|
I have a bit of a different mentality and have been on both ends of this. You stay right unless passing, it's a law in our state. Stacking up more than 5 vehicles behind you is illegal.
Many times I have been traveling the highway and come up on a huge line of traffic lead by some in-attentive driver pacing a semi-truck in the fast lane at 10 under the speed limit. I have no tolerance for this and while I'm not going to weave back and forth like and idiot I will work my way to the front and pass. Sometimes you get the evil eye as you pass said slacker, but oh well. What if you detain this person and get them pulled over and they are having some sort of emergency, and you watch their passenger squirt out a baby on the side of the road or fall over dead?
I've also been on the opposite side of things, towing a car on a trailer behind my truck up a long grade. I do my best to make sure I don't linger in the fast lane and hold up a bunch of people, if they are speeding or not.
My latest outrage occured on a vacation last summer. Myself and several friends were going camping and taking a "spirited" drive over a mountain pass. Among our group were several high end cars, an Acura NSX, 94 Supra TT, Acura Type-R, Several engine swapped Civic's, and a couple of turbocharged 240SX's. Before you start applying your prejudice, keep in mind we're all 30+ years old with families homes and mortgages like everyone else, not 16 year olds who just saw fast and furious.
While we carved corners and generally had a good time, we weren't speeding excessively, sliding around, or endangering anyone.
Approaching the top of the pass, we caught up with a huge line of trucks campers and motorhomes all doing about 40mph in a 55 zone. We passed 2 "illegal to delay 5+ vehicles" and "use slow vehicle turnout" signs and not a single slacker moved over. For 12 miles we endured these slow speeds, stinky diesel fumes, and lethargic driving. Finally as we approached the last slow vehicle turnout(i'd call them a lane they are very long) and once again-no one pulled over-we used it ourselves to pass the group and sure enough, the fingers started flying and horns wailing...
|