I’m 29, and I usually speed about 5-15 MPH over, depending on the limit, weather, traffic, etc.
For me, it’s two-fold. First, I find myself getting a tiny bit claustrophobic if I’m “stuck” matching someone’s speed ahead of me or beside me. It belies the promise of the “open road” so to speak, and ties into my second point …
Which is that I was taught pretty much with constant reminders of “assume the worst out of every driver on the road, and anticipate mistakes they might make.” By going faster than them, it lessens the amount of time they have to make a mistake that would affect me. If I’m going two MPH faster than them, that’s five or six seconds they have to answer a cellphone call, swerve and broadside me. But if I go past them faster … they don’t have as much of a chance of affecting me with any stupid things they might do.
mmmiiikkkeee, perhaps you missed the latter half of my post.
In my five short years as a driver I have seen my share of hairy situations. I know the perils of driving in bad conditions or driving recklessly, not being able to see for any reason what is ahead, behind, or beside you, and the truth of the matter is young people possess the resources (reflexes, attentiveness, newer cars that handle better at high speeds, etc.) to drive much faster, much safer than the '83 Eldorado with only a hair bun and two sets of white knuckles visible above the steering wheel. Doubtless, someone with a few more years experience than I who hasn’t felt the effects of old age yet would be even better suited for fast driving.
And I can’t be the only person that won’t sit idly behind a pack of cars ambling along at 60 mph when there is empty, glorious road stretching for miles into the horizon. I feel the need, the need for speed.
A “perfect record” means nothing beyond the fact that you haven’t been caught yet. It does not equate to “safe driver”. Nor does youth equate to attentiveness - quite the opposite, in my experience. The best reflexes in the world are no substitute for a level head and experience.
My driving philosophy is derived from two main axioms:
Cause the least inconvenience for yourself and other drivers. It’s just common courtesy.
Driving slow is annoying.
Putting 1 and 2 together, it follows that you shouldn’t drive slowly, because you’re probably impeding someone else. Get moving, or get off the road. I don’t really mind slow drivers in light traffic. It’s when slow drivers decide to take up all the lanes in a kind of (barely) moving blockade that I get mad.
I drive at whatever I consider the maximum safe speed, which is usually 10-15 mph over what the sign says. Of course, if there are predators (cops) about, I’ll slow down to the limit to minimize probable inconvenience to myself.
True, my perfect record indicates I haven’t been caught, but why haven’t I been caught? I would argue it is partly luck, partly because I am very cautious about speeding, the only traffic law I do violate with any regularity, but mainly because I am a good driver in general. My sister however, who never speeds, and is constantly chastising me for my fast driving has been in two accidents both of with were the result of her carelessness. Operating a car at 100 mph on a long, empty highway is a perfectly safe activity for many people; for others operating a car at any speed can be hazardous.
It’s ironic. I’m 20. I’m paranoid about most things, but I’ll drive from 70 to 80 on the highways when traffic allows. I don’t weave in and out of traffic and don’t tailgate. Unlike a lot of teenagers, I’m aware I’m mortal. I’ve even also been extremely close to being in an accident several times. I’m not even much of a risk taker. If anything, people accuse me of being too cautious and not living life.
So what can I say? I don’t drive more then 80, and will slow down due to conditions or traffic. If I have nothing to do that day, I’ll drive slow. However, most of the time I’ll drive faster just because the less time I spend on the road, the more time I can be spending to do other things.
I’m guessing people that speed must gets lots and lots and lots of speeding tickets. (That or they are extremely lucky). I only speed when aggressively tailgated and too tired too play that game, or very rarely when my mind is wandering. Nonetheless, I’ve gotten two tickets for speeding. Around here, speed limit signs seem to mean to the rank and file drivers, “drive a MINIMUM of 5 miles per hour over the posted limit or else.”
You do, of course, see the flaw with this, right? You’re spending less time passing each car, but you’re also passing more cars. At least if you’re going the traffic speed, you’re staying near the same person, and can pick someone safer to stay near.
This is, of course, ignoring the fact that driving faster than the rest of traffic makes you exactly one of those folks that the other drivers’ instructors warned them to watch out for.
Good or perfect short-term records mean very little. I’d give myself at least 10 years on the road in different places, conditions, seasons, and driving different types of vehicles before I’d start feeling confident about my driving record. I’ve been on the road for about 9 years (11 counting learner’s permit time), and also have a “perfect” record… no accidents, no tickets - short of a couple parking tickets that I knew I’d taken a risk in getting beforehand.
However, I’ve spent most of that time in the same general areas of two cities, and on one 1000km stretch of highway between the two. Never driven anything with more than 2 axels, or towed anything either. While I may feel like strutting around, I do realize my experience is still limited.
My older brother was a speed-demon though. He scared me at first when I rode with him, but after a few years of those supposedly lightning fast reflexes, I started thinking “hey, maybe he just is that damn good”. Sure enough, a couple years later he screwed up and got into an accident due entirely to his attitude and 100% his fault. Needed a new car, insurance went through the roof, had to redo his budget to pay for it all, and just in around the time he got kids. Sorta blew my perception of the super-aware youthful driver. The benefits of having sharper reflexes (if a person really does that is - it’s not universal) are negated by a) not having sufficient experience to apply them properly, and b) taking many more risks than one normally would due to a possible false sense of security that “my wits will get me out of any trouble”… risks such as speeding for example.
cainxinth is in example of of the “me-first” mentality that a lot of people have nowadays. This isn’t in the Pit, so I won’t flame, but let me just say that you put everyone at risk when you excessively speed. Let me clarify: when you speed and are weaving in and out of traffic.
What you don’t realize is that while YOU may have great reflexes and such, everyone else on the road doesn’t. People on the road expect the flow of traffic to be going relatively the same speed as they are. For instance, if I’m driving 72 in a 65 (which I usually do), I expect most cars I pass to be doing anywhere from 62-70, while I expect cars who pass me to be doing about 72-80. I think most drivers don’t have a problem checking mirrors and seeing cars passing them by 10-15 mph.
When you start weaving in and out of traffic going 45 mph over the limit, the other cars don’t take that kind of excessive speed into account. If I check my right mirror, and see no one, check my blind spot, then begin to move over, I will not cut right in front of someone who’s going 10mph faster than me…if you’re going 45mph faster than me, I may very well not see you in my mirror or blind spot when I look, because you aren’t there yet, but when I start changing lanes, you could be right there up my ass…and it would be your fault.
The short of it is that other drivers have a hard time seeing you and reacting to cars going much much faster than you, and that makes you a danger on the road, whether or not you are able to handle your car at that speed. Now, as for 100mph on a deserted highway…well, that’s not all that bad…unless you get caught.
Actually, no. What you need to understand here is I’m not saying that it is necessarily safe to drive 20% faster because of 20% faster reflexes. What I mean is that the speed of one’s reflexes colors the perception of speed. Younger people may have a tendency to drive faster because it doesn’t seem too fast to them, as they perceive their outside surroundings at a different velocity.
I never said I was passing cars at 100 mph, only that I drove that fast on empty highways. I do, however, look for any opportunity to weave my way through traffic, but I do so in a sane and safe manner. Your right though, 5 years is not enough experience to qualify me for NASCAR.
Do any of the other habitual speeders form unspoken relationships with the other speeders you run across on long trips? Sometimes its just one other car and both of us will take turns in the risky lead position with the other several car lengths back. Once I had a four car team, all of us total strangers, all cooperating to share the risk of speeding.
I do that every time I make the 120 mile (hour and a half) commute to my Dad’s. I find another car going between 85-95, and get a safe distance behind him. I see him hit the brake a 1/4 mile up, and I can slow down accordingly. I don’t usually volenteer to be in the front position though.
Do mean to say, Beeblebrox, that if I drive fast enough I’ll become infinite? Coool.
OK, I’ll quit.
I do see your point. I’ve been a potentially bad situation a couple of times, and things do seem to slow down.
Maybe that is the simple answer to the OP, that 80mph just doesn’t seem as fast to a younger driver.
Peace,
mangeorge
What is the beginning time of reaction? If my reaction time is 0.5 seconds at age 20 and I lose 20% by age 60, it seems to me that I haven’t lost a hell of a lot. Either this statistic is wrong, or meaningless—which?
Louis B, do the math. At 80 mph, a car will travel approx 11 feet in 0.1 second, or just over one car length - which may be the difference between swerving and missing, or collision.
We wouldn’t have to “weave in and out” if people who decide to drive slower would stay in the slow lane. That’s why there are two lanes. If traffic is going 85 and you want to do 70, don’t be a putz and take up the fast lane passing a guy going 65. The fast traffic will pass in a minute then you can go. The speeders are obviously in a hurry, and you admittedly aren’t.
Seems to me that you have some of that “me-first” in you too.
