By Staff
I'll be the first person to admit that I am not the slowest driver on earth. I've always been a fast driver (and my driving record proves that), but as I have gotten older, I've learned the importance of slowing down.
Don't get me wrong, I still drive the speed limit and a little over at times, but I also tend to drive under the speed limit as well, especially in bad weather conditions. I guess I'm what they call a "go with the flow" type of driver. I tend to watch what other traffic is going and keep up with the pace.
On the other hand, I tend to get easily frustrated behind the wheel, especially when I get behind someone who shouldn't be driving in the first place. We all know there are plenty of people like that out there. Not saying I am the best driver on earth because by all means, I'm far from it. I just don't understand how some people got their driver's license, or still have one for that matter.
One day, on our way to Indiana, my friends and I got stuck behind every bad driver you could possibly imagine. It was discouraging at first, but after the third incident, we just had to laugh and decided to come up with names for bad drivers.
First we have the Slowsky's (yeah, we stole the name from the Comcast commercials).
The Slowsky's are the drivers who drive way too slow. These drivers tend to drive in the left lane of a two-lane road and seem to not get the hint when they are being passed over and over again by vehicles in the right lane. These drivers usually drive 10 plus miles under the speed limit. It's safe to drive safe, but in certain situations, especially on busy roads and highways, it can get dangerous when you drive too slowly.
Then we have the "I am the only person on the road" drivers. These are the drivers who fail to use their mirrors and pay no attention to what is going on around them. They don't use turn signals and switch lanes without ever looking to see who is next to them.
We all know about the famous "Sunday drivers." These can actually be in the same category as the Slowsky's. These are slow drivers who often seem to be more interested in what's going on around them than actually driving. They look at landmarks more than the road and often point, slow down and speed back up after they've seen what they are looking at. It is repeated time and time again.
We cannot forget about the "Jeff Gordon" drivers who think they are on an actual NASCAR track. They often weave in and out of traffic, drive too close to other cars and pass every chance they get. These are also the people who most often get into accidents (sorry Gordon fans!).
Last but not least we have the "Oh my gosh I have a text message" drivers. These are the people who pay no attention to what they are doing and are more worried about reading the messages on their cell phones than driving. They often can be mistaken for drunk drivers because they swerve so badly.
The list of drivers went on and on, and, as you can imagine, this is the PG version of our conversation.
As I said, I'm not the best driver, I have been guilty of doing some of these things, but after paying the state $2,000 for my bad driving habits of the past, I have very much learned my lesson.
On a last note, I want to say that just because you have a big F-250 diesel with a large bed, 4-wheel drive and monster tires doesn't mean you are safe to drive the speed limit when it is snowing and ice is on the road.
On Saturday night when the roads were nothing but ice, I was one of the not so bright people out driving. I really had no choice as I had to cover an event for work. When it snows, I am probably one of the slowest drivers on the planet (and the fact that I need new tires doesn't make it any easier for traction.) Well, I was driving about 30 mph on U.S. 12 when three vehicles passed me. The last car thought it would be a nice gesture to show the famous finger next to your ring finger, but it didn't bother me. This person ended up almost rear-ending the car ahead of them. Needless to say they ended up on the side of the road. The vehicle didn't crash and they weren't stuck in a ditch, they just ended up sideways on the side. I slowly drove by, shaking my head. Karma always comes back to haunt you!