No $h!t there I was!

[Petrograde]

With only 950 miles on my new Marauder, I thought I'd take her on a road trip to Cleveland, to visit family and friends, and show off the new wheels obviously!
50 miles into my trip I was about to pass this crappy 'ol 10 wheeler truck when its entire driver's side headlight assembly decided to fall out! It bounced down the passing lane on I-24 right in front of me. Utilizing my kick ass brakes, and power-assist steering I aborted my attempted take over and maneuvered behind the truck. It bounced down the middle of the passing lane shedding metal and glass until it reached the front of my new Merc, where it decided to turn and jump directly into the lower front driver's side of my beloved car.
I felt a hard thump, I could hear the sound of metal, glass and fiberglass colliding. Still swerving and braking hard I cursed the driver for his shabby vehicle and I may have made some reference to his questionable parentage.
The driver saw what happened in his rear view mirror. When I regained my composure (kinda) I started to pass again, our eyes met in his mirror. If you can believe it ... he was looking at me as though I'd done something wrong!!! My thoughts shifted to the weapons I had in my trunk. My friends and I are avid shooters; I had my brand new Bushmaster XM-15 Shorty assault rifle and a couple hundred rounds of .223 (among several other weapons) in the spacious trunk. I briefly fantasized about putting some lead down range, but ... I quickly realized that would not only cause more trouble, it would not fix what happened to my Marauder.
So, I too the high road, so to speak. I gave him the finger and I put the pedal to the floor. I saw in my mirror that he took the next off ramp.
Upon inspection I found: the driver's side fog light and bracket ... gone! The side marker light assembly ... cracked. The paint deeply gouged, in the front corner and the driver's door and even on the rear quarter panel!
All-in-all ... $1200 bucks worth of damage. A nice dent in the wallet! And even though that ********* driver thought I was to blame for his sub-standard P.O.S. truck falling apart, ... It could have been worse!
Thanks for letting me vent!

[RCSignals]

Wouldn't his insurance be responsible for covering it?

Sorry that had to happen to your car :(

[Petrograde]

I was waaaay to angry to stop. It would've become physical, me physically pulling him from his cab! lol It wasn't a company truck, just some 'ol POS this guy was using, I'd really be suprised if there was actually insurance on it!
Oh well, life goes on. I'll fix it.

[SILVERMARAUDER]

Man what control i would have had to of stopped that guy! Someone elece should of had to have paid for that not you!

[Bigdogjim]

I would have called police reported it and got plate # from truck etc.

Why pay out of pocket? No flame intended.

[Petrograde]

Well, the Road Rage was mounting, I knew if I didn't get out of there I'd do something stupid.

[Bigdogjim]

Originally posted by Petrograde
Well, the Road Rage was mounting, I knew if I didn't get out of there I'd do something stupid.

Smart move!

[martyo]

Originally posted by Petrograde
I had my brand new Bushmaster XM-15 Shorty assault rifle and a couple hundred rounds of .223 (among several other weapons) in the spacious trunk.


Personally, I went with one of the rarely discussed options of getting my munitions mounted on the roof. I found this to be really handy in these sort of passing situations. Just MHO.

[2003 MIB]

Petrograde,
Sorry about your car man but you made me realize something pretty cool. It's an odd phenomenon but I find myself less prone to rage (stupidity) when I'm armed (Texas has about 232,000 CHL holders)- I'm less likely to something stupid because the consequences are so high. You really had the big picture about removing yourself from a situation that could have been pretty ugly. Geez, Bro- quit calling it an "assault rifle"- it's anti-gunner word. Gotta remember that the People's Republic of California coined the phrase to facilitate their ban. The more enlightened among us realize that an armed society is a polite society. Just my opinion but I have a lot of respect for a man that gets the big picture.

[JamesHecker]

Originally posted by 2003 MIB
Geez, Bro- quit calling it an "assault rifle"- it's anti-gunner word. Gotta remember that the People's Republic of California coined the phrase to facilitate their ban. The more enlightened among us realize that an armed society is a polite society. Just my opinion but I have a lot of respect for a man that gets the big picture.

Man are you "on target". Living in California is embarrassing when it comes firearms legislation. (Actually it's worse than embarassing, but I am keeping it light.)

[Petrograde]

hmmm,... I see your point. I am a strong advocate of the 2nd Ammendment, so I could never live in California! lol

I am about to move to Dallas, Republic of Texas. From what I hear, it's a very gun friendly place. Not to mention it seems that a lot of people on this BBS are from Texas.

[UncleLar]

Petrograde,If you really were as enraged as you stated you did the right thing in not pursuing the truck and getting into a physical confrontation. I have a fast temper and a very low tolerance for ignorance and stupidity behind the wheel.Back in the old days before my son was born and I got a better handle on reining in my temper I left my boot prints in more than a few car doors when someone cut me or one of my buddies off when we were out on our bikes.On 2 different occaisions idiots have actually repeatedly ridden their front bumpers into my bikes' rear tire,once it happened with my 9 year old son on the back. In both situations I had done nothing to antagonize either person,when it happened with my son on the back it ended up with my bike wrecked,thankfully my son wasn't injured. My honest thought at the moment of truth was I was dead,how could I protect my son my death or crippling injury,thankfully the Lord and my mother put their hands on me and my son was uninjured and I came through in pretty good shape considering. Had I had a gun with me in either situation I would not have hesitated to use it as I knew my life and my sons was in imminent and grave danger,BUT,at the same time I'm glad I wasn't armed and didn't take the life of some a_ _ hole. I try to remember that the first thing that happens when you lose your temper is that you lose.
If you think California's anti-gun laws are something try living here in Daleygrad,(formerly known as Chicago),I could tell you about a 16 & 1/2 month,$20,000 + plus nightmare I had here! I'm down to 1 gun here now,my legally registered 1925 Model 1897 un-fired original Winchester riot gun that I sincerely hope I never have to pick up in defense of my family or others. If you can avoid a bad situation do so,I'm sure Sarge will tell you a bad situation only gets worse. Good luck and stay safe,avoid and evade the idiots whenever possible. Uncle Lar

[jgc61sr2002]

Petrograde - Sorry about your the damage to your MM. If you have the plate # of that truck, give it to your ins. co. and they will persue it. P.S. you did the right thing.:(

[Petrograde]

ya know,.. I don't recall seeing a plate at all. I was pretty pi$$ed off at the time, so I didn't really think about it. But now, upon further reflection; I'm pretty sure it didn't have any plates at all.
hmmmm,....

[2003 MIB]

PM me when you get to Dallas Petrograde...I've found a great range in Plano. Indoor- rifle lanes and pistol lanes. $100 a year- good people run the place. Maybe a Saturday of morning shooting and afternoon Marauder detailing- doesn't get much better....

[Petrograde]

Thank MIB! Will do! It looks like I'll be in Grand Prairie, how far to Plano?

[2003 MIB]

North side of Dallas. 30 minutes on a light traffic day. It's do-able.