Chaser Runs Stop Sign in front of me!

[NealRasmussen]

I feel I should get this off my chest.

I was east-southeast of Canton, trying to safely catch up with the 2nd meso that went east of town, about 5 miles south of Grand Saline. I was going NE on on FM1255 and right about here:
https://www.google.com/maps/@32.602...4!1sWdJDxYBFT5lw8hJtFJOqhA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
I see a 'vehicle' blasting right behind the car that was in front of me. It was a slow 60mph with not many, if any places to pass, and that car was doing the speed limit just fine. I was trailing about 10-15 seconds in follow.

It took me about 1 second to realize "Wow! That car just blasted through a STOP SIGN!", then a half second to realize, "Oh hell. It's a STORM CHASER!!!". I was hard on the brakes after checking rear view. Took that FM1604 even though I wanted to go straight. It wasn't a four-way stop. He missed the car in front by 2-4 seconds max. He missed me by 10 seconds. I was pissed. I mean punching pissed.

I turned on this IDIOT's road. Bob's road, as it was windy as you can see, and would come out NW to a place that would be 10+ miles south of the meso. Going on up 733 to TX110 and then NW was a better intercept route. I'm behind him flashing my brights 3 times. Pause. 3 times. He pulled over.

(Hide your kid's ears!)

I pull up along side and roll window down, not wanting to get out, as a self-imposed restraint. "How much is my f'ing dashcam video worth to you after pulling THAT f'ing sh$t!???!!". I forget if he said he was sorry, or the female Nav, but combined they generally said "Oh, we're sorry sir. It was an accident!". I replied "That kind of accident will get SOMEONE KILLED!" and flipped em both off and drove off.

Nearly a mile before I remembered this is a stupid road to be on. 1.5 lanes. Top safe speed of 50? Goes to the wrong spot!? ummmm?! U-turn!

I'm sorry now I didn't shoot a pic or video of their ride. Or the media pimping monicker on the shrink-wrapped SUV or truck. Looked real expensive. Guy was young, 20-25, and I think a goatee, but not sure. I didn't see her really. I think I did this subconsciously so I couldn't hunt them down and egg their ride badly. Like with a gross of week old eggs?

I'm still pissed? Check out their view going N on 733. Stop sign isn't hidden by trees. Maps show a fairly major secondary road crossing. So....

1) THE DRIVER ONLY DRIVES!!! And in saying that I mean drive like a regular citizen or pull well off the road!
2) The NAV does the radar and maps! Help the driver! Helping the driver drive is much more important than if GR3 shows the gate-gate go from 73kts to 84kts!!
3) STOP MEANS STOP, DAMN IT! And curse the morons on the cable shows that were shown running stop signs!
4) SLOW THE HELL DOWN! ESPECIALLY YOU MEDIA WHORES! Doing this 40 years and who passes me the most at 85, when I'm doing 70 in a 65? Yup.. Channel BS! And this when the storm is 60 miles away and you done missed this cycle! Morons. Amateurs. SCUM!!

I carry a Swiss Army Knife, damn it!! Anyone runs a stop sign within sight of me again and I will follow you till you stop and knife your damn tires. All 4! The spare too, if it's not in the trunk!

Ahats!

Ten seconds. Maybe 15..... arrrrrrrrrgggg

 

[JamesCaruso]

Interesting to see this post now, as just a short time ago my wife came home hysterical crying after seeing a box truck slam a car stopped at a light just three vehicles behind her while she was driving my son to school. Scary and sobering stuff. I pray for the man in that car...

Of course it can happen anywhere, as it just did here in my suburban Philadelphia home town, not just while chasing, but we cover a LOT of miles at high speeds out there and we really all need to be careful as to how we drive, and vigilant as to what others are doing. Distracted driving is a problem everywhere due to cellphones, but obviously with chasing there are far more distractions plus the overall aggressive rush to be in the right place at the right time...

It seems pointless to say all this because we know it already, but it's precisely because it's basic common sense that a simple reminder to each other is just about the only thing left to do. It's all about awareness so the reminder truly can help. But admittedly it fades quickly which is why continued reminders are needed.

Be safe all.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Will Campbell]

Goodness gracious take a Xanax.

 

[James Hilger]

Goodness gracious take a Xanax.

Agreed. Last thing we need is somebody getting killed over roadrage, etc. I want to know if I I'm driving bad, but I'm pretty sure I'd know immediately if I made a mistake and would be telling myself to wake the hell up and pay attention. You have to know the history of what's happened the past few years. Farmers chasing chasers, several people getting attacked, etc. I don't know you from Adam and add that we're in the middle of nowhere.... Be careful is all I gotta say. Alot of us carry, lethal and less lethal. Last thing I want to be involved in. But won't mess around if I feel threatened. I've had one come at me with a knife less than 6 feet away. Scary situation. I dropped them immediately. Ruined my chase. I missed the storm because of dealing with cops, ambulances, getting them medical help. And most of us are recording. Even with the car off. We can debate forever about if we should call others out, but just chill and chase. I'll stop rambling now.

 

[Steve Miller]

I believe it to be healthy to call out other chasers on their ignorance. I believe it is unhealthy to threaten in a public-facing thread. This can certainly come back to bit you should something serious ever happen. Just my opinion.

 

[ScottCurry]

My dashcam recorded a video yesterday of some lady running a red light and just barely miss hitting a mom and her child crossing the crosswalk. I was shocked and angry, as anybody would have been. But I did not run her down and yell at her, much less threaten her. As James said, many people including myself carry some form of personal protection, and the results could have been bad for you. It is equally important to keep your cool on the road as it is to obey the traffic laws. Road rage can be just as deadly as running a stop sign.

That said, I totally understand you venting your anger on this forum, even if some people think it's over the top or whatever. I've done the same and taken heat for it. No big deal. But I wouldn't go so far as to post threats...

 

[Warren Faidley]

I totally understand the anger and frustration. Better to vent it here among many like-minded chasers than somewhere else.

The best way to solve this problem is to be smart. Get the license plate, the best ID of the driver and any other evidence you can. Don't be afraid to call 911 and report reckless driving. You may save someone's life. If the vehicle has stickers from some organization, company or media outlet, make sure to note that. As discussed in another thread, it's not that difficult to put the screws into bad behavior. Insurance companies, sponsors, rental car companies, etc. will not take kindly to reports of reckless behavior -- especially if skillfully presented in social media.

 

[Mark Blue]

I understand getting bent out of shape because of what happened, but your message probably fell on deaf ears by the way you delivered it. If you pulled up and inquired (as calmly as possible) if they were aware of the accident that left three dead a few weeks ago and what you saw them do was the same thing that resulted in the deaths, I believe they would've been open to chatting with you. In that scenario you would increase the chances that they'd be receptive to you and would probably rethink their driving style in the future. I fear by cussing them out, flipping them off, and leaving the scene in a huff, you probably didn't accomplish much.

I'm not here to tell you what you did was right, wrong, or indifferent Neal, but to give you some food for thought should you ever find yourself in a similar situation. Just play the role of the messenger and state your only goal in talking to them privately is to try and make the roads safer for all chasers in the future - plain and simple, then thank them for listening to you.

 

[Wes Carter]

There are only so many options when it comes to dealing with dangerous drivers. You can confront them (dangerous), call 911 (most times ineffective), call them out online (might have some effect in smaller groups such as storm chasers), or post video online. I think the latter might have the most impact, at least for now.

There are some sites that are providing a place to post that type of video, like this one that concentrates on distracted driving.
http://mixed-messages.org/


Sent from my iPhone using Stormtrack

 

[Todd Lemery]

The only thought that I can add to this is that there were possibly two near tragedies here. The first obviously was the running of the stop sign. I don't think there's anyone here who wouldn't have been upset had they been in that situation, especially in light of the events not too long ago.
The second was what could have been an escalation of the confrontation on the side of the road. Sometimes roadside confrontations take a turn for the worse, as a quick search on You Tube would reveal. I personally am very leery of who or what may be in the other vehicle and make it a point not to get to the point where I find out. Best case scenario is a little old lady on the way back from church. Worse case scenario might be a drug enraged lunatic with a death wish.
Personally, because I'm carrying full time, I go extremely lengths not to escalate any situation so that I never put myself in a position where I'd have to do the unthinkable. Even though I get pissed pretty often by other drivers, chasing them down to chew them out is an option that I'll just take a pass on.

 

[Warren Faidley]

I agree with others that you don't want to confront drivers directly. People re crazy now days. I had a guy banish a gun at me several years ago when I decided to stop at an intersection instead of running the light. I did nothing to piss him off. No finger, nothing. I was on the phone with 911 as he pulled up next me and started to roll down the window. I had a firm grip on the Glock 19 and the steering wheel while making an abrupt turn to ditch the guy. It's just not worth it.

 

[Paul Knightley]

Agree with the last couple of posts. Last year I went on a driving awareness course, which was a very eye-opening experience. There was a discussion about what people would do if someone was driving right up their backside...several people said they would 'brake check' them, etc. The guy giving the course said that's a natural reaction, but how on earth do you know who's driving that car - they could be in a hurry for many reasons, from rushing to a dying relative's side, to being off their head on meth. or similar, or they've just got out of prison for murder. The truth is that, although we all get angry at times, you might not be the one with the bigger anger issue. Defensive driving, in all situations, is key. Is that me? A bit more, now, but still not enough!

 

[Jeff House]

Three reasons to not intervene, even if feeling livid about the situation. Hospital scenario is possible. Safety is paramount. Finally, don't miss a tornado over it.

 

[Dave C]

I would be upset if I saw that too, but I would NOT do what you did, which was just as dangerous whether you realize it or not.

In fact, according to the law what you did by aggressively chasing someone down flashing the brights is an 8 point aggressive driving / reckless ticket in most states, where running a stop sign is 4 unless proven to be intentional, which would then be careless, also 4. Why do you think that is? Probably because of how often aggressive driving /road rage ends in really bad things. Seems obvious to me that your rage completely took over, which is one of the most dangerous things that can happen on the road.

The fact that all this time later you threaten to slash tires over it and are still pretty mad is alarming. I hope you will get some perspective and think about a better approach in the future. You are going to encounter bad drivers everywhere, but you are not the police, and we all have to let things go. The best thing you could have done would have been to safely get the license plate if possible, or the media outlet info, and contact LEO or the media outlet, offer dash footage if you had it, etc. Or, you could have possibly calmly pulled up if you safely caught up to those people later and politely voiced your frustrations, and I am sure that would have had much more impact on them then an angry tirade. Otherwise, please for your own safety and everyone else, stay calm out there. For the record, I've made my share of mistakes out there too, I'm not passing some horrible judgement on you. I wrap myself in calmness and awareness when driving. It's the only way to stay safe.

 

[JamesCaruso]

I used to sometimes veer toward road rage when I was younger, but, like in many areas, age has made me not only mellower and more patient in general but also more risk averse. So I agree with those cautioning that the resulting confrontation could end up being even more dangerous. Nonetheless, I can on some level understand the OP's anger, having experienced this immediately after the Spur tragedy. Still, the "cooler heads prevail" crowd should be heeded.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk