I guess it’s inevitable, given the number of miles I drive,
that I seem to run into more than my share of drivers going the wrong way. Not
literally run into them—at least not yet—but I do have occasion to see them
quite frequently. Sometimes, I’m lucky and they’re on the other side of the
freeway but far too often, they are on my side, barreling toward me at full
speed. Being in a semi-truck, I’m not too concerned about my well being, but at
a combined speed pushing 140 mph, something tells me these people wouldn’t fare
too well in the event of a crash. Me, I’d just have a lot of paperwork to fill
out.
I’ve written about this before, I know. But recent events
warrant a revisiting.
This past week, I had the opportunity to meet another of
these wayward individuals who obviously had lost their way. I saw the car
coming, headlights shining brightly, and strangely, on my side of the divider.
The good news is the approaching car was in the left lane and I was in the
right lane.
The first instinct in such a situation, is to move to the
right and get off the road as far as possible. That’s just human instinct. But
not being human, the DOT doesn’t see it that way. As a truck driver, I’m not
allowed to leave my lane—even to avoid a crash. If I were to do so and cause
another crash or if the driver coming at me suddenly figures out his mistake
and swerves into me, it could, and likely would, be considered my fault. On the
other hand, although there are no guarantees, if I maintain my own lane and
there is a crash, I stand a much better chance of not being blamed. Brings a
whole new meaning to stand your ground!
The “experts” will tell you when anything like this occurs
there is no time to think about what to do. You just react. From the time you
realize what is happening until the car goes zooming past is only seconds. Due
to (too much) experience, I know the approaching vehicle is usually less than
an eighth mile away when the realization occurs. Depending on the speed of both
vehicles, that’s somewhere around three to four seconds at the most. Not much
time to react. Yet, when it happens it seems as if everything slows down,
providing ample time to think all sorts of thoughts and assess the situation.
As soon as I determined the vehicle was on my side of the
road, I checked my mirror. A car was slowly trying to pass me. Due to the
slight curve of the highway to the right, I knew the driver would be unable to
see the oncoming car. And, being beside me, he would have nowhere to go. But
what could I do? It’s not like I had time to write a message and hang it out
the window!
But, I didn’t have to. I hit my turn signal and abruptly
moved to the left, toward the center line, making it appear I was coming over,
while not leaving my lane. My action had the intended effect. The car passing
me suddenly slowed—amid much cussing from the driver, directed at me, I’m sure.
But then immediately, the driver must have seen the headlights coming. He
swerved into the right lane behind me so fast, I thought he might wreck.
The wrong-way driver flew past us both and disappeared down
the road. The guy in the car behind me stayed there for the next few miles,
apparently using me for a shield. In a matter of seconds, I’d gone from the
stereotypical truck driver everybody loves to hate, to the guy who could
provide a welcomed safety cushion. I know I probably gave the guy beside me a
heart attack when he thought I was going to crush him. And I’m sure I was
called every name in the book! And then some! I just wish I could have heard
what he was saying because I think I had the perfect response:
“You’re welcome.”
Bruce A. Borders is the author of
more than a dozen books, including: Inside Room
913, Over My Dead Body, The Journey, Miscarriage Of Justice, and The Wynn Garrett Series. Available in ebook and
paperback on iTunes, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Diesel Books, and
Smashwords, or at www.bruceabordersbooks.weebly.com.
Amazon Profile - http://www.amazon.com/Bruce-A.-Borders/e/B006SOLWQS.
Bruce A. Borders also serves as the Vice-President of Rave Reviews Book Club.
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Current Reads
Various Authors
SPOTLIGHT
Author
Robin Chambers
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