Distracted Driving

[Jchemie]

When I first brought home my gently used 35’ class A, I was merging on to a limited access freeway on a long down hill ramp, wife following me. Some jerk driving a 5 class BMW like he just stole it weaved thru the cars behind me, passed me by running off the ramp on the left into the dirt merge area then back in front of me and stomped his brakes. Air horns and air brakes to the max, then he had the _all’s to flip me off!
First project: I installed an I beam horizontally on the front end of the frame rails inside the fiberglass front end. Can’t see it untill you open the front hatch for the genset. This was formally a 6’ vertical guard rail post from a state highway that held wire guard ropes to prevent cars from crossing the median and doing a head on into opposing traffic. Reason? It protects my $6K genset, and gives a massive punch to those who feel a brake check will only damage some fiberglass. Yes it added a bit of weight, I did do some creative trimming to lighten it. Best guess is 45 lbs.
Then I added a dash cam able to quickly plug into the coach tv to show the responding officer who did what. Being a former officer, I had arrested the driver in two incidents where the 18 wheeler showed me his dash cam evidence, car spiked their brakes for no reason and caused an accident. Arrested car driver for aggravated assault & criminal damage, first charge being a felony. It held up in court. Massive fines and loss of license.
Like Mr. Coopers’ song says, “No more Mr. Nice Guy!”

[Steve578]

In Indiana it's unlawful to have any cellphone in your hand while operating a motor vehicle. More states should have that law.

[Kxbronco]

Originally Posted by Unplanned

For under $40 you can buy a 150db air horn with it's own compressor.

I bought one for our rig and it more than paid for itself first trip out. A guy was backing out of a parking spot in a small town as I was driving by. One big blast from my new horn, and he quickly popped back into the parking spot.

BTW, I also have a dashcam.

Happy Glamping.

Thanks for the link. Price is definitely right. How long have you had them? How have they held up? Is there a delay when you hit the button? How long will they sound off?

Sorry for so many questions!

[bemmy miffer]

Originally Posted by gmc70

You can fix stupid

No I am sorry, you cannot fix stupid. They have been trying on me for years and no luck.

[roblaura]

25% of drivers are aggressive or impatient, 25% are seriously distracted, 25% are sort of paying attention, and 25% are driving cautiously and defensively. We try to always be part of the last group! The more crowded the road, the less courteous drivers tend to be.

[Jim Andrews]

Originally Posted by armullis

I have a Dashcam installed in my coach. I may not be able to stop the "distracted idiot" from hitting me, but I will be able to say "Officer....I have video".

I have had those moronic drivers who hate big RV's getting in their way to cut me off and do the "break check" on me. Scared the daylights out of me! The Dashcam will prove me right when I tell the officer "I have video".

I was thinking of getting a dash cam, but I wasn't sure what kind to get. Any help would be great.

[Unplanned Tourist]

Originally Posted by Kxbronco

Thanks for the link. Price is definitely right. How long have you had them? How have they held up? Is there a delay when you hit the button? How long will they sound off?

Sorry for so many questions!

I have had mine for 2 years now. Still working great.

It is pretty much instant when I push the horn button.

If you just want to give a little toot, just tap the horn button. But hold it down, and it wakes up the dead!

Just try to get the horn as close to the compressor as possible. The shorter the better, as it takes a second to buil build up pressure.

I got mine from Amazon, but I'm sure there are other sources.

Happy Glamping.

[Unplanned Tourist]

Originally Posted by Jim Andrews

I was thinking of getting a dash cam, but I wasn't sure what kind to get. Any help would be great.

Most will work just fine, but look for one that has a battery that can stand the heat of being in the sun on your dash.

Be sure to use a good quality SD card also, as they must be able to be over-written many times.

Happy Glamping.

[DryCreek]

Originally Posted by bob caldwell

My 150 Decibel train horns work great for those folks....and those that can't merge....

I want a set of Nathan K5LA Air Chimes!

[Ray,IN]

Originally Posted by tommar

Well, I kinda disagree... driving a big rig IS an art form IMHO! A good MH or commercial driver always pays attention to what's happening down the road and plans ahead! That way, he/she can stop safely; stopping a big rig requires different technique and much more stopping distance. So, a good driver of a big rig is practicing driving arts and skills. But the OP in his original post WAS stopped. Not a hell of a lot he could do but watch the event. His air horn may have saved the day for him, and again, he was watching and being proactive.!

I totally agree. It used to be called defensive driving.

[Lez8ma]

I was a corporate pilot most of my life and also blessed in later years to fly most times we traveled over 100 miles. I retired three years ago and we bought a rv. Gees, I had no idea how crowded the roads have got or how many bad drivers are out there. Very scary!

[Bigd9]

Originally Posted by Lez8ma

I was a corporate pilot most of my life and also blessed in later years to fly most times we traveled over 100 miles. I retired three years ago and we bought a rv. Gees, I had no idea how crowded the roads have got or how many bad drivers are out there. Very scary!

I don't know, some days when I look up into the beautiful skies and see hundreds of contrails criss crossing the big blue expanse above us, I wonder about all of the planes and how crazy it looks. Everyone going in a different direction. Very Scary. And to think, when you are piloting a bus up there you don't even have a bodacious airhorn to use so you can vent your frustrations.

[IC2]

Speaking of contrails - has anyone else noticed that there are REAL clouds now instead of an overcast now that most airplanes are sitting in the Arizona desert, parked until further notice