Stewart Stremler wrote:
begin quoting DJA as of Fri, Feb 23, 2007 at 10:04:31PM -0800:
Paul G. Allen wrote:
large enough, it is inevitable that another car will fill it (or two, or
three, or,...), forcing you to decelerate to provide the 3 sec. space
again. The cycle will continue forever. So, if you want to avoid coming
to a stop just to leave that safety zone, the best you can hope for is a
compromise between that 3 sec. space and something less safe but not
2 seconds was the "recommended" distance way back when I was learning to
drive (so was 10-and-2, even though I did 9-and-3 for preference then
and now).
Actually, the recommendation is to have your hands at 8-and-4 if you
have an airbag in the steering wheel. Airbag deployment with your hands
at 10-and-2 will likely break your arms. I don't know if this would be
true at 9-and-3.
Letting people who want to go faster get by you BEFORE the traffic
locks up is a good thing. The annoyance are those people who don't
want to go /faster/ than you, but who merely want to be AHEAD of
you. They'll speed up, pull in front, and then slow down.
I once heard my dad say "I don't understand why some people are in such
a hurry to slow somebody else down.".
Like most things, working out "if our roles were reversed, what would
I want the other guy to do" is a really good start. This sort of
thinking is apparently quite alien to some people; smart, capable,
moral, friendly people, who just can't look at the world that way.
Do unto others:
1) before they do it to you.
2) as you wish they would do to you.
#1 seems predominant since most people tend to be selfish and
shortsighted. #2 takes self-discipline (or the ability to think ahead).
I also use the same tactic in long on-ramp lines. I usually keep the
speed just low enough so that I never stop moving even when I hit the light.
Smoothness is key.
At idle in lowest gear, I go just slightly faster than the "2 per green"
lights allow. I'll let one space open up (not worth it for the guy in
the next lane over to try to steal). And just as the space is increasing
to that of two vehicles I slowly let out the clutch at idle. Then I push
the clutch and stop before hitting the guy in front of me. It does even
out the flow greatly and saves my clutch muscles from overuse.
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