B road hooning, technically illegal?

[RedSwede]

This is another thread that really scares me.

So many people on this thread driving around in hope of not hitting something. Of course not everyone is driving able to stop their car in the distance seen to be clear - a good number of drivers are bad at driving, inattentive, distracted, etc. But, that such a high percentage of people who are on this forum (presumably because they have a higher than average enthusiasm for this "driving" thing) are doing it, is what really surprises me.

And if you are aware that not everyone else is doing it right, it's all the more reason to do it right yourself so you can avoid the consequences of their actions.

You don't need to be able to see the "highway code" stopping distance to be clear, but you do need to be able to see the actual stopping distance to be clear. Come round a bend to see a fallen off cyclist when going too fast... I doubt you'll be able to console yourself that it was reasonable to expect it to be clear when you haven't had a good nights sleep for a few years.

I don't think there is too much need to observe the speed limits when out for a spirited drive, but the stopping/distance to be clear rule is just never invalid.

Edited by RedSwede on Wednesday 24th April 12:09

[LunarOne]

V8RX7 said:

S. Gonzales Esq. said:

1) Being able to stop in the distance you can see is the fundamental rule of good driving.

1) No that's the fundamental rule of SAFE driving - they are not the same

I'd say they are the same, as long as getting out of the car in the same state as you got into it are important to you. If you're on a kamikaze mission, then my argument falls apart. You also need to take into account the safety of other road users. They have as much right not to be killed or injured as you feel you do.

I like a good spirited drive as much as anyone else. My cars are both manual, RWD cars known for decent handling and with a sufficient amount of power to get the driver into a lot of bother rather quickly. On some back roads where there aren't any obvious hazards, I will happily exceed the posted speed limit on a straight section where I know there are no pathways or side roads. But part of my driving process is evaluating whether I'm going too fast to be able to be able to take avoiding action should a hazard appear. It's a semi-conscious thought rather than one I have to actively think about at all times - as a bend approaches, am I going too fast to be able to stop should a tractor appear in my lane? Can I safely negotiate the next bend even if there's oil or gravel on the road? My driving speed and style is constantly modified by the necessity to be able to react to both expected and unexpected hazards. It becomes an automatic part of the process of driving, and it's also quite rewarding when you pick your braking points correctly so that you are doing an appropriate speed. If, once you reach the bend you can see that it opens out into an a section where again there are few hazards, you can accelerate appropriately.

There's clearly a balance to be found between having fun while still being safe (to both yourself and other road users) and just driving dangerously. The problem is that what seems perfectly safe to one person is reckless to another. And if that other happens to be a police officer, then you could find yourself in bother. But one way to minimise the risk of being seen as reckless is surely to make sure you don't take unnecessary risks, by which I mean blindly blatting round bends where there could easily be a small child who's fallen off their bicycle in the middle of the road. You could also say that it's plain good driving.

[lyonspride]

LunarOne said:

by which I mean blindly blatting round bends where there could easily be a small child who's fallen off their bicycle in the middle of the road.

Or some moron has parked his defender in the road, whilst towing a large flat bed trailer, as happened to me a few years ago, he was ahead of me, rounded the corner and stopped shortly after, but his trailer lights didn't work, so I rounded the corner and here he was, lucky nothing was coming the other way.

[NGee]

I'd say rules 2-27 all become rather irelevant if you ignore rule 1 and end up dead!!

[V8RX7]

Graveworm said:

V8RX7 said:

1) No that's the fundamental rule of SAFE driving - they are not the same

For most relevant bodies and people - Safe is the primary element of good driving. It takes precedence over smooth, systematic (If that's your thing) and speed.
It seems to me that, if something is a fundamental of safe driving then it is a fundamental of good driving.

My Mum is a safe driver

Stirling Moss is a good driver

[Dr Jekyll]

V8RX7 said:

My Mum is a safe driver

Stirling Moss is a good driver

Are we talking road or track here?

[Graveworm]

V8RX7 said:

My Mum is a safe driver

Stirling Moss is a good driver

We can Ask the IAM alumni Sir Stirling about it:

Sir Stirling Moss said:

I am not a driver, I am a racer.

Sir Stirling Moss said:

It is better to go into a corner slow and come out fast, than to go in fast and come out dead

Sir Stirling Moss said:

There are two things no man will admit he cannot do well: drive and make love

[Scootersp]

It's good to get a reality check every now and again and this thread gives it.

You can do something the same way for hundreds of times but that one set of, however unlikely, circumstances is all you need to really screw things up for you. We all can recall 'that one time when' story where we had a close call, or if not you'll have one sooner or later. So it's perhaps dull or unpistonhead like to point certain things out but those dismissing it should at the very least consider some the risks they may be taking, and/or identify spots where they perhaps on reflection occasionally take liberties, we all get complacent from time to time.

I can think of a couple of corners where I may be at times. Any one who goes to Goodwood on the A283 Milford to Petworth would know the corners.

One thing I always think is careless is someone hooning and steaming up behind someone, where you know they have to brake quite hard to match your speed, when they could have 'rolled off' the throttle and just eased up to you. If you are that type then you need to realise that you are at risk of them having to brake and then you will rear end them. Same with someone pulling out on you, the temptation can be to close right up behind them (some people even accelerate!) to get the point across that they made a bad judgement, but if they have they are far more likely to do something else unexpected and so being right up behind them again puts you in danger of having zero reaction time. I spose this comes under defensive driving.

[SVS]

V8RX7 said:

it's down to the car - not the driver

Watch out for those Volkswagen Transporter drivers who need a reality check