Why do you flash me?

Author
Discussion

minerva

Original Poster:

756 posts

203 months

Friday 31st October 2014
quotequote all
I was driving after dark on country lanes and got stuck behind a slower driver.... who was doing a steady 35 through villages and between them. Occasionally, they came to a complete stop as another car approached them and then started up again when the other car passed.

I was dropping back through villages and catching up between them. After one, I saw a widening of the road and nipped past. He flashed and held his main beam on for a good few minutes until he dropped back. He must have sped up, too, since he was behind me for longer than he would have been if he had continued at his stately 35mph.

I have been driving for 18 years, have a clean licence and drive 35 000 miles a year. I genuinely do not speed and I like to think I am a considerate road user.

This flashing if I overtake seems to happen more and more frequently. Why? Is it perceived dangerousness, pride being pricked or something that I am missing.

Does anyone have a similar problem, or do you flash overtakers? If so, why?

jmorgan

36,010 posts

283 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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Your head lights too bright?

forzaminardi

2,281 posts

186 months

Friday 31st October 2014
quotequote all
THINK OF THE CHILDREN/ENVIRONMENT/MY SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS

BritishRacinGrin

24,602 posts

159 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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Didn't you get the memo? Overtaking is forbidden and to overtake displays a lack of respect for the law and for the overtakee.

minerva

Original Poster:

756 posts

203 months

Friday 31st October 2014
quotequote all
I thought that it may be the headlights, so I checked them (well, stood in front of them!) and they do not appear to be. The headlight beam doesn't reach above the paintwork on the back of their car and certainly is not shining at the level of their mirror.


Thankyou4calling

10,599 posts

172 months

Friday 31st October 2014
quotequote all
minerva said:
I was driving after dark on country lanes and got stuck behind a slower driver.... who was doing a steady 35 through villages and between them. Occasionally, they came to a complete stop as another car approached them and then started up again when the other car passed.

I was dropping back through villages and catching up between them. After one, I saw a widening of the road and nipped past. He flashed and held his main beam on for a good few minutes until he dropped back. He must have sped up, too, since he was behind me for longer than he would have been if he had continued at his stately 35mph.

I have been driving for 18 years, have a clean licence and drive 35 000 miles a year. I genuinely do not speed and I like to think I am a considerate road user.

This flashing if I overtake seems to happen more and more frequently. Why? Is it perceived dangerousness, pride being pricked or something that I am missing.

Does anyone have a similar problem, or do you flash overtakers? If so, why?
Did he really come to a complete stop as another car approached? That really is an accident waiting to happen, you can't survive long driving like that surely.

Pints

18,444 posts

193 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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While travelling at 40 in a 40 zone a couple of evenings ago, an RS6 came barrelling up behind me. After sitting a couple of feet from my bumper he overtook and disappeared into the darkness.
I didn't flash my lights.

bandit

greygoose

8,227 posts

194 months

Friday 31st October 2014
quotequote all
Thankyou4calling said:
Did he really come to a complete stop as another car approached? That really is an accident waiting to happen, you can't survive long driving like that surely.
But slowing down makes your car narrower when meeting approaching cars, doesn't it???

bennyboysvuk

3,491 posts

247 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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Some people are better drivers than others. The driver you encountered might have been an aggressive 70 year old with failing eyesight. By his standards, you were completely reckless by driving at that speed when visibility was so poor.

However, your eyes work properly and you're better able to make progress at night. Ergo, you go for the overtake and the myopic, aggressive 70 year old takes it personally, only now he has a target to follow.

kiseca

9,339 posts

218 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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Because, like many drivers, whatever speed it is they choose to cruise at, anyone going slower than them is incompetent and anyone going faster than them is a lunatic. Never realising that for this to be true, they would have to be the fastest sane driver on the planet.

minerva

Original Poster:

756 posts

203 months

Friday 31st October 2014
quotequote all
He genuinely stopped as other cars, coming the other way, went past. My wife looked up to see what I had stopped for and even she thought it dangerous. I was given permission to overtake by her before I did!

StuntmanMike

11,671 posts

150 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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Thankyou4calling said:
Did he really come to a complete stop as another car approached? That really is an accident waiting to happen, you can't survive long driving like that surely.
My wife takes my youngest to school everyday, the school is about 3 miles of country lanes to get to, a reasonably good road but you cant safely overtake.
she tells me there are a few drivers that do that, you can understand it when you have huge farm machinery bearing down on you, but this happens with normal cars.
P.S it's not all mums on the school run either.

swisstoni

16,856 posts

278 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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bennyboysvuk said:
Some people are better drivers than others. The driver you encountered might have been an aggressive 70 year old with failing eyesight. By his standards, you were completely reckless by driving at that speed when visibility was so poor.

However, your eyes work properly and you're better able to make progress at night. Ergo, you go for the overtake and the myopic, aggressive 70 year old takes it personally, only now he has a target to follow.
I think this is very likely what happened. The extreme slowing down when faced with oncoming headlights is the main giveaway to bad eyesight.

ging84

8,833 posts

145 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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over taking someone is the ultimate insult to someone's manliness, worse than taking a st in their wife's mouth or flicking their moustache.
The only way to get any manliness back after being overtaken is to keep up with them no matter much faster than you were doing you need to do, flashing your lights adds extra manliness by showing you have high-beams and you know how to turn them on

omgus

7,305 posts

174 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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minerva said:
He genuinely stopped as other cars, coming the other way, went past. My wife looked up to see what I had stopped for and even she thought it dangerous. I was given permission to overtake by her before I did!
hehe

The only thing worse than being flashed and full beamed after an overtake is of course being flashed and full beamed after an unapproved overtake and dealing with the tutting from the pax seat.


My regular passenger will never give full approval, all i get is a little noise and then a quiet "go on then!".

cheesesliceking

1,571 posts

239 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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Because ego.

minerva

Original Poster:

756 posts

203 months

Friday 31st October 2014
quotequote all
You can st in her mouth if you want, but flick my moustache and that is fisticuffs!

We will end up al fresco, you and I.

regprentice

59 posts

116 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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Unlikely but his car could have had a problem and the flash was a 'thank you for being uderstanding'?. I recall having to drive a mk1 fiesta to safety using the choke as a throttle after the accelerator cable snapped. Maybe his dpf put him in limp home mode?

On the general topic of 'flashing' when learning to drive my father convinced me that a car driving towards you who flashes you is warning you about a hidden speed trap up ahead. Clearly not true but resulted in me driving in a way that would have looked quite erratic To anyone else.

TooMany2cvs

29,008 posts

125 months

Friday 31st October 2014
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You're slower than me - you're an incompetent fool and shouldn't be on the road!
You're faster than me - you're a reckless maniac and shouldn't be on the road!

jmorgan

36,010 posts

283 months

Friday 31st October 2014
quotequote all
minerva said:
I thought that it may be the headlights, so I checked them (well, stood in front of them!) and they do not appear to be. The headlight beam doesn't reach above the paintwork on the back of their car and certainly is not shining at the level of their mirror.
Ruled that out then, leaves the one other option already covered....