2 Dogs, A Motorcycle & New Underwear

Brett rants:

I think people who rides bicycles on narrow shoulders are crazy.

Quiet, back country roads. Small coffee shops every few miles. Almost wilderness. What a wonderful Saturday bike ride! Crazy idiot truckers!! Why can't they stay on the Interstate where they belong!!

The thing about riding on the right (with the flow of traffic) is a legal thing. "Wheeled vehicles", you know.

Brett rants:

I think people who rides bicycles on narrow shoulders are crazy.

Quiet, back country roads. Small coffee shops every few miles. Almost wilderness. What a wonderful Saturday bike ride! Crazy idiot truckers!! Why can't they stay on the Interstate where they belong!!

The thing about riding on the right (with the flow of traffic) is a legal thing. "Wheeled vehicles", you know.

Oh I'm not ranting. I just think they're crazy. I mean, I climb mountains for fun so most people would say that about me. But I can't believe they have the nerve to let traffic whiz by from behind like that. I'm not one to leave my life to chance and hope that every car coming isn't going to swerve 18 inches and take me out from behind. If I can see what's coming at least I can scream or swerve or dive into a field or something if someone comes at me.

And if I was a cyclist I sure wouldn't be on the roadways. I'd be on bike paths or mountain trails or someplace where I'm not inches from getting run over all day long. I'm not saying they shouldn't be there anymore than anyone is saying I shouldn't be climbing up cliffs. But after 1.5 million miles in a big rig I know very well how people drive and I don't want to count on people not running me over from behind. Heck with that.

Damn dude, glad everyone is ok. Kudos for keeping a level head. It's stuff like this that puts the fear of God in you, so to speak. I've had a couple close calls myself, none with a motorcycle thankfully.

Oh and it must be some kind of curse lol--I pretty much always have my dash cam on in my car, except for when something crazy happens. And then of course it's either locked up or I took it down and forgot to put it back. Coincidence..

Glad everyone is ok. You did exactly what you're supposed to do by maintaining your lane. Had the motorcycle become a hood ornament, the fact that you were still in your lane would have kept you in the clear, dash cam or not. I've caught negativity before for my stance on the issue but my job is to maintain my lane and putting the truck in a ditch is not an option.

I've caught negativity before for my stance on the issue but my job is to maintain my lane and putting the truck in a ditch is not an option.

And you'll continue to receive negativity about it because your stance is right only a fraction of the time. If worst had come to worse and he had to hit the ditch to avoid the biker, as long as he caught it on dashcam, he could have proved he saved a life. No one in their right mind is going to tell him he should have maintained his lane and killed the biker--especially considering the fact that he was bobtailing and wouldn't have to worry about his trailer whipping into the biker's path.

As a general rule, you should maintain your lane. But there are exceptions to that rule.

Not in the eyes of your employer or three insurance company who will have to pay the claim based on your decision. Accident investigation would prove in the instance of an accident that he maintained his lane and done what he could. By making the decision to leave that lane , he would now be responsible for whatever happened. Traffic laws and insurance companies don't care about morality. They care about proof and liability.

Not in the eyes of your employer or three insurance company who will have to pay the claim based on your decision. Accident investigation would prove in the instance of an accident that he maintained his lane and done what he could. By making the decision to leave that lane , he would now be responsible for whatever happened. Traffic laws and insurance companies don't care about morality. They care about proof and liability.

I remember watching a training video on this very topic 30 years ago when I took a job driving a straight truck. The message has stayed with me. You are much more likely to survive if you maintain your lane. It would be very difficult to deal with if you end up killing someone who drove into your lane, but for most of us, and especially for our families, that's easier to deal with than being dead.

Most truck driver deaths are caused by rollovers, and most rollovers are caused by taking the ditch. So, the person who forces you into that situation by failing to drive correctly is also forcing you to make a choice about whose life is more valuable, theirs or yours. Well, mine, if you want the answer in advance. You value the dogs more than yourself, but I value myself more than you or the dogs. Tough for you if I can't stop in time.

And you'll continue to receive negativity about it because your stance is right only a fraction of the time. If worst had come to worse and he had to hit the ditch to avoid the biker, as long as he caught it on dashcam, he could have proved he saved a life. No one in their right mind is going to tell him he should have maintained his lane and killed the biker--especially considering the fact that he was bobtailing and wouldn't have to worry about his trailer whipping into the biker's path.

I guess I'm not in my right mind, then, because I would never tell anyone to take the ditch. And it is likely you won't have to prove you are in the right with a dashcam, because you'll roll the truck and die.

Not in the eyes of your employer or the insurance company who will have to pay the claim based on your decision.

Well, I do what I have to do to keep those guys happy, but if I have to make a choice between saving a life (or lives) and keeping the insurance company happy, you know what choice I'm gonna make. What you do is up to you, but you'll have to live with the consequences either way. I'd rather be punished financially if it meant I could live with the decision I made.

Of course, most of the time it's not going to be that simple and it is generally correct to hold your lane--not arguing with you there.

Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't ever want to take someone else's life. But in that split second decision it can possibly take my life and ruin my career plus potentially cost me dearly in the pocketbook by running it in the ditch. I'm sorry but I'm staying in my lane.