# Do you think you can drive safely with a 0.10 BAC level? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 6, 2009, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053 "2009-07-06T06:20:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Gleena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b3f665/32.png) [@Gleena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gleena)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/21 "2009-07-06T12:35:28Z")
> [@ashman165](#): > > Well, so long as it’s _obvious_. Not sure what the sarcasm is for, since it is obvious, but here’s your cites. (Warning, both links are PDFs.) [Alcohol Enhances Shooting Ability by Steadying Aim](http://books.google.com.au/books?id=nPJaTdp47mcC&pg=PA237&lpg=PA237&dq=alcohol+performance+shooting&source=bl&ots=HFvDaRgiwv&sig=j1xdxRLe5nTP3quYK11Sxs-fllY&hl=en&ei=WepRSv7CK5P2sQOcmeGqDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2) [Alcohol is a Banned Substance for Olympic Shooters - and classed as a performance enhancing drug.](http://multimedia.olympic.org/pdf/en_report_868.pdf) Interestingly, it’s banned for other sports that need steady aim, such as billiards and archery, but not all sports. To the OP, no, I am not safe to drive at that BAC, nor would I - but then I don’t actually drink much at all and am therefore a lightweight. I don’t do shooting sports, either. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/22 "2009-07-06T12:40:28Z")
Does driving safely mean I got home and had no accident or received a traffic citation? If so, then sure I can do that. ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/23 "2009-07-06T13:10:02Z")
Doubtful. I was at a CLE once where we had a cocktail hour afterwards and then were invited to test our BAC on the same machine used by the cops (which, incidentally, is the latest in 1982 technology, just so you know!). My friend and I had 2 beers apiece in an hour, with some food. I blew a .026, and she, being significantly heavier than me, blew a .00! Both of us were mildly buzzed. I can’t imagine how hammered I would be in order to blow a .08. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/24 "2009-07-06T14:40:37Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > I don’t know how to translate the UK alcohol driving limit to US BAC, but the legal limit here is 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100ml of blood. Not sure how that compares in terms of intoxication. Wikipedia seems to indicate that the UK and US limits are the same, just expressed in different units. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/25 "2009-07-06T14:47:26Z")
Blindfolded. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/26 "2009-07-06T15:23:17Z")
Pretty sure I can’t do it, and I have no intention of trying. If I’ve had enough alcohol that I can feel even a mild buzz, then I won’t drive. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/27 "2009-07-06T15:32:09Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Blindfolded. And in reverse. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/28 "2009-07-06T15:36:57Z")
Like most Americans ,I can drive at 1.0 while talking on a cell phone and texting on my blackberry. I am a multiple tasking genius. No probs. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/29 "2009-07-06T15:39:21Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > Like most Americans ,I can drive at 1.0 while talking on a cell phone and texting on my blackberry. I am a multiple tasking genius. No probs. 1.0? Now that is impressive. I suddenly don’t feel so hot for being able to drive buzzed, blind-folded and backwards. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/30 "2009-07-06T16:10:18Z")
> [@Lanzy](#): > > Does driving safely mean I got home and had no accident or received a traffic citation? If so, then sure I can do that. Been there, done that and don’t want to repeat it. Now I can’t drink much anymore so I don’t think I could voluntarily get to the .10 level but I do notice a definite increase in driving focus after light drinking. Not sure why this is but I actually enjoy the act of driving after a couple of beers. The feeling decreases as the amount of alcohol increases. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/31 "2009-07-06T16:36:25Z")
In my boneheaded immature teenage years I _got away with_ driving while pretty damn hammered, in the sense that there are no dead or maimed bodies in my past. But there were some crumpled fenders. Of course I also once drove through the mountains while so sleepy that I was closing my eyes and dozing on the straight stretches (“…just for a few seconds…”) and on another occasion coasted w/o power down the road [this](http://www.s-church.net/photo/nm0503/mini-DSC00484.jpg) was taken from (contains some rather spectacular hairpin curves) in a big-ass Pontiac with a nonworking alternator, no brakes no power steering and no headlights or windshield wipers, in a snowstorm. I have no damn business not being dead. I have also driven stoned (marijuana) and tripping (LSD). Of the three, you’d be by far the safest as a passenger when I was tripping. Then pot. Alcohol most dangerous. ---
**Author:** ![ethelbert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/958977/32.png) [@ethelbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ethelbert)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/32 "2009-07-06T17:16:08Z")
And no one has commented on the username / threadtitle? I think its a winner! ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/33 "2009-07-06T17:40:47Z")
To answer the OP, not a chance and I doubt anyone else can, either. ---
**Author:** ![Cyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e4f/32.png) [@Cyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyn)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/34 "2009-07-06T17:59:52Z")
I don’t think I could drive safely—too many variables. No one can guarantee me no animal will run out into the road, no obstacle will fall into my path, my car won’t blow a tire, nothing unusual will happen to force me into making a snap decision. I’ve been driving for 30 years and most things have happened to me and I know if I’m preoccupied or sleepy, I’m not at my best. I can’t trust to luck to make me safe if I’ve been drinking. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/35 "2009-07-06T18:21:18Z")
The point is, by the time you get to .08 your judgment is impaired to the point where you just _think_ you’re driving OK. You’re in denial, but I understand as you really don’t know-(Same with cell phone users after a couple minutes talking, when they start “zoning out”). Try this- get to .10. Find a place legal to drive, on private property, but where it’s safe. Have a bud get into the back seat and film you, and make notes. You _are_ impaired, trust me. They don’t call me DrDeth for nothing… ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/36 "2009-07-06T18:25:54Z")
Oh, I wake up at 0.10… At that stage of what you call inebriaition, I’m at what we like to refer to as “Professor MOL.” ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/37 "2009-07-06T18:31:12Z")
> [@SHAKES](#): > > My problem with these studies is: Who are their test subjects? > > If you take someone who doesn’t drink very often and submit them to these tests as you describe; then no, I can’t imagine they would do all that well. > > But OTOH, if you take a seasoned veteran who gets buzzed on a weekly basis; I think THAT test subject would do much better. The test subjects were the magazine’s writers, who I assume are a slightly better than average bunch of drivers, and if they are like any other magazine writer I have met, heavy drinkers. They did also discover (IIRC) that a pot buzz did not effect their motor control, but they didn’t give a shit one way or the other while buzzed. ---
**Author:** ![Dripping](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d2c977/32.png) [@Dripping](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dripping)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/38 "2009-07-06T19:17:39Z")
> [@Rick](#): > > They found that by .04 none of the drivers could hit the floor with their hats. 😕 Hit the floor with their hat? ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/39 "2009-07-06T19:39:20Z")
**Do you think you can drive safely with a 0.10 BAC level?** Yes, but I drink fairly regularly, my fiance rarely drinks and she’d be a slobering drunk at .1 …I find it endearing so it’s too bad she doesn’t more often. I saw an ‘extreme police chase show’ last night and a drunk woman with 19 previous DUI’s was trying to escape in her bronco only to roll it going about 100 mpr, she survived and had blew a .44 when they got to her. That impressed the hell out of me. ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2009, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053/40 "2009-07-06T20:04:41Z")
> [@SHAKES](#): > > My problem with these studies is: Who are their test subjects? > > If you take someone who doesn’t drink very often and submit them to these tests as you describe; then no, I can’t imagine they would do all that well. > > But OTOH, if you take a seasoned veteran who gets buzzed on a weekly basis; I think THAT test subject would do much better. And let them drive thier OWN vehicle that they are familiar with and drive day and day out. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-think-you-can-drive-safely-with-a-0-10-bac-level/502053.md?page=3)