Good or bad driver?

[knightfan26917]

Earlier this week, I had an "uh oh" moment on the way home. I was in the right lane of a 2-lane road and was trying to get over into the left lane. I kept checking my rearview mirror and glancing back to see if anyone was coming, but a Ford Explorer kept speeding up and slowing down such that I wasn't able to get over. In the meantime, the minivan ahead of me suddenly slammed on its brakes ... apparently because someone else had slowed down to turn right onto another street. At the time that I looked back ahead of me (I had been checking the rearview mirror), I panicked ... and hit the brakes, thinking I was going to hit the minivan. My '87 MC LS screeched to a halt (much to my embarrassment, of course) ... and I stopped well enough away from the minivan.

While the "shakiness" had gone away, I was still a bit unnerved by the situation when I spoke to a friend later that night. I was convinced that I was the "bad driver" in this case for failing to watch in front of me. But, she quickly pointed out a couple of things. 1) She said that, in the times that she has been in a car I'm driving, she has noticed that, if anything, I'm an overly defensive driver ... and not very agressive. 2) She pointed out that a bad driver would've actually crashed into the minivan ... and NOT stopped before hitting it.

What do you think? I mean ... I get so frustrated with myself when I have one of those "uh oh" moments. I've been rather lucky; yet, in the back of my mind, I keep thinking that someday that "inattentiveness" is going to get me in a heap of trouble in terms of losing one of my MCs to a crash ... as well as higher insurance premiums, etc. Heh ... the ironic part is that I'm always concerned about the "other" drivers ... you know the type ... the ones that are so aggressive that they race up next to you right before a 2-lane road turns into a 1-lane road ... and then try to sneak in front of you. I had that happen that same morning on the way to work ... I actually almost did hit the guy because he cut in front of me and then tapped his brakes. Grrr....

So ... what say you? When/how/where is that "fine line" crossed between being a good driver with bad luck and just a bad driver?

Cort:33swm."Mr Monte Carlo.Mr Road Trip".pig valve.pacemaker

PICS:lego.HO.model.MCinfo.RT.CHD = http://www.chevyasylum.com/cort

"The curves around midnight aren't easy to see" ... Rosanne Cash ... 'Runaway Train'

[Delta Force79]

You are a good driver for checking our mirrors and blind spots, I rarely use the sideview mirrors in my car and never the passenger side mirror...my first car didn't have one and I got used to using the rearview mirror and looking over my shoulder. Accidents sometimes cannot be avoided no matter "how good" you are. I've had plenty of close calls and a few accidents too...and all due to brake failure I might add, when slaming on the brakes in an older car with drums in the rear, try to modulate the pedal as a sudden stopped could cause failure or snap a brake line if they aren't in the best of shape...its happened to me. Be attentive and always mind your surroundings and you should be fine. Remember you know what you're doing, but not what the driver in front of you, next to you or behind you is going to do.

So yeah I'd say you're a good driver, you avoided an accident :AH-HA_wink:

[Ravenfreak13]

Yeah I was driving my aunt's 05 PT Cruiser on Saturday...there was a grand marquis in front of me and all of a sudden it put its blinker on and slowed down quickly to turn...luckily i hit the brakes and stopped within afoot of the stupid car...and yet he still sat there with the blinker on for no reason....so i beeped and he moved

[Intrepidation]

You're being hard on yourself dude. If you were a bad driver you would have either hit the van or merged into the other lane without looking, thus hitting the SUV. If anyone is the bad driver in this scenario it's the moron SUV driver who couldn't keep a steady speed (I hate those kind of drivers).

[2005 EquinoxLS]

You did fine Cort. I have had the same thing happen to me quite a few times. Better a little screeching halt than to hit somebody else.

[knightfan26917]

Better a little screeching halt than to hit somebody else.

*nods*

I'll give you that.

I suspect some of my "shakiness" from this is that whenever something similar happens where I'm screeching to a halt, it's not like they're not going to notice the car ... my car (let's face it) sticks out in a crowd ... so, wrong or right, people will be watching me ... and (perhaps) thinking/wondering about what I was doing "other than driving" ... if that makes any sense.

Ah, well.... he he.

Cort:33swm."Mr Monte Carlo.Mr Road Trip".pig valve.pacemaker

PICS:lego.HO.model.MCinfo.RT.CHD = http://www.chevyasylum.com/cort

"It's a freedom that we all want to know" ... Restless Heart ... 'Wheels'

[tmp]

You aren't a bad driver, the person in that SUV however is. There is nothing more distracting to the driver in front of you to have some pinhead roaring up and falling back. I had some dumbass in a white exploder doing that to me yesterday on PCH in Santa Monica. I decided just to take a right up into the canyon and let her cell-phone juggling, latte-swilling self rear-end someone else

[Ravenfreak13]

I am so scared to drive the electra around....its so different from modern cars...the back end is so long and the front end is huge.

[capriceman]

Your not a bad driver at all We all do this once in our life. but I thought your not supposed to shock yourself and all after your surgery and stuff? Thats what a co worker was like after his surgery he had to where ear protection all the time and you had to walk in front of him to get his attention as to not cause a heart beat jump.

I'm a example of a bad driver. I might have skills and some control but I'm a asshole and slightly dangerous.

[knightfan26917]

However, after second guessing what happened, I came to the conclusion that I'm still in 1 piece, and so is the car. Therefore, I must've done something right! Better a moment's embarrassment than having an accident.

*nods*

I'll give you that. Heh ... can you imagine how I would've been if I would've been in an accident? Holy crapola ... let's not even go there .

...I thought your not supposed to shock yourself and all after your surgery and stuff?

He he ... well, I'm not supposed to ... heh ... but, things DO happen .

Cort:33swm."Mr Monte Carlo.Mr Road Trip".pig valve.pacemaker

PICS:lego.HO.model.MCinfo.RT.CHD = http://www.chevyasylum.com/cort

"I can’t stop driving" ... New Radicals ... 'Someday We'll Know'