Driving Blind

Traffic! Who needs it?



Having driven for close to 55 years I finally had my worst nightmare behind the wheel. I was caught in a torrential rainstorm in the city, in a traffic jam, at night, in conditions in which I just could not see where I was in the street. My car windows continually fogged up, and I could not pull over to the side, where ever that was, to stop.


My airconditioning system would only work on hot, so I made steam in the car, and I had an idea that there was traffic behind me only because their lights blinded me. At one point, we were on a roundabout with apparently a bus, or something to my right, signified only by a tiny yellow light, and to my left some clown in a car was pushing me towards the bus/something. Choose: would I rather hit the bus/something or the car? I chose the car. In the event I struck neither, but that was a bit of luck.


The rain was driving down relentlessly, I was wipìng the front windscreen constantly, and that gave me a little bit of vision out the front, and I continued forward on instinct. Finally I got a brilliant idea. Open the bloody windows! Sure the rain came in, but the cloud in the windows lifted and I could actually see to the side and forward, and even behind. Wonderful!


I eventually got to my destination safely, but exhausted and a bit wet. I had to contemplate the return journey which was more than a terrible thought, but when the time came it had stopped raining. That I survived that experience without a scratch means that there is someone watching over me who has my very best interests at heart. Thank you Guardian Angel!


It has stopped raining for about five days and the car seats are still a little squishy, but the car will survive, and I might add it will be a little cleaner because after all, it was only water. Its a Volvo and that's one tough car. It's the nightmares that are slow to go away. I cannot understand why the situation in my dreams has to be so much worse than in reality.


On the bright side, I must be one hell of a driver to drive on instincts without even touching anything. I consider that a very good testament. I wonder if I can put that on my driving CV?


Copyright (c) 2011 Eugene Caramichael

Multiple Vehicle Pile-ups!

A Tsunami of Ignorance


Every now and then we read about road crashes involving some insane number of vehicles, some involving less than a hundred, but sometimes more than a hundred are involved. I think China holds the record for some shocking number that came to a sticky end.


I was trying to imagine what it must be like to be in the midst of all of that sort of thing. I have no doubt that there are some of you who have been a victim, so you will be the experts. I have been very lucky so far, plus I think my style of driving might have saved me from the experience.


These events seem to grow out of very dangerous driving weather situations. I have found myself in such situations, particularly in Canada. The one thing that seems to be at work that contributes to massive wrecks is sheer stupidity. If we are driving in exceptionally heavy rain or fog, or blizzard conditions, common sense demands that we slow down, and stop along the side of the road if we have to.


Well no! These conditions tends to bring out every imbecile on the planet. None of us can see the road ahead, so what the hell are the drivers doing who pass you by going at top speed as though it's a sunny day. Of course they are kamikazes looking for a place to crash. The first time I found myself in a snow blizzard I was in Canada on my way to the airport to catch a plane.Other drivers scared me so much that the first motel I could see I pulled into their parking lot and went to bed. I lived to catch the plane another day.


To run into vehicles ahead that have crashed into one another, then to have other vehicles crash into my car, and to hear the bedlam go on and on, locking me into a big scrap heap of metal and injured bodies for hours and hours is my idea of a living hell. There will be as many stories as there are people who survive to tell them, but the fact is that these events are traceable to sheer human stupidity. If I had the power, when I see people being so irresponsible I would incapacitate them so they could no longer pose a threat to other humans.


Sometimes, my fellow human beings tax my patience to the limit!


Copyright (c) 2011 Eugene Carmichael

Careful on the Roundabout

IT'S A DANGEROUS WORLD OUT THERE!



The Roundabout would be one of the truly great inventions if only us people who use them had the slightest idea of what we were doing. It has always been my practise to use my indicators to signal my intention. Lately I have become lazy and over confident, and sure enough a person on my left decided he wanted to go right, and tried to do so. That brought him and I within a very close distance apart, as I was going left.


The problem with Spanish roads is that lane discipline is lacking. Drivers here have never heard of the term in any language, so it is not uncommon for some airhead in the extreme left lane to decide that he wants to go right, and he actually thinks there will be nothing wrong with cutting across several lanes to do so.


When we, as drivers decide to do something stupid we pull out all the stops. Our actions will turn out to be jaw droppingly stupid, in the same manner as standing in front of a raging bull.


Welcome to Spain!


When next using a Roundabout, remember lane discipline, and indicate where you intend to go; and keep a keen eye for all those idiots who are out to get you.


Copyright (c) 2011 Eugene Carmichael

Moto GP Madness

Bikers on the Move

If its the first weekend in November it must be Moto GP time in Valencia. People converge from, quite literally, all over the world for this event. Naturally the racing track of Ricardo Torno de Cheste features front and centre, and what takes place there is religious worship. The very small town of Cheste goes from being a little village to more than 200,000 people.


I live next door in the pueblo of Pedralba. I have owned motorcycles all of my life, so naturally people think I'm a petrolhead. The gathering of so many bikes and people is electric, but the fact is that I do not attend the races. Any activity where people are almost certain to become seriously injured because the danger level is ultra-high, I do not consider entertainment.


I have watched the bikes going round the track at speeds that are breathtaking, and the riders have to lay the bike down so low I can't understand why the bike just doesn't simply fall to the ground. From time to time riders and bikes do part company, and in most cases the guys get up and walk away. However, we know that the sport is incredibly dangerous because a few unlucky guys make the point through very serious injury, and even death.


The weather is beastly for this year's event, which in a way demonstrates the mood. At the forefront of everyone's thinking will be No. 58, Marco Simoncelli, who as we all know lost his life in a recent race. The Cheste event will be a homage to him, but life, and the races will go on, as it does. We can only hope that there will be fewer casualities in the future.


For me. the loss of this young man's life is my worst expectation and the reason I stay away from such races. But, that's just me. I don't expect to change anything.


Copyright (c) 2011 Eugene Carmichael