It must be me. It’s something about me. I get into the car, and an aura of automotive mayhem eminiates from me and my vehicle like the sickly-sweet scent of maple syrup in autumn. It’s enough to make a Doper pause… Cites:
In the last week I have witnessed or assisted in recovery from three MVA’s. ( motor vehicle accidents ).
Last Saturday. An hour before my Dad’s memorial service is to begin. A woman blacks out in front of the Quaker Meeting House where I stood. Creams a fire plug and then hits a tree so hard that it rams about 2 feet into the engine compartment. Car is running, still in drive and smoking hard when I run out and go help. Lean in, try turning key, look down stupidly, put car in Park from Drive, then turn off key, smoke stops pouring from underneath car. Both women have minor head injuries. Good thing I still carry Nitrile gloves in my hip pouch, even though I’m no longer an EMT. Never know whose blood you are going to get on yourself…
Yesterday. I am driving down a nice country road. I slow down as I see a large female deer tear-assing across the field. I’ve never seen a deer run so hard for such a distance, this thing had its head down and was moving. I slowed, and without missing a beat or noticing me it ran right past the front of my car… and right into the front of a car that’d just crested the small rise I was going up. Deer slammed by bumper/hood/window and send flying into the air. Fur flew. Deer tumbled in air very quickly as though the product of a particularly well-executed special effect. Landed in field on other side of roadway. I braked, did a U-turn and went to see if driver was okay. She was fine, her one-year old neice in the baby seat in the back was also fine. :eek: . Amazingly, due to the design of her car, the deer’s body damaged the hood and left headlight but didn’t render the car undriveable. I stayed, as did two women who were behind me, till the State Trooper showed up. The driver wanted a police report to be written, so she could file for insurance. Me, I think it’s a long shot to file an insurance claim against a white-tailed deer but I don’t hunt so what do I know?
This morning. I exit the NY State Thruway onto the Palisades Parkway, going south. JUST past this exit is the typical start of bumper to bumper traffic. As I exit, I glance down the Thruway a bit and watch a small pickup truck smoke up as it slams on the breaks, swerves wildly and hits other cars and the cement Jersey Barrier along the inner shoulder- it was going too fast and came up on stopped traffic at what mighta been 50-65 mph. I keep going of course, having already exited.
Twice in two months, years ago, I came upon bad accidents that had just happened and had no EMS response or Police presence yet. Both times I was going to Hartford, CT to see friends. One event was after being awake for 24 hours, and just a few miles from home. ( I eliminated the possibility of re-occurence by ending the friendship in Hartford. )
What the FUCK? I mean, seriously. Car wrecks seem to occur a bit more than they ought to when I am around. Should I sell the Suburban and take the train? Imagine the train wrecks that would abound.
This morning I was sitting at a red light, waiting to make the left onto Stenton from Bethlehem Pike (that detail’s for you, 'toons). A woman in the right lane decides as she’s entering that intersection that she wants to be in the left lane, so she moves over – directly into an SUV that was already in the left lane. This all took place about ten feet in front of me as I was looking straight at the two vehicles, so I had a front row seat to the look of shock and horror on the clueless driver’s face. It knocked off the driver’s side rearview mirror on her car, didn’t seem to do much to the SUV. They both got out of their cars and seemed to be okay, so I didn’t stop.
Last week, I was on my way somewhere on I-90E, the local interstate when a woman driving a SUV in front of me suddenly ran into the divider, hit the car in front of her, and flipped over. She didn’t make it.
During the winter, cars in my vicinity sometimes tend to spin out of control and into ditches! It can be very amusing as the cars seem to spin in slow motion, almost like a ballet.
NONE of these incidents were in any way my fault! I’m quite a good driver!
Just a note, if you do smell maple syrup every time you start or ride in your car, you have an antifreeze problem that needs to be looked at.
As per the Car Guys on the Radio.
Other than that, if you ever drive in MI, please give me notice so I can lock up my car in my garage. Thank you in advance.
FWIW, I don’t know the practice in PA, but here you can collect on your collision insurance for damage caused by a deer. And you would want the police report to show that it was indeed a deer and that you did not just run into a telephone pole or something, so it will not count as an “at-fault” accident.
Ahhh, my little sense of humor. I apologize for it. I don’t really smell radiator fluid- I know that smell, it is the smell of doom and roadside tow service.
And, I knew why that nice gal needed her police report- she was smart to wait it out and have the State Trooper do his thing, so she indeed could submit to the insurance company.
She said her husband hit a deer last year, flipped his car and totalled it. Awful- but I’m guessing she has a keen understanding of what to do in this situation. Me, I’d freak out…
I haven’t witnessed any car crashes of late, but I’m very careful during my morning commute these days. It’s way dark and I drive mostly on 2 unlit country roads. One morning, I saw 2 deer on the side of the road (two different places, not a pair together) plus I had a stoopit possum run out in front of me. I was able to swerve around it, but I don’t know what the guy following me did - dunno if he had time to react since he was following me quite closely.
My commute is much more stressful than it needs to be.
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