Rural drink-driving

[Sticks.]

arfur said:

Nicked from elsewhere - just made me chuckle

I would like to share a personal experience I had about drinking and driving.

This might save you the cost and embarrassment of being arrested for Drunken Driving.

As you know, people have been known to have unexpected brushes with the authorities from time to time, often on the way home after a "social session" with family or friends.

Well recently, it happened to me. I was out for the night to a party and had more than several beers coupled with a bottle of rather lovely whiskey.

Although relaxed, I still had the common sense to know I was slightly over the limit. That's when I did something I've never done before... I took a taxi home.

On the way home there was a police roadblock, but since it was a taxi they waved it past and I arrived home safely without incident.

These roadblocks can be anywhere and I realized how lucky I was to have chosen to take a taxi.

The real surprise to me was that I had never driven a taxi before. Not sure where I got it, and now that it's in my garage I don't know what to do with it ?

Very good. There was a version where a pissed bloke was told to take the bus home, so he went to the bus station intending to steal one and drive it home. But he couldn't find one which was going his way.

[Boosted LS1]

Tom8 said:

Randy Winkman said:

How much land do you own?

We have our own land and then a share of a common. Our drive is about quarter/half a mile so from our place and on to the common to dump the car.

That told him. You have considerably more then him :-)

[survivalist]

Silvanus said:

Snow and Rocks said:

bigothunter said:

Especially when after the accident, the police arrive and discover you are drunk.

Many will abandon the car, do a runner over the fields, go into hiding until sober and won't go near home. Charge of leaving the scene of an accident should be less painful.

This strategy is not from personal experience. But it is commonplace...

I think as long as you report the accident within 24 hours you're actually ok to leave the scene.

DD is pretty common here in Aberdeenshire - I've had various lifts over the years from people who definitely shouldn't have been driving. The one thing they had in common was how ridiculously over cautious they were - probably safer than how most of them drive sober!

I doubt that last statement is true at all, just an excuse that gets used time and time again.

It’s entirely possible. When I lived in a rural setting there were definitely a few people who’s daily (sober) driving was terrifying but on the way back from the pub they’d be ultra cautious to avoid being pulled over,

Where I live now I’d say that the elderly drivers are more if a risk than the 5 and drive lot.

No saying we should encourage drink driving, just that we don’t live in a black and white world.

[AgentZ]

thecremeegg said:

Anyone remember a TV show they did, probably 10 years ago now, where they took a load of people, asked them what they'd drink before driving on a typical night, and then tested them?
One old guy had like 3 large glasses of red wine before he'd drive home and he was actually under the limit, whereas there was someone else who had somehing like 2 pints and was over by quite a way.
Annoyingly I can't remember what the show was called.

I recall this being the ITV Tonight show with Jonathan Maitland but checking a video that seems to fit it wasn't the one I remember.

The program I recall featured among the tested group a young woman ~20 y/old clearly bladdered after loading up on cocktails but only blowing 20 on a breathalyser at the end of the experiment and a ~60 yr old bloke lifelong spirit drinker that looked sober as a priest on Sunday blow well over the limit.

Maybe it was a BBC show I can't remember?

[boyse7en]

Sticks. said:

Very good. There was a version where a pissed bloke was told to take the bus home, so he went to the bus station intending to steal one and drive it home. But he couldn't find one which was going his way.

Think that was one of Jethro's... certainly he did a version where him and his mate went to the bus station and had to move all the buses out because the one that went to the village was parked at the back. He also had to nick a double decker, so he could go upstairs to have a smoke.

[Sticks.]

boyse7en said:

Think that was one of Jethro's... certainly he did a version where him and his mate went to the bus station and had to move all the buses out because the one that went to the village was parked at the back. He also had to nick a double decker, so he could go upstairs to have a smoke.

yes, thanks. Upstairs on a bus, in Winter. Unimaginable now.

Can't imagine young people really do five and drive do they?

[WCZ]

most people do it in the countryside from my experience living there, they aren't drinking as much as people in the city though and the distances are small

my friends in america tell me the attitude there is much different then over here too

[GT03ROB]

WCZ said:

my friends in america tell me the attitude there is much different then over here too

Having lived in Houston it is. a very different attitude. Nobody really cares.

Living near the Galleria I would frequent the bars & restaurants on Westheimer & Richmond. Both are 3 lanes each way with just a grass strip in the middle. Every few hundred m there is a place to do a U turn. There are signs however prohibiting U turns between 11pm & 3am Friday & Saturday nights. I asked someone why. Apparently they had too many crashes with people coming out of the bars & restaurants after a few. Rather than clamp down on the drink driving it was easier just to stop the U turns!

[PartsMonkey]

SpeckledJim said:

donkmeister said:

NMNeil said:

cantstopbuyingcars said:

The most sensible thing to do is not to mix drinking and driving at all.

Then why do pubs have car parking?

For one, because not every pub goer drinks alcohol.
For two, where else do you cordially invite a fellow patron for a round of fisticuffs?
For three... Every pub I know with a car park falls into at least one of the following categories:
1) the pub is an eatery that does a sideline in alcohol.
2) the car park was put in somewhere between 1920 and 1960, different views on drink driving
3) the pub car park isn't actually the pub's car park, but rather there is a car park next to the pub, that has nothing to do with the pub.

I think we've all seen the video on YouTube where they did a vox pop of motorists in a "motorists' pub" just before the breathalyser came in

To address your 1)

No such thing. Alcohol is always key. Switch off the alcohol and nobody will go. The pub might be ‘food lead’ but without alcohol there is no business.

There are no zero-alcohol pubs. (Awaits link to one. Probably in Bristol or Brighton)

I'd say a Harvester is a good example of 1). Clearly designed to cater for diners, the only people I see in my local Harvester bar are merely having a drink while they wait for a table to become free (Obvs YMMV).

[DonkeyApple]

PartsMonkey said:

SpeckledJim said:

donkmeister said:

NMNeil said:

cantstopbuyingcars said:

The most sensible thing to do is not to mix drinking and driving at all.

Then why do pubs have car parking?

For one, because not every pub goer drinks alcohol.
For two, where else do you cordially invite a fellow patron for a round of fisticuffs?
For three... Every pub I know with a car park falls into at least one of the following categories:
1) the pub is an eatery that does a sideline in alcohol.
2) the car park was put in somewhere between 1920 and 1960, different views on drink driving
3) the pub car park isn't actually the pub's car park, but rather there is a car park next to the pub, that has nothing to do with the pub.

I think we've all seen the video on YouTube where they did a vox pop of motorists in a "motorists' pub" just before the breathalyser came in

To address your 1)

No such thing. Alcohol is always key. Switch off the alcohol and nobody will go. The pub might be ‘food lead’ but without alcohol there is no business.

There are no zero-alcohol pubs. (Awaits link to one. Probably in Bristol or Brighton)

I'd say a Harvester is a good example of 1). Clearly designed to cater for diners, the only people I see in my local Harvester bar are merely having a drink while they wait for a table to become free (Obvs YMMV).

Thread closed. Drink driving is essential for society to move forward. Without alcohol and drink driving we'd all be at a Harvester and mankind would be at an end within a generation.

[SpeckledJim]

DonkeyApple said:

PartsMonkey said:

SpeckledJim said:

donkmeister said:

NMNeil said:

cantstopbuyingcars said:

The most sensible thing to do is not to mix drinking and driving at all.

Then why do pubs have car parking?

For one, because not every pub goer drinks alcohol.
For two, where else do you cordially invite a fellow patron for a round of fisticuffs?
For three... Every pub I know with a car park falls into at least one of the following categories:
1) the pub is an eatery that does a sideline in alcohol.
2) the car park was put in somewhere between 1920 and 1960, different views on drink driving
3) the pub car park isn't actually the pub's car park, but rather there is a car park next to the pub, that has nothing to do with the pub.

I think we've all seen the video on YouTube where they did a vox pop of motorists in a "motorists' pub" just before the breathalyser came in

To address your 1)

No such thing. Alcohol is always key. Switch off the alcohol and nobody will go. The pub might be ‘food lead’ but without alcohol there is no business.

There are no zero-alcohol pubs. (Awaits link to one. Probably in Bristol or Brighton)

I'd say a Harvester is a good example of 1). Clearly designed to cater for diners, the only people I see in my local Harvester bar are merely having a drink while they wait for a table to become free (Obvs YMMV).

Thread closed. Drink driving is essential for society to move forward. Without alcohol and drink driving we'd all be at a Harvester and mankind would be at an end within a generation.

Exactly. You can’t work hard all week on the prospect of a bottomless salad cart.

[C70R]

GT03ROB said:

WCZ said:

my friends in america tell me the attitude there is much different then over here too

Having lived in Houston it is. a very different attitude. Nobody really cares.

Living near the Galleria I would frequent the bars & restaurants on Westheimer & Richmond. Both are 3 lanes each way with just a grass strip in the middle. Every few hundred m there is a place to do a U turn. There are signs however prohibiting U turns between 11pm & 3am Friday & Saturday nights. I asked someone why. Apparently they had too many crashes with people coming out of the bars & restaurants after a few. Rather than clamp down on the drink driving it was easier just to stop the U turns!

Agreed. I've known a lot of people in various US cities, North and South, who thought nothing of driving to and from the bar after several beers. It just seemed culturally normal.

[LimaDelta]

Exoticlover said:

LimaDelta said:

Anyway, cool story, etc.

What do you mean by that?

You must be new to the internet.

https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/cool-story-bro

[mikeswagon]

bigothunter said:

I think as long as you report the accident within 24 hours you're actually ok to leave the scene.

DD is pretty common here in Aberdeenshire - I've had various lifts over the years from people who definitely shouldn't have been driving. The one thing they had in common was how ridiculously over cautious they were - probably safer than how most of them drive sober!

Is it still common?

Disappointed if that's the case, and surprised to be honest, not because we're all reformed angels but certainly where I am there's hardly a country pub still open. I guess there's still the odd teuchter that ventures out...

[LankyFreak]

SpeckledJim said:

DonkeyApple said:

Thread closed. Drink driving is essential for society to move forward. Without alcohol and drink driving we'd all be at a Harvester and mankind would be at an end within a generation.

Exactly. You can’t work hard all week on the prospect of a bottomless salad cart.

I once attended Harvester with Strongman Luke Stoltman, it was for breakfast.

Harvesters all you can eat breakfast is a bd because you have to ask for your "cooked goods". Luke, with no shame, ordered 3 plates worth of hearty breakfast scran, polished it, and proceeded to demolish the continental section.

Harvester is fking awful though, council??

[QJumper]

C70R said:

Agreed. I've known a lot of people in various US cities, North and South, who thought nothing of driving to and from the bar after several beers. It just seemed culturally normal.

With the streets filled with armed drunks at closing time, I think I'd probably prefer to drive home too

More seriously though, Texas has the highest number of drink related accidents than any other state, and the USA is the third worst country (behind South Africa and Canada) for drink driving deaths, at twice the rate of the UK.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2016/08...

[DonkeyApple]

It's what God wants. That and diabetes, incest, racism and and the sweat, velvet kiss of a cow.

[Electronicpants]

QJumper said:

C70R said:

Agreed. I've known a lot of people in various US cities, North and South, who thought nothing of driving to and from the bar after several beers. It just seemed culturally normal.

With the streets filled with armed drunks at closing time, I think I'd probably prefer to drive home too

More seriously though, Texas has the highest number of drink related accidents than any other state, and the USA is the third worst country (behind South Africa and Canada) for drink driving deaths, at twice the rate of the UK.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2016/08...

I remember watching a recent Netflix special with a US comedian, can't remember who (Bill Burr or Lois CK probably), and the "bit" was on how you only go through the MacDonald's drive through when your so drunk you can't remember the next day, complete with dribbling the food down you because your so inebriated.

All the audience were howling with recondition laughter while I watched with a WTF look on my face.

[QuattroDave]

Mutandegrande said:

Pistom said:

I've seen lots of people who have broken drink driving laws in our rural area but don't recall anyone "st-faced" or unfit to drive.

Clearly alcohol must have some impairment but the risk of getting caught is virtually none, the liklihood of causing an accident virtually none so should anyone care?

We did have a spate a few years ago when a change in local policing resulted a "crackdown" and sadly someone who used to drive in got run over when he was walking in. He was OK but he ended up in hospital. Nobody as far as I know has ever been hospitalised in the area when DDing.

Not that my anecdotal stories of a village with a population of less than 300 means anything but if people behave reasonably then the outcomes are usually reasonable too. I'd much prefer to see people encouraged to behave reasonably rather than being forced to however I am on a none starter with that one.

Some would argue that driving over the limit is unreasonable. I'm not so sure as many drink impaired drivers still drive more safely and at a standard better than others who meet all the legal standards to drive and at a level which would be considered acceptable.

At the same time, I feel if someone causes an incident where drink is demonstrated to have caused it, they should have the book thrown at them.

I feel the same about speeding too but realise that mine is not the popular view on either of these.

I wonder if any country has ever relaxed DD laws?

Barbados doesn't have a blood alcohol limit for driving, they'll still arrest you for driving without due care and attention though. You tend to see people driving very very slowly when they've had a few.

When I had a holiday in Barbados I befriended one of the waiters who told me about a car meet on one of the days there and would I want to go. I said "yes sure" and myself and another guy from the hotel who was also into cars bundled into this tiny car with three Bajans. As we were absolutely hammering it along what was pretending to be a road the driver was openly drinking a bottle of banks beer. When I said "What do the police think about drink driving" the three guys all began to laugh, then one of them who was in the passenger seat turned to me and said "nah man, he IS the police!" Turns out our driver was the local bobby!

A very weird experience!

[C70R]

QJumper said:

C70R said:

Agreed. I've known a lot of people in various US cities, North and South, who thought nothing of driving to and from the bar after several beers. It just seemed culturally normal.

With the streets filled with armed drunks at closing time, I think I'd probably prefer to drive home too

More seriously though, Texas has the highest number of drink related accidents than any other state, and the USA is the third worst country (behind South Africa and Canada) for drink driving deaths, at twice the rate of the UK.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2016/08...

Louisiana was terrible in rural areas too, as was Tennessee. Quite normal to see people wander out of bars in Nashville late at night and hop straight into trucks.

I've seen plenty of the same in Boston, Chicago and Manhattan for balance.