Big rig tire in the middle of the I-75 fast lane last midnight
- Thread starter beppington
- Start date
- Views: 7303
Driving from Houston to Galveston in 1987 we lost a surfboard onto I45 south of Clearlake. The only thing scarier than seeing that surfboard take flight and land in the middle of 4 lanes of oncoming traffic in the rear view mirror was trying top stop and retrieve it from the road.
As we were trying to get back to it, a little Datsun pulled over with a young family and the driver who couldn't have been twenty with little kids inside made an emergency stop on the shoulder of the passing lane and jumped out of his car, ran out in front of traffic almost getting killed while high speed drivers nearly missed him to then nearly miss his family on the shoulder as he pulled off the shattered surf board.
We folded it in half, put in in the trunk and dropped it in the first dumpster we found on arrival to Galveston.
Risking his life dodging cars and his families lives was too much to clear that surfboard.
I never let anyone else tie down there property on my roof after that, and haven't lost a load since, but busy interstates are no place for pedestrians and families.
Three years later when my jeep Cherokee broke down at 2300 east of New Mexico I couldn't flag down help, and ended up riding my mountain bike 15 miles back in 20 degree December weather without lights on unlit interstate to get help. Between the wind rush of big rigs going the opposite direction and no lights I learned to never again be in that situation. It is all about mitigating risk for yourself and others and finding that balance.
Now at 53 with 2 bad knees a bad back and double hernias, I just can't imagine trying to move a heavy truck tire in the dark let alone move it if I got to it alive!!!!
Just not as quick as I used to be!!!!$
As we were trying to get back to it, a little Datsun pulled over with a young family and the driver who couldn't have been twenty with little kids inside made an emergency stop on the shoulder of the passing lane and jumped out of his car, ran out in front of traffic almost getting killed while high speed drivers nearly missed him to then nearly miss his family on the shoulder as he pulled off the shattered surf board.
We folded it in half, put in in the trunk and dropped it in the first dumpster we found on arrival to Galveston.
Risking his life dodging cars and his families lives was too much to clear that surfboard.
I never let anyone else tie down there property on my roof after that, and haven't lost a load since, but busy interstates are no place for pedestrians and families.
Three years later when my jeep Cherokee broke down at 2300 east of New Mexico I couldn't flag down help, and ended up riding my mountain bike 15 miles back in 20 degree December weather without lights on unlit interstate to get help. Between the wind rush of big rigs going the opposite direction and no lights I learned to never again be in that situation. It is all about mitigating risk for yourself and others and finding that balance.
Now at 53 with 2 bad knees a bad back and double hernias, I just can't imagine trying to move a heavy truck tire in the dark let alone move it if I got to it alive!!!!
Just not as quick as I used to be!!!!$
Gary Fowler
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Jun 23, 2008
- Messages
- 11,917
- Location
- Bismarck Arkansas
- Tractor
- 2009 Kubota RTV 900, 2009 Kubota B26 TLB & 2010 model LS P7010
Less than 15 seconds is all you got to cross a lane or two, pick up a 100 lb. tire and roll it back across those 2 lanes, given that your 1/4 mile estimate is correct. That isnt much time at all even just to run out and grab something light and remove it. Cops will all tell you to not get out on the interstate, folks get killed all the time trying to cross lane on foot. It is further than you think and cars are coming faster than you think and that is assuming you dont have a Peruvian or Algerian driving. They hate to use headlight so there could be someone driving down the road dark that you dont even see especially in town where they have overhead lights. I have seen it a lot where folks just forget to turn on their lights or maybe their auto on system is on the fritz.
I'll pay for the cell phone time it takes to notify the cops and let them turn on their little blue lights and hope no one is asleep coming at them.
All this about object in the road that reinforces my thoughts about travelling at night. I rarely do it unless I have too. I prefer to do all my driving in daylight hours, even then one of those pesky deer may decide to hook it across in front of you.
I'll pay for the cell phone time it takes to notify the cops and let them turn on their little blue lights and hope no one is asleep coming at them.
All this about object in the road that reinforces my thoughts about travelling at night. I rarely do it unless I have too. I prefer to do all my driving in daylight hours, even then one of those pesky deer may decide to hook it across in front of you.
Renze
Elite Member
Yes, but more likely to cost the life of someone that tries to roll a heavy tire off the road, than the life of someone inside the safety cage of a car body....
The only time i ran across busy traffic was when my schoolbook bag fell off the back of my bicycle when going to school... at least 15 years ago. It was clear daylight, it was a single lane road, the bag had a grip handle and i knew the weight of the bag, enough to take a run over the road, grab the bag on the go and make it back across.
No way i'd try that with something as heavy as a truck tire when you dont know its weight, if its heavier than you think, you have already lost the second that can be fatal, before you decide to look over your shoulder and jump aside...
But yes, lately there was a dead cat on the road, i stopped, took a piece of paper left from the McDonalds and used that to toss the cat over into a corn stubble field.
Where i commute everyday, there is collisions every week because the road is too busy. 2 years ago i was the last car in a row of 5, one was parked on the hood of the other, because of hard braking both cars leaned over, the bump caused the one to stick its nose under the others behind. I had only a scratch. Cars driving 100kmh with only a single car length between them, is a risk of its own. NO WAY i'd risk my life to save somebodies paint job by picking up some trash from that busy road.... They have full time camera supervision on that stretch of road, they can close down one lane with the overhead matrix signs and THEN send a man in a yellow pickup with man-high flashers on the back of it, to pick up the trash.