Your top "close-call" story.

"Voice of C. Montgomery Burns" (voiceofcmb) 12/06/2014 at 11:24 • Filed to: None

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I was thinking back at all the luck I've had in regards to driving over the years and the times I didn't get so lucky. I've grown and matured as a driver and while I still have bad days here and there with aggressive driving, I certainly don't act the way I did in my early 20s.

This post isn't about aggrandizing your best close-call story if it was a result of your poor driving habits at the time, however, it's not about beating yourself up either.

So, my story, to be 100% open, began with two beers over an hour and a half with a buddy. After leaving the bar at whatever restaurant I was in at the mall, I had no perceived issues with driving. I am not making any excuses, I may have been buzzed with two "small" domestic draft beers in my system. I can't honestly say it had to do with what happened, but I won't deny it could have either.

I was driving a 2005 Mazda 6s hatchback at the time. I'm a RWD guy now but I did like that car. I left the restaurant and headed back home which was a short drive of about 3 miles and all on curvy, hilly, southwestern PA roads. I come up to a guy doing the speed limit. For most people this would not have triggered any action, for my immature self at the time I didn't want to go 35 on a rural backroad that I typically did 45-55 on without issue.

I make the very shortsighted decision to pass the person quickly on a two-lane no-passing road. However, I make the pass at the most improper time which was about 500 ft before a medium bend. I finish the pass and begin to attempt to brake while oversteering my 6s like an amateur.

The car rotates, spins in the middle of this medium bend, I do a 180 and miraculously after finishing the 180 the rest of the momentum had the car's rear-end slide almost perfectly into a long gravel driveway at the end of the bend.

The engine shut itself off in all the chaos, not sure if that was a safety feature or just a stall. I hit the brakes to stop the car from rolling back into the street. I turn the key and the car starts up. Both lanes of traffic have stopped and at least 6 cars are looking at me, judging me rightfully for the idiotic stunt that could have, but luckily didn't, hurt someone besides myself.

I drive off and assess the damage later. I ended up with a wheel-alignment issue in the front of the car, a severely bruised ego and, since I've never done anything like it since that day, a lesson learned.

thebigbossyboss > Voice of C. Montgomery Burns 12/06/2014 at 11:30

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The worst thing I did in a car, wasn't even a close call. In terms of close calls...I once overtook a car on a single line road through an intersection. This was first thing in the morning.

As I overtook him, I realized the car ahead of him was a cop on a motorcycle, I squeezed in between that car that I overtook and the cop I was following and didn't get pulled over. No idea how that happened.

BJohnson11 > Voice of C. Montgomery Burns 12/06/2014 at 11:35

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When I was 17 I was driving to school in my 2000 Ford Expedition. Not the most nimble vehicle. Anyways, a car in the middle lane a few car lengths ahead of me starts swerving back and forth. I thought it was just a guy being a jackass, but I backed off a bit. Next thing I know, he takes one big swerve towards the fast lane then spins and swerves all the way across the 3 lanes of traffic, ending up facing backwards on the shoulder. Amidst all this, the car in front of me slammed on its brakes, and I followed suit. Only problem was, I was certainly going to hit them. I quickly cut into the next lane (thankfully no one was there because I didn't really check), and as I look back to my left, I watch the lady in the Suburban that was behind me smash into the car that was in front of me.

Icing on the cake? I should have stopped, but I was a freaked out 17 year old going to school that I didn't wanna be late for. As I'm driving away, I look at the guy in the car next to me who presumably saw everything I did, and we both shot each other the raised eyebrows, raised shoulders, "well, that was weird" look then continued on our ways.

Dwhite - Powered by Caffeine, Daft Punk, and Corgis > Voice of C. Montgomery Burns 12/06/2014 at 11:37

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It was mine and my twin sisters first summer with a real job. We were at a swim meet and she gets a call from our manager. She didnt know she had a shift and is panicking now. So I try to get her home quick so somehow she can get to her shift. I hit a long stretch of straight road and gun it. I end up hitting about 95, in a 45 zone. I then notice a car way up in front of me hit the brakes just before going down a hill. I come to my senses and decided that what I was doing was stupid and went back down to about 50. Out of sight where the hill went down was a cop, I would have been so fucked.

I never did a "speed run" after that. I've hit some dangerous speeds on public roads when I first got my drivers license and this is what finally taught me not to be so stupid.

GTRZILLAR32-Now saving for Godzilla and a condo > Voice of C. Montgomery Burns 12/06/2014 at 11:39

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Passed a trooper sitting in an emergency turn around on the highway at 100+, luckily he was on his phone.

Still shit my pants though

Voice of C. Montgomery Burns > GTRZILLAR32-Now saving for Godzilla and a condo 12/06/2014 at 11:44

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I think the fastest I've ever been going after passing a sitting cop was around 20-25 over the limit (so, maybe 80/90) and he didn't pull out. Yeah, those moments always make you think.

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > Voice of C. Montgomery Burns 12/06/2014 at 11:54

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I was coming down from Estes Park, either on Colorado 7, or US 34 or 36 (not the Trail Ridge Road part). It was a windy, gorgeous mountain road with a 45-55 mph speed limit. Unfortunately, I was unable to enjoy it, because I was driving. More specifically, I was driving our front-wheel drive Ford Flex, and I was 15, driving on my permit that I'd had for just over a month with my dad in the passenger seat. As it turns out, the locals who know the windy road absolutely despise those swine tourists who drive at the speed limit, so I ended up leading a high-speed funeral procession at 55mph down the mountain. I could sense the growing hatred behind me, so like every good RVer knows to do but doesn't, I decided to pull off and let the angry mob of people who make their livelihoods off tourists pass before they lynched the tourist. I told my dad I planned to pull off at the next available spot. A few bends later, their very abruptly appeared some sort of off-ramp looking thing that was so sudden, I didn't even have time to signal. I jerked the wheel, and the Flex dove off the road onto what turned out not to be an offramp, but a narrow gravel driveway. And, because my Canadian asshole conscience had already taken over, I had decided I would appease the locals by not forcing them to slow, waiting instead to brake until I was off the highway. So here I was, skidding down a narrow side road/driveway though the trees at 55mph. I stood on the brakes, and the box skidded to a stop in a cloud of dust, just before I would've had to either slam into someone's mailbox and a bunch of trees, or be spit blindly back out onto the main road. I had to sit for a minute and calm my nerves while my dad just sat and rolled his eyes. Presently, I claimed down, and eased back out onto the road. Unfortunately, the re-entry from the other end of the tiny road was just as blind as the entrance, and I wound up pulling out right in front of a speeding 4Runner, who was kind enough to inform me of my error both by laying on the horn and furiously flashing his high beams (I deserved it). Not only did this completely un-calm my calmed nerves, but I quickly found myself right back with a line of pissed off Coloradans following behind me. Not my finest moment. I have since gotten much, much better at the mountain road stuff.

davedave1111 > Voice of C. Montgomery Burns 12/06/2014 at 12:07

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The one which still gives me the cold sweats to think about is the time I came around a corner on an urban street, and the car ahead was stopped. There was a bus stopped in the oncoming lane, but the second lane in my direction was clear. I was just gunning it around the stopped car when I found to my horror that the bus had been blocking my view of a mum and kids halfway over a zebra crossing. I was very lucky that someone saw what I was going to do and hit their horn before I was in a position to see the problem, so I was already halfway across to the brake pedal when I found out. With that help, I just managed to stop in time.

Voice of C. Montgomery Burns > davedave1111 12/06/2014 at 12:57

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Wow, scary indeed.

Rico > Voice of C. Montgomery Burns 12/06/2014 at 17:30

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The dumbest thing I've done thus far. I was in the drive thru of a Taco bell. I had become extremely used to using the brake hold feature on my car so I'm in the drive thru there are a lot of cars ahead of me so I had been waiting about 15 mins. The car 8 ft. ahead of me is at the window paying so I figured this was a good time to reach into the back seat and grab a $20 out of my jacket. Thinking I was in Park and not removing my seat belt I reach to the back, I accidentally pressed the accelerator and collision assist BRAKES for me! I would've rear ended that car had it not intervened. Felt like such a fucking idiot now I am hyper aware of being in Park.