be careful--you were right to speed ahead of him. I have heard some scary stories. In one case, a guy had a siren attached to the top of his car, would pull women over and rape them. He was not a cop. As a woman driving alone, if you have any reason to be suspicious, don''t stop even if the guy is making like a cop--drive to a place with someone else there (preferably a police station) and then stop. and if it looks like someone is following you in a car, don''t drive home if you think there is no one there. In a case in a city near me a couple of years, a woman drove home with her groceries and her baby in the middle in the day, a guy drove into her driveway, abducted her at knifepoint (forcing her to leave the baby in the carseat of her car alone for a couple of hours) you can guess the rest. Fortunately the baby was okay and he let her go afterwards instead of killing her, which they do sometimes, but still, if in any doubt, drive somewhere with people there, lots of people, use your cell to call someone like your husband and let them see you HAVE a cell (sometimes that''s a deterrent) and so forth.

That thing where he kept stopping the car to make you stop just makes me nervous even to hear. I don''t think you can be too careful and in fact if God forbid something like this ever happens again, write down his license plate and let him see you doing it. You can check then if he is police or not.

I''d rather be paranoid and remain in one piece.
 
For what its worth, although the penalties for reckless driving here CAN be harsh, there is a lot of leeway for the judge. What you pointed out was the maximum, and in my experience, most courts will give you a much lesser charge if anything as long as you show up to court.

My FIL is a policeman in the northern part of CO and for certain things, like reckless driving, they pull you over. They have to in order to make sure you are not under the influence. They can lose their job if they don''t and you are drunk and hurt someone for example. If he didn''t pull you over, your guy was not a cop.
 
Thank you ladies so much, you made me feel a LOT better.
I talked to a family friend of ours who is a cop as well and this is what he said to me:

"I would say if he was off duty he probably would have held you there until a patrol car showed up to cite you especially if it is that serious of an offence OR if he even suspected you of DUI."

Casa- you definitely have some points that I will remember next time I am in the rain (which happens frequently this time of year here). I sometimes forget that I am not in the frozen tundra of North Dakota anymore and that even though it is not a blizzard it can certainly be dangerous. It wasn''t really downpouring, but more like a drizzley cloudy day so I didn''t really feel like I would hydroplane, but you never know! You''re right, hydroplaning is verrrry scary, I have had that happen to me before as well (it tends to happen in flood conditions in the previously mentioned frozen tundra).

sarap333- I took my blinker off when I realized I couldn''t pass, this is my biggest pet peeve of all time is when people leave their blinkers on lol I hope I wasn''t tailgating though, I try to stay a car''s length. I just know I hate it when people tailgate me!! The worst part, is that if I had hit him, I would''ve been at fault because in Colorado it''s always the person who hits the other person who ends up in trouble.

Black Jade- The first thing I thought of after I got over the instant shock of him flipping out is the crazies who follow you home. So I allowed him to speed off and quickly ducked into a neighborhood that I knew was maze like and drove around there for awhile and took an alternate way home. I didn''t want to risk him waiting down the street to follow me more. I am overly paranoid like that!!

Brazen- Funny you mention that about your FIL. My husband got a speeding ticket in Northern Colorado on the way to our wedding (what!! he was in a hurry to marry me!!! haha) How funny would it be if it was your fil we talked to!!

Again, I''d just like to thank you all so much for making me feel better. I was just a wreck last night and doubt I would have gotten any sleep if I hadn''t taken my melotonin. Today we have a luncheon and wine tasting at pottery barn with a 1000 dollar shopping spree giveaway we are hoping to win. I feel like I can actually enjoy it now!!!
 
As a safety manager, I have to add to Casa...Nothing is important enough, no job, no meeting, no interview, no child care deadline etc...to risk your life by passing in poor weather conditions to make up a sliver of time.

Smurfy, you said it best. You are not in ND anymore. Passing is about as dangerous as it comes when driving, assuming you were passing into an oncoming passing lane. It isn''t only you and a potential oncoming car that is at risk, but the person and car you are passing if something goes wrong.

I HATE it when I am driving up a country road in rainy, cloudy, misty conditions and people are riding my a$$. I feel as though I am even driving a bit too fast for the condition but have to be mindful of a potential backup. I can''t stand the pressure so I will move over and let them pass when I find a turnout. I''m actually relieved if I get behind a truck, so the people behind me can see it isn''t me.
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And I''m a fast driver..in fact most people say too fast.

Anyway, my point is. Don''t pass unless it''s ideal conditions, a visual minimal stright mile in front of you and it will only take a quick pedal to metal to make the pass safely. Safety first, not being first.
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99.99% of the time you do not need to pass.

Take a deep breath.
Slow down.
Back away from the slow driver and just accept you are going to get there 45 seconds later.

I am a slow driver who tries to be as considerate as possible while still saving gas.
Often I'm passed up and meet that car at the next red light, where I resist the temptation to look over.
They used up gas and brake pads for no reason.
 
True I did not NEED to pass the first time. But as soon as he started stomping on his brakes, I DID need to pass. I''m sorry but I wasn''t going to be held responsible for replacing his bumper because he was driving that way (or for that matter, risk getting hurt myself)... I could have been 10 feet away and still hydroplaned into his car because he was doing that.
 
Date: 5/15/2010 2:54:12 PM
Author: Smurfyimproved
True I did not NEED to pass the first time. But as soon as he started stomping on his brakes, I DID need to pass. I''m sorry but I wasn''t going to be held responsible for replacing his bumper because he was driving that way (or for that matter, risk getting hurt myself)... I could have been 10 feet away and still hydroplaned into his car because he was doing that.
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I agree with Kenny, even then you didn''t NEED to pass. That''s what a proper gap is for, just in case of hydroplaning, skidding, etc. IMHO, a ten foot gap is nowhere near far enough away from the car in front of you, especially in inclement weather. People are crazy, they drive crazy. Has anyone ever noticed how if someone is driving slower than you, then they''re driving too slow, and if they''re driving faster than you, they''re driving like a maniac? Just a thought.
 
Regardless of the gap though, I''d rather not take my chances with someone driving like that in front of me...that''s just me though.
 
He was jerking your chain. He was just being a butt. If you ever see him again, get his license number and actually report him for harrassing you - - if you want to jerk his chain.
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And for goodness sake''s, next time someone pulls the Deputy Don routine, flip them off. You''ll feel so much better.
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Sucks about the jerk. Sometimes people are so horrible!

PSA - I just wanted to point out a helpful hint for anyone who might not know... You should be a car length away from the car in front of you for every 10 miles per hour you are traveling!!! So at 40mph, you should be at least 4 car lengths behind the car in front of you if you want to stop safely. :) /PSA
 
Date: 5/15/2010 3:14:06 PM
Author: redfaerythinker
Date: 5/15/2010 2:54:12 PM

Author: Smurfyimproved

True I did not NEED to pass the first time. But as soon as he started stomping on his brakes, I DID need to pass. I''m sorry but I wasn''t going to be held responsible for replacing his bumper because he was driving that way (or for that matter, risk getting hurt myself)... I could have been 10 feet away and still hydroplaned into his car because he was doing that.
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I agree with Kenny, even then you didn''t NEED to pass. That''s what a proper gap is for, just in case of hydroplaning, skidding, etc. IMHO, a ten foot gap is nowhere near far enough away from the car in front of you, especially in inclement weather. People are crazy, they drive crazy. Has anyone ever noticed how if someone is driving slower than you, then they''re driving too slow, and if they''re driving faster than you, they''re driving like a maniac? Just a thought.
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I agree with both of these posts. Best thing to do when you can''t get around someone who is going slower than you would like is to just back off. His "stomping on the brakes" sounds like what we call a brake check--used to let a tailgater know they''re following too closely. The fact that he did it repeatedly tells me (and this is totally interpretation here) that you wouldn''t get off his a$$ when he thought you should. For someone to go to the trouble of writing down on a piece of paper that he was a cop and wanted to report you or cite you for reckless driving implies that they were thoroughly provoked.

My brother was tailgated a few years ago on a two lane, curvy, dangerous country road. He was driving a huge "dually" diesel truck and the young lady behind him was apparently furious that she couldn''t pass him although the entire stretch of road is double yellow in the middle. She tailgated, swerved from side to side behind him, etc. Finally he made a left turn onto the road he needed to go down and she stayed right on his tail. He stopped, she had to stop, and he got out of his truck, and tossed a to-go drink in her face. He got arrested several days later. I''m only telling you this because he took it to a complete extreme that he shouldn''t have, BUT she shouldn''t have been provoking that.

You are right that if you hit someone from behind it is your fault. Obviously the best way to avoid that is not to tailgate.
 
It scares me that we(people) operate cars on a regular basis.
I just don''t think we''re patient, understanding, mature, or attentive enough to really handle the responsibility.

Smurfy--I agree with Holly, this guy was a butt. Seriously though, you want the crazies in front of you, not behind you. That way, you can react and avoid because you''ll be able to see what they''re doing. I always stay far behind people who are doing something questionable, it''s easier to see them that way.
 
Is it even possible to get a citation for something like that without being pulled over? Unless you''re getting a parking ticket or you get a ticket from one of the cameras on a stoplight, I think you have to be pulled over...
 
If he had been a cop he would have pulled you over.
 
I consider someone pretending to be a cop, when the aren''t, to be very very dangerous.

I''d report it with a description of the guy, the car and the license plate number.
 
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