I got a DUI twenty years ago, so at least once.
All time back in the college days. I think I was quite a good driver on it TBH.
I barely drink anymore, much less go all hardcore about it when I do, so I haven’t in a good many years
Hard-core alcoholics develop a tolerance to alcohol, which requires them to drink larger and larger amounts to achieve their desired high. For them, danger arises when the “enough BAC to be high” limit starts getting close to the LD50; at that point, they’re targeting a very narrow range of BAC, and if they overshoot their mark, they die.
Point being that a habitual hard drinker may indeed develop a tolerance that enables him/her to function with minimal impairment at a BAC that would leave a teetotaler wobbly.
In answer to the OP, yes, I drove drunk once. My junior year in college was the first time I had a car at school, and I drove home from a party. I found that I could manage either my speed or my direction, but not both at the same time; if I paid attention to where I was going, I ended up going way below the speed limit. I made it the few blocks back to my dorm, but it was a “holy shit” experience; have not repeated it.
Yep. Speeding through a small town because I was in a hurry to get home (for some reason).
Spent the night in jail, and later paid $1000 and spent another 24 hours in the can.
Unfortunately, yes.
Napier, do you mean it was a much more ordinary behavior for you? or for everyone? From my memory it was a much more ordinary behavior in the 70s and 80s. Driving ‘buzzed’ was not considered bad. I was fortunate to be from a small town (about 1,000 people) where the worst that likely happen was you’d end up in some farmers field. You could drink 3.2% beer in Oklahoma at age 18. The bars in town only sold beer (technically they were taverns I suppose, since they didn’t have liquor licenses).
Of course I now realize how stupid it was; but that’s unfortunately not true with everyone. A guy from my home town is currently in jail for killing some people while drunk driving. Naturally, he was unhurt.
http://www.newson6.com/story/13808210/suspected-drunk-driver-slams-into-car-killing-oklahoma-teen
It’s also worth noting, for those who don’t know, that 3.2% beer is ABW, so that translates into 4% beer, so it’s pretty much in the usual “light beer” territory, so it’ll still get you buzzed fairly normally.
I’ve driven really drunk a few times when I was younger. I didn’t have an accident or get pulled over but I was really way too drunk to be trying it. That said, I think it’s weird that people act like driving after drinking any amount = raping your grandmother or something. Maybe one beer does slow down your reaction time, but no more than being tired or talking to someone else in the car or being really pissed off or hearing some shocking news on the radio or etc etc. It’s actually possible to function under less than ideal conditions, and if you can’t then you have no business driving at all. Driving as plastered as I was as a kid was stupid, but I don’t feel ashamed or guilty about it.
Yes, as a college student, driving home from my favorite bar. I did it a handful of times, and I’m ashamed that I ever did, especially considering that it was in (long) walking distance. Shame on younger me, and I’m lucky that I never hurt anyone.
Very stupid and avoidable.
I don’t know about guilty, but I feel ashamed about my younger self driving drunk – it’s akin to randomly firing a gun in an apartment… you’re probably not going to hurt anyone, but there’s a chance you could kill someone.
I feel ashamed because I significantly increased the risk of injury and death to people in my community for no reason beyond my own laziness and convenience.
Once that I can recall; maybe a couple more well buzzed but under the legal limit. I was young, immortal and stupid as most college kids are. No accidents or tickets but I felt bad enough about it never to repeat the experience.
There’s one time I realized I was still buzzed when I started driving home from the restaurant (edited this sentence for clarification). I’m not a big drinker - I’d had 3 beers and eaten dinner. But I got partway home and realized I should have sat a while longer and had more water - another 30 minutes + glass of water would have served me well.
Luckily it was not a long drive home - 15 minutes max from the restaurant, early in the evening and I had no problems. But it was poor judgement on my part and it’s made me more cautious, which I have no problem with.
I’m only ashamed of things I did that actually hurt someone.
Regularly? No. NEVER? probably not. Drunk off my ass and driving? No.
I do have one advantage when I drink. I don’t get confident, I get cautious. If I’ve had a few/too much…my brain starts telling me “don’t do ANYTHING dangerous…just sit there and tell stupid jokes or something”.
I was probably a much greater danger to society driving late at night /early in the morning by myself for long distances (200 to 300 miles one way) on a regular basis. Back then I was definitely sober as I didn’t drink at ALL the time…but boy did I get sleepy. After a time or two of waking up alongside the road in the car with the engine running I decided such driving was probably a very bad idea.
Heaven’s yes. Late 1970’s, early 1980’s - lots of times.
No accidents, no tickets. Wouldn’t do it now, but that was before the MADD push, and while it wasn’t exactly acceptable, it was certainly common.
I remember a line from WKRP in the “Herb’s an alcoholic” arc where Andy asked him if he drove home: “Of course I did, I certainly couldn’t walk!”
Graduation party from my programming school back when I was 19.
Didn’t remember half of it. Freaked me out, never did it again.
I’ve never done the breathalyzer thing, but I have looked at the charts that give approximations of how many drinks I have to have over an hour, for my weight, to get me to .08%. I would have trouble walking, let alone figuring out how to get the key into the ignition. So No.
Regards,
Shodan
And then there is the famous WKRP one where Johnny Fever has a Highway Patrol cop in the both and they are doing a public awareness campain for drunk driving. The MORE Johnny drinks the better his reaction time gets.
And turkey’s should drink and fly. The sure as hell can’t fly for shit sober.
I recall twice that I was drunk as a skunk, and a huge danger to everyone on the road. Probably a dozen more times where I was over the limit but generally in control of my vehicle. Like others, I am repulsed by my behavior and am quite certain I will never do it again. I will drive home after a glass or two of wine at dinner, but that’s the max.
I have known many people who have lost loved ones to drunk drivers. I have also known several people who have killed people while driving drunk. It’s a terrible problem, and I hope we’re on our way to significantly reducing this behavior.
Drove drunk one time. Got pulled over for speeding too. The only saving grace for me was I got sick before I drove and had a nasty headache coming on. I smelled like vomit which masked any alcohol smell. The cop gave me a $29 ticket and told me to slow down. That was in 1979 and haven’t driven after consuming alcohol since.
Not in the past ~15 years but before that so, so many times. Not something I’m proud of. NEVER when I thought I was drunk but who does? If I was impaired enough to be aware of it someone else drove.
Never caused or been in an accident and never stopped by the police. A stupid bullet that I dodged.