Truckers Like This..

blas · #1 10-22-2011, 08:22 AM

Truly are the reason there's a stereotype and a bad reputation in general regarding truckers. And, with my dad working for a semi truck company, when I tell him stories about some of the asshat things I see truckers do, he shakes his head and says his boss would probably shitcan any of the drivers if they pulled stunts like that.

Back in fall 2009, there was the trucker who was either asleep or raging at the wheel, who came roaring up my ass and would NOT pass me until I got so scared he was going to plow me off the road that I moved over for my own safety and let him fly by.

There's been various forms of trucker asshattery that I didn't feel the need to post because it's just too common of occurances and can usually be forgiven and forgotten.

Then, there's asshole truckers like this.

Usually, people's gripe is that trucks slow everyone down, usually cause backups, etc. And I will be the first to say, most trucks I see obey the speed limit, so they generally are considered "slow" moving and most people pass.

But there was that trucker from 2 years ago, and now there's this asshole.

You know how annoying it is in traffic when some asshole in a little penis extender car or SUV is weaving a basket in and around everyone, zipping in and out of lanes, determined to pass EVERYONE on the road?

There was a semi truck doing that the other day on the way to work. I don't know how I didn't catch him up to him sooner, but it was a traffic jam that brought us together. Before that, I can only assume this guy was hauling serious ass. And, to be honest, I am flat out terrified of something that huge and potentially unstable and wobbly going around and around and around everyone.

There was some really large piece of equipment, some backhoe or some farm equipment that really should not have even been on the freeway at all (being unable to go much fast than 50), that caused a jam right by where I need to switch highways, so that resulted in a lot of people slamming the brakes to get over into the right exit lane, and at this point, the semi was behind the large backhoe thingy, and stayed behind him on the super curvy merge ramp onto the next highway. There was also a long string of vehicles behind the semi, I was somewhere in the middle of that.

Immediately after merging, everyone started taking the chance to dart around the semi and the backhoe. The semi included!

As it ALWAYS seems to happen, the moment I get in the left lane and put my foot down, I see that stupid trucker put his blinker on. At this point, I'm just a few car lengths behind the back of his trailer.

Oh, you fucker, you BETTER not! I'm thinking.

And he starts swerving over.

I laid on my horn. For a good 10 seconds. Maybe more.

I don't know if he heard it or finally realized there was someone there that he nearly took out, but he started weaving back over, realizing he'd made a stupid decision because everyone in the right lane had to adjust their speed to not slam into HIM weaving back over.

As I go to overtake him, he's practically straddling the center line, another one of my peeves about truckers. You're big, but you can fit on your own side of the road. I know you want to get over, but do you want to kill people? Apparently.

I spent a good few seconds on the rumble strips going about 70, so my car was shaking and it seemed the rumble strips were fighting to tug me into the ditch. I nearly pissed myself.

And I swear, the exact second I finally overtook the stupid huge asshole, he swerved back over to overtake the backhoe, and I got ahead of the backhoe and back behind the other cars, and then that stupid huge asshole got back into the right lane, I swear he practically cut off the backhoe, and then he started roaring up my ass. Note, I am still doing 70 at this point.

He even took the same exit as me. But thankfully, because semi trucks can't accellerate very fast, I was able to get far away from him really quick after I turned right onto the slower highway to work.

UncleSillyHead · #2 10-24-2011, 02:28 AM

I am a trucker,and it sounds like your as bad as the trucker.by your own statement the truck had his signal on trying to change lanes when you decided to speed up and say (Oh no you don't,your not getting in front of me!!!!!) 2 wrongs don't make a right,,3 lefts do..

dbuzman · #3 10-24-2011, 03:46 AM

Quote:

Quoth UncleSillyHead

I am a trucker,and it sounds like your as bad as the trucker.by your own statement the truck had his signal on trying to change lanes when you decided to speed up and say (Oh no you don't,your not getting in front of me!!!!!) 2 wrongs don't make a right,,3 lefts do..

No. Blas was already in the left lane and was close to the truck before the driver signaled. Then the driver put the signal on and attempted to change lanes without being sure it was safe to do so. The "Oh, you fucker, you BETTER not!" was meaning "you better not cut me off when I'm this close to you" not, "I'm not going to let you in front of me".

blas · #4 10-24-2011, 04:13 AM

That's exactly how it went.

I was behind others who were already/had already passed the semi, and it just had to happen where once I was already in a danger zone, he puts his signal on and starts coming over and that's why I laid on the horn and kept on it until he realized what he was doing. Then again, I'm not even sure if he heard the horn, or just finally looked and realized he could have sent me off the road.

slavetotheman · #5 10-24-2011, 01:42 PM

Now I understand nobody likes to be behind a large truck (myself included) but another way to have handled this situation would have been for you (and everyone else ahead of you behind the semi) to have anticipated that he would also want to pass the backhoe and let him into the left lane to pass, rather than jumping into the left lane to zip past him before he got a chance or an opening. Y'know, share the road, wait your turn and all that fun stuff.

Ree · #6 10-24-2011, 03:01 PM

WOW!!!
Some of these comments are hovering dangerously near to FTSTS.

It's no wonder we get people afraid to post around here for fear that their venting will result in a lecture about what they, themselves, did wrong.

It's great that some have offered blas advice for the next time she's in that situation, but, seriously, it happened, and is in the past, so the advice is a bit moot in regard to her post here.

Can we move on?

Captain Trips · #7 10-24-2011, 09:11 PM

Not to mention that Blas wasn't the one breaking the law. That truck was. (If in the U.S.) the speed limit on trucks is 55. Blas said this one was doing 70.

A friend of mine who just got her trucker's license last year pointed this out to me: her truck has a speed governor, no matter what she does she can't go over 55. (She is a company trucker, of course. Sounds like Blas' jerk was an independent.)

lupo pazzesco · #8 10-25-2011, 12:54 AM

Ooof, it's not just truckers. Don't you just LOVE the indecisive people who aren't sure what lane they need, so they ride the lines a lot on the freeway?

That's just one of the reasons I'd don't drive around this city. I'd be too terrified of trying to exit and have my car turned into a Lupo sammich between two other vehicles.

Yeah, I'm paranoid, what of it...?

blas · #9 10-25-2011, 03:12 AM

Thanks, Ree

Perhaps if ya'll had been there, you'd see how dangerous it was as it was. When someone goes to switch lanes in front of you with hardly any room to spare, that's bad enough, but an 18 wheeler? Yeah, that's pants pooping worthy.

Andara Bledin · #10 10-25-2011, 06:49 AM

It's really irrelevant if the one truck wanted to pass the other; it wasn't safe for him to attempt to do so at that time, and it was never at any point legal for him to do so (since it appears that both tractors were already exceeding their limit).

I've done a lot of 4-lane freeway travel through the California desert, and it is very rare where a tractor driver will attempt to pass another tractor until traffic is very clear, or they've gotten a go-ahead from another vehicle indicating that they have room to make the pass.

^-.-^