Tail gater counter measures

[Bill V]

I just can't get this "teach people" mentality. It's arrogant, plain and simple.

Yet isn't that what you're trying to do here, with me and all the other proactive drivers here? You're trying to teach us that, in your opinion, our actions are inappropriate. Seems quite hypocritical to say that, while demonstrating that "'teach people' mentality" yourself. Whether you agree with my "mentality" or not, it's at least consistent with my actions.



It is you with your head in the sand, if you believe that simply ignoring a tailgater will be a safer situation for you than taking action to get them off your behind. One of my friends who died in a situation like this had a passenger in the vehicle with them, who survived. That passenger confirms that my friend was doing his best to ignore this tailgater, give them space, politely slow down, etc. And the tailgater still drove them off the road, to his death. If my friend had been more proactive in getting him off his tail, I am confident he'd still be with us today. And although I'm less confident this would have happened, it may have also gotten this person to stay off other people's tails in the future. Both of these reasons make taking such action well worth it.

if you KNOW you are so correct, why not poll 10 defensive driving instructors and see if they recommend what you are doing as a way to teach drivers to drive better.

Actually, a far better approach would be to poll 10 proactive drivers and see if they recommend what youa are doing as a way to teach drivers to drive better. I don't care what "defensive driving instructors" say--it's their strategies that got my friends killed.

You would be better off with a bumper sticker that said: "Alert and considerate drivers safe lives!"

I don't know if I'd say that I would be "better off"--but I agree that something like this would be a good supplement to the rest of my approach. Akin to the whole "Start seeing motorcycles" bumper sticker campaign.

I just think you are kidding yourself if you think at 60mph you can do maneuvers with a vehicle that will effectively TEACH people anything.

For the record--I never said to do anything at 60mph. That would be crazy. To this point in the thread, I've never said a speed--but allow me to clarify that anything like I propose needs to be done at as low of speeds as possible--far lower than 60mph. Also, if you're considering throwing a soda or something like that, preferably it should be done by a passenger in your vehicle, and aimed at the passenger side of the windshield, or the grill, etc. It's got to be done in a way to make the point, not endanger the other vehicle.

 

[FlipTrac_511]

I'll just hire my neighbor to ride "shotgun", so to speak!!!

Tracnblack, your neighbor there ate it hard a few seconds after that shot was taken.

 

[Tom Schindler]

JohnnyO,



You are right. Here is an interesting tidbit of information about Ohio laws.



It is against the law to travel in the left lane. That is a law on the ORC (Ohio Revised Code) the ODOT has instructed the law forces NOT to enforce that law. That way the wear on the highway can be distributed between all lanes and not just the right lane.



You know the "Pick what laws to enforce and ignore the others no matter how important the ones you are not going to enforce actually are".



Arrest the guy going 5 over but leave the drug dealers on the street selling drugs to kids because speeding tickets are a revenue producer and drug dealers just clog the jails and you would not have any room for speeders then.





Tom

 

[Roy Smith]

ease off the road just a little and throw a bunch of trash into thier wind shield!!!last time i done this the guy got w good dusting of pebbles,stayed back real good then!! of coarse i also like to lett'em get close,then slam on brakes!!

 

[Gavin Allan]

Here's a pic of what we use here in the ozarks:

 

[Josh Langel]

Full circle.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Bill V says:

It's got to be done in a way to make the point, not endanger the other vehicle.

Again, can you give me the results of the poll taken from Defensive Driving instructors on this teaching approach of throwing things out a window to make a point?



I don't care if it's soda, or pennies, or bubble gum, or dollar bills, it's bizarre to think that tossing anything out of your vehicle will be considered instruction or teaching to someone behind you, at any speed.



I have to think that a majority of people that had the passenger of the car in front of them throw or spray soda out onto their windshield would be pretty ticked off if they could see that it was soda and could see the passenger do it. I don't see how it could be viewed as anything but a deliberate, offensive action, or possibly as a careless action.



Which is exactly what the tailgater is doing, right? So it is returning "like" with "like".



Have you gone to kindergarten or even Sunday school...don't they teach you that NEVER works?



Now if you want to say: "I'm spraying the car behind me with soda to MAKE him back off", then okay, sure, that's a WHOLE different story. Many may back off. Many may get right up in your face.



Consider this all you guys:



Let's say you are standing in line at McDonald's or some other fast food place and someone behind you is a little too close. How do you handle it? Do you turn around and toss something at him? Do you elbow them? Do you step up a little? Do you turn around and ask them to kindly give you some room?



Answer honestly....most I suspect would simply step up a bit if they can to remove themselves from the situation and if that wasn't an option AND if the encroachment severe enough many MIGHT say something. Most would simply step up and say nothing.



The "car" gives people nads....it's sad!



TJR

 

[TomT]

Let's say you are standing in line at McDonald's or some other fast food place and someone behind you is a little too close. How do you handle it? Do you turn around and toss something at him? Do you elbow them? Do you step up a little? Do you turn around and ask them to kindly give you some room?

Good point but not a fair comparison. You can't verbally communicate with someone in a car.

It still comes down to taking justifiable action.( I agree that endangering another person is not justifiable action for merely tailgating).

Now, what if that person in McDonalds refused to give you any space? Then what? Is further action necessary?

If you lightly tap on the brakes to get the other drivers attention and he still doesn't back off then maybe more action is necessary.



Again, the way I drive I'm more likely to be the tailgater then the tailgatee. So if you are being tailgated make sure you don't deserve it by not moving over or keeping up with the traffic in front of you. That makes YOU the rude one not the tailgater.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

TomT, actually it is a very fair comparison because some on here seem to be saying that through their actions they CAN and DO communicate with the other people in the car.



That's part of the problem I have and why I gave the analogy.



In PERSONAL, one-on-one social interactions like the one I mentioned most people wouldn't say a single word, THOUGH they could. Instead, they would attempt to remove themselves from the situation as a first instinct. In other words, they have ALL the opportunity to communicate verbally, but most do not. But those same people in a car think their car is an extension of themselves, a protective extension, and they seem to think that it's a good communication medium...as if slight taps on the brakes or a soda out the window will convey exactly the right intent and message.



I submit that for them that vehicular communication they are attempting is something they wouldn't seem to be able to muster if they were outside of their car and standing directly in front of the same person.



My general belief is that a majority of people that act aggressively on the road and have a mentality that they will "teach" the other guy are passive-aggressive types that are frustrated in other areas of their life and it spills over onto the highway, primarly because it is a place where they feel they can safely act out, communicate, and be heard.



TJR

 

[Gavin Allan]

My general belief is that a majority of people that act aggressively on the road and have a mentality that they will "teach" the other guy are passive-aggressive types that are frustrated in other areas of their life and it spills over onto the highway, primarly because it is a place where they feel they can safely act out, communicate, and be heard.

Even if this is correct, so what?



Bastards tailgate me enough without taking a hint, more extreme measures are needed.



Someone needs to teach 'em.

 

[Josh Langel]

Someone needs to teach 'em.

Has it EVER occurred to anyone that these tailgaters do it for the sake of getting a reaction from you? Maybe they are edging you on... wanting that reaction... so be tough.. stand your ground... "show them who's boss" and "teach them a lesson." Maybe later you'll can compare penis sizes and take turns to see who can piss furthest.



Maybe I shouldn't feel bad about not feeling a thing for those who get wrapped around a pole or shot dead at a traffic stop because they were just being asses to "teach people a lesson." Your lesson may be staring down the barrel of a pistol. Then maybe "that guy" will teach you a lesson.

 

[Bill V]

Now if you want to say: "I'm spraying the car behind me with soda to MAKE him back off", then okay, sure, that's a WHOLE different story.

HUH??? That's what I've been saying all along--there is nothing different about the story!!!!



By the way, in your McDonald's story--by the very statement you made in the story, you CAN'T step up a little--there's a counter (or another person) there! That option is out! So yes--I turn around, and ask them to back off a bit. Every time. In fact, even if there is space to move up, I turn around and ask them to back off--as if I were to move up, seeing their previous behavior, they're likely to close the distance once again.



But TomT is right--it's not an apples-to-apples comparison.



Let me once again clarify--the "teaching" that you seem so hung up on is and always has been a secondary goal. The primary goal is to get them to back off, and stop endangering you by tailgating. And tossing a soda on someone's grill, or passenger-side windshield, is far less endangering than the act of tailgating that led to it. You're safer taking some action to try to get them to back off, than you are in allowing them to continue tailgating--statistics have proven that. (I'm sure you're going to ask--so those statistics are: Friends who died at the hands of tailgaters--2. Friends who died after getting tailgaters off their tails--0. Yeah, I know you don't like those statistics--but they hold a lot of weight with me on a personal level, so I really don't care if you don't like them.) So if you don't want to do it to teach a lesson, do it for your own safety--and let the potential lesson to others just be a nice side benefit.



And remember--this whole conversation simply vanishes if there would just be enough cops out there such that they could actually do their job, and get these people off the road.

 

[Gavin Allan]

And remember--this whole conversation simply vanishes if there would just be enough cops out there such that they could actually do their job, and get these people off the road.

Actually, the problem is that there are plenty of people driving who should not be driving. The government basically gives every applicant a driver's license after they (finally, in some cases) pass a short written test and a 10-minute driving test. Drivers are not evaluated on a periodical basis on their driving competence. Many folks are driving after passing the driving test 60 years ago!



Driving should be a right, not an entitlement. Only skilled drivers should be licensed. More than one DUI should result in permanent loss of license, with no hope of ever getting licensed again. Yes, poor driving like tailgating, left-lane bandits, operating and unsafe vehicle, etc. should result in severe/expensive fines and potential loss of license.



Around here, cops are too busy catching folks speeding a few miles over the speed limit on improperly-speed limit set roads, or else they are just issuing parking tickets like crazy.



Driving should be serious business with serious consequences if abused.



Since the cops won't do anything about these idiots who tailgate, drive with oncoming high-beams, hogging the left lane, etc., SOMEONE has to try to teach them a lesson.

 

[Thomas Rogers]

Okay, Bill V, we agree then that you aren't really teaching, that throwing stuff out a window may cause some to back off, but is as likely to be seen as an aggressive action and tick the person off behind you.



Gotcha.



We are good now.



TJR

 

[WXMotorSports DecalsPartsAccs]

Answer honestly....most I suspect would simply step up a bit if they can to remove themselves from the situation and if that wasn't an option AND if the encroachment severe enough many MIGHT say something. Most would simply step up and say nothing.

My answer is not relevant...LOL



Actually, stepping back and bumping into them solves the problem quickly to your example above.



At a concert I had this guy who had to talk with his hands and arms going everywhere. Twice he knocked me in the head with his hands. I couldn't move back so I pushed him forward and told him he was in my space with his hands flying all around.



On the road I move over a lane. If they are tail gating me in the slow lane I just slow down and they move over and pass.