Rep Power: 296

well, today after work, i was going out to go grab some dinner.

i just started as a civil engineer at a air force base as a brand new 2LT. this week. so i don't really know the words around the area. at lunch, a 1LT. and i left the base to go eat something to eat. he should be another exist off the base. it was a shorter route than the route i have been taking.

from the road off the base to the highway, there was a sharp steady banked onramp. so my stupid *** goes full blast. i was on the very top of 2nd gear, 58mph. what i didn't realize was how quickly the onramp merges to the highway. before i knew it, i was going side by side a geo metro that was driven by a grandma.

in a second time, many things happened. i realized that (1)i couldn't get more speed to get in front of the metro since i would loose time and distance to get to 3rd gear. (2) if i was going to brake, i would or could have gone in a death spin with total oversteer. (3) i realized what i needed to do, i needed to lift.

i don't know exactly how much i lifted off the gas pedal since i was wearing my uniform, my combat gear. the combat boots don't give you any feel fo the pedals.

anyways, i just get barely behind the geo metro. i was probably a few inches away. at the same time, my rear end was swing out. i was going on a very cool 4 wheel drift, but going straight . so i'm back feeding the gas and countersteered.

all this happened in a brief second. i am almost positive that if i didn't have my open track, autoX, and go karting experience, I would have not know what to do. it seemed like it was just instinct from what i have learned by driving so much in the past year. i felt very confident in what was going on and my senses(hearing:tire screech -- touch:steering wheel and pedals ---sight --- and foresight) was very quick.

i totally believe that everyone at least autoXes their car to know what the car does and what to do at the upper limits. now i'm going to try to get my parents to autoX.

i'm so glad that i have autoXed at least a few times. my experience in autoX saved my life many times on the big tracks of road racing. my instructor thought we were going to go into the ditch and roll over when he thought that i wasn't going to get back on control of my car when we were in some hairy situations.

P.S. THINK GOD THAT THE GRANDMA DIDN'T REALLY REALIZE WHAT WAS GOING ON SINCE SHE NEVER DID ANYTHING THAT COULD HAVE MADE THE SITUATION WORSE. she just kept on going on a steedy line with constant speed.

 
Rep Power: 0

congrats sir... (ex SSgt here) nice to hear someone has some sense of what they need to do to avoid an accident or worse.

 
Rep Power: 296

i feel really stupid about what could have happened. thank god i didn't hurt the innocent grandma. as i passed her later down the road, i waved an apology. i was expecting her to flick me off, but she didn't

 
Rep Power: 314

Nice job bro!

I know I've used my skills on the road MANY times as well. I just don't post about them, 'cause I usually get myself into these situations because of stupidity....like tryin' to get to work 'cause I'm late, so I apex a few corners that HAPPENS to force me to cross a few lanes (no traffic of course) lol.

But I think we all do stupid ****, it's not WHAT you do...it's what you LEARN and how you RECOVER from it.

 
Rep Power: 0

On that note I think cone ******** at autox saved my gas cap the other day. I accidentally left it on the trunk lid of my car and drove the 15 minutes back to where I'm staying without the gas cap. As soon as I get out of the car I see the gas door open and realize what I did. My dad drove me back to the gas station in his car and I proceded to scan the road. About 75 feet down the road I spot it lying right on the lane line between the center and left lane. There was traffic coming including a big rig that would be there in about 10 seconds. I rushed to the cap, snatched it up, and ran back across the highway in the blink of an eye. After I get off the road the big rig moved from the center to the left lane in the exact spot where my gas cap had been lying. I don't think I could have picked it up a second too soon.

 
Rep Power: 314

ROFLMAO

I love the association.....random....yet amusing.