That's not the same thing at all
You're still going to drive, you're deciding being extra isn't worth it.
Thoughts on Excessive Speed
- Thread starter panthro
- Start date
That's not the same thing at all
You're still going to drive, you're deciding being extra isn't worth it.
Where did I say that I thought it would never happen to me? I actually said it could, if you were extremely unlucky.
It was more the fact you suggested it could ONLY happen if you were extremely unlucky or incompetent - which is significantly more likely! The dunning-kruger effect is a thing
Besides, regardless of how lucky (or not) you are, chances are it's going to run out one day, and sensible people act accordingly - the difference between being "unlucky" at 50mph vs 100mph is a significant one.
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you really don't need to be 'extremely unlucky' - it only takes the slightest bit of bad luck combined with excessive high speeds to ruin your day. the fact you think you need to be 'extremely unlucky' means you're likely just a splat on the windscreen waiting to happen. hopefully you take no one else out with you when you get 'extremely unlucky'
Soldato
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- 17 Jun 2012
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- South Wales
To be fair if you hit an immovable object at 50mph the effect can be pretty devastating.
Controversial opinion for motors but I hate people treating public roads like a race track. It's fine if you want to put your own life in danger but not everyone else's
Controversial opinion for motors but I hate people treating public roads like a race track. It's fine if you want to put your own life in danger but not everyone else's
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I am not going to critisize people unless they are being wreckless about it.
There is speeding and there is driving in an aggressive maner and I think the later is far worse. Clear motorway, good conditions and visibility with nothing in front of you, even doing 100mph I don't think that is really any more dangerous then doing 70 mph.
Doing 70mph not leaving enough braking distance is far worse for example.
I used to speed a fair bit but did it (in my opinion) sensibly, only on NSL roads where nothing is around and never in towns or build up areas etc, saying that I dont speed anymore and have not done for about a year, with the exception of when I am on my motorcycle I'll still give that a go now and then.
There is speeding and there is driving in an aggressive maner and I think the later is far worse. Clear motorway, good conditions and visibility with nothing in front of you, even doing 100mph I don't think that is really any more dangerous then doing 70 mph.
Doing 70mph not leaving enough braking distance is far worse for example.
I used to speed a fair bit but did it (in my opinion) sensibly, only on NSL roads where nothing is around and never in towns or build up areas etc, saying that I dont speed anymore and have not done for about a year, with the exception of when I am on my motorcycle I'll still give that a go now and then.
It was more the fact you suggested it could ONLY happen if you were extremely unlucky or incompetent - which is significantly more likely! The dunning-kruger effect is a thing
Besides, regardless of how lucky (or not) you are, chances are it's going to run out one day, and sensible people act accordingly. You only need to be unlucky once...
I think you're both misunderstanding my point. Plenty of people drive fast every day, with many choosing to do it in the right place / time. Saying you won't drive over 80MPH because you saw something like this doesn't make any sense - there are some places where you could drive at 90 or 100MPH safely, and there are others where 80MPH is too fast, you can't just put an arbitrary number on it.
Those who regularly drive too fast in the wrong time / place (incompetent) may well suffer the consequences. The rest would indeed be extremely unlucky to have something like this happen to them.
I always find it funny how many people say this type of stuff on forums, then when they're given the keys to a nice car and a clear, open road they're only too happy to floor it way over the speed limit.
I agree with you, except for the last part. You can put an arbitrary number on it - it's the one printed on the round sign you just passed, for 2 reasons - the most obvious being the risk of points & a fine, the less obvious being that everyone else on the road will be expecting you to be travelling at that speed and will act accordingly, e.g. lane changes, pulling out of junctions etc.
Based on my experience on the roads, an overwhelming majority almost certainly fall into the former category (regardless of their own opinions of their abilities
)
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how do you know that?! how do you know how many people say this type of stuff on forums then when given keys to a 'nice' car run out and floot it. i think you're guessing there a bit surely?
the faster you drive, the more likely a small bit of bad luck will get amplified to extremely dangerous levels. driving at 40 when a stone hits the window and scares the bejesus out of you - you'll have a moment, curse, swear and drive on usually. that happens at 100mph and the reaction you had at 40 might well make you lose control.
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There are things you can't control even at sensible speeds
I had someone last night driving at me taking up about 60% of my side of the road and all I could do was stop and hope they got back to their side of the road... plus someone earlier in the day decide to pull out of a junction without looking at the traffic left or right at all and the only reason I didn't hit them was because I was already on the brakes due to spotting another potential hazard.EDIT: Unfortunately the headlights mask it but at 2-3 seconds in they were completely over my side and even at 5 seconds in the video were straddling the middle of the road still https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5HuQQgKHgk
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Soldato
- Joined
- 11 Sep 2013
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IIRC, Australia started showing anti-speeding campaigns on TV using actual crash footage, and subsequently saw a massive drop in incidents.
But today with the internet, people post this **** all over the place just for ***** and giggles. They watch fatal crash channels while having dinner. You even get it on TV, now.
They're so desensitised, it doesn't register any more.
When an angry police officer is giving you a dressing down about your speed at the side of the road, it's probably becasue they have been witness to the likes of those Reddit photos in person many times. You might have only been going 48 in a 40, but many people have likely died going less. There's freak accidents that just happen, mechanical failure, weather conditions and other unpredictable things. That's why the slower the speed the better you're equipped to deal with those things.
The roads aren't a pleasurable place they once were for me, seems to be full of entitled clowns, plus I have young kids and different priorities. I've taken my liberties and not killed myself or others and I'm glad of that. Had my fun. When I have the chance of driving an interesting car again the roads will just be a gentle A to B for either track days or shows. I don't want to needlessly hurt anyone else or my family for a 5 minute thrill.
The roads aren't a pleasurable place they once were for me, seems to be full of entitled clowns, plus I have young kids and different priorities. I've taken my liberties and not killed myself or others and I'm glad of that. Had my fun. When I have the chance of driving an interesting car again the roads will just be a gentle A to B for either track days or shows. I don't want to needlessly hurt anyone else or my family for a 5 minute thrill.
Tbh I dont consider "luck" to be part of it, its all about driving to the conditions of the roads.
If the M5 was totally empty, in good dry conditions, I could easily travel the majority of it at , 170, 180, 200mph+ without issue. Speeds that I think most people would agree are beyond reckless in normal day to day driving.
The difference is that most "idiots" drive like idiots beyond the capabilities of their skills and their cars capabilities and without regard for the conditions of the road, be that other road users, the weather, visibility, the state of the road etc
oh without a doubt.There are things you can't control even at sensible speeds
but excessive speeds only make crap situations even worse. imagine that person taking up 60% of the road had been flying down the road, now imagine you were doing the same speed as them. more speed = reduced time to anticipate/plan/counter other road users. you might not have had the chance to pull in and hope they corrected their road position. this is what i think geekman with his 'extremely unlucky' view point is missing.
I went through a phase of quick(ish) cars when I was in my 20s, but given the state of roads and congestion now there's really no point unless you get your kicks from revving in neutral while sat in traffic or weaving around potholes.
Get a track toy if you want to have fun driving.
Get a track toy if you want to have fun driving.
you don't know that. you'd probably be fine, but if something out of your control happens at that speed you almost certainly aren't countering it.
edited to remove absolutes.
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Used to in my first couple of years of owning a car for the first time. I’d speed on dual carriageways up to 80 sometimes up to 90. Never been in to speeding in 30/40/50s. Also never been a tailgater, those people are frankly knobs.
Now I just stick my car on cruise at 110kmh on the way home and rarely go above that unless I need to overtake someone. Driving is not fun to me anymore. My commute is 40 miles in 50 minutes sitting on the M11 mostly. You see how angry/stressed the people get glued to the person in front. All so they can probably arrive 1 minute early? It’s just not worth the stress. Let them stress I just stay left, overtake HGVs and listen to the radio.
Now I just stick my car on cruise at 110kmh on the way home and rarely go above that unless I need to overtake someone. Driving is not fun to me anymore. My commute is 40 miles in 50 minutes sitting on the M11 mostly. You see how angry/stressed the people get glued to the person in front. All so they can probably arrive 1 minute early? It’s just not worth the stress. Let them stress I just stay left, overtake HGVs and listen to the radio.
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Of course luck is a part of it, if you're doing 200mph and you pick up a bolt through one of your tires that causes a blowout you're probably going for a little flight off the side of the M5. It's entirely down to luck whether that happens or not, no amount of skill or obs is going to let you dodge something like that on the road.
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I agree. There's a very old video of an Integra flying down an empty straight road flat out. It goes over a mild crest in the road, gets lift and exits stage left and considerable speed. Most people would assume that kind of road you could just let yourself go free however the roads are designed for their posted speed limit and you would need to know it more intimately to know you're capable of pushing VMAX safely.
Until an animal runs out in front of you.
Until you hit a piece of debris or pothole on the road which causes a tyre failure.
Until you have a sudden mechanical failure.
etc.
Plenty of scope for luck to be a factor.