OT, but interesting...

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Drjones

New member
Yes, its OT, but I wanted to share anyway.

Here's a new one for you all:

Last night I had the distinct honor of getting into an accident. With a 1996 Dodge Viper GTS. Blue with white racing stripes, 8 Liter V-10, 550 HP. (YES, 550. No, its not stock.)

My incredibly generous uncle let me borrow it for the week. :eek:

I was stopped at an intersection with a buddy in the car. Light turns green, I gun it. Too much. That thing has more torque than the Titanic. Seriously. Fishtailed like you wouldn't believe, and straight off the road, down a 70 degree incline about 20 feet into a ditch.

Can I even begin to describe what I was feeling? No. I won't even try.

First, my friend and I are both ok physically. I am not so ok mentally. I was obviously flipped out about the car. The tow truck guys and the cops were telling me how many accidents they've seen where the people simply don't hop out like I did. They get carried away. In a body bag. (Or sometimes in several.) By the coroner. We were incredibly lucky we didn't flip. If it had, my friend and I would probably be dead or close to it.

The tow truck guys especially were saying "its only a car. You should be so happy it wasn't your life. Its just metal. It gets fixed."

This is a pretty serious situation, for several reasons:

1) My friend and I very well could have died. Seriously.

2) I fu*ked up someone else's $100,000 toy.

Needless to say, this incident has sparked torrents of thought on my part. On the way home in the tow truck, I was talking with the driver (who, interestingly enough, went to Berkeley, and was in the Army! Go figure!) about all the **** he's seen.

Its just so sad; so many people who have died just because they were going a little (or a lot) too fast in a car. No more, no less. Not because some thug wanted their money or car, not in self-defense. Just for speeding. Not even necessarily drunk. Just going too darn fast.

Hell, just a few weeks ago a girl my sister's age who went to our high school died in a car accident because some idiot was speeding, crossed the median on the hwy, hit her head-on, and killed her, himself and his passenger. Just for going too fast.

This made me rethink my priorities. Its just a car. It gets fixed. It is insured. I cannot be fixed as easily, and I am not insured. It is just metal and plastic. Made me rethink a lot of stuff. Like how fragile and precious life is, and how it truly can be taken away from us at any time.

I really do respect my elders. I have a HUGE, wonderful, loving family and extended family whom I treasure, and who treasure me. I really do try to learn from older, more experienced people, as we all do here on these forums.

Sadly, being young, and perhaps just because I'm me, there are some things that I just do not learn from others. Like how to drive more slowly. I am not reckless. Just faster than I should be. From now on, I truly will not be. I'm always attentive, looking around at what cars are around me and where, paying 180% attention. But I'm not sure that is good enough.

Quite a wake-up call to think "I seriously, honestly could have died just now." I tried to picture them pulling my body out, and the reactions of my parents.

It just is not worth it.

I just wanted to share this with you all.

I want to make one request of people here, specifically the younger crowd:

Take it from someone who's been there, done that; Listen to those who are older and more experienced than you. Believe it or not, they may have a reason for what they're telling you, and they just might be right.

Oh, and slow down. Please.
 
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itgoesboom

New member
I know how you are feeling right about now Jones.

When i was in high school, at about 17, i was hanging out with a friend and he was driving. This was just outside of Oakland and Berkley in the SF bay area, and it was raining hard, and it was foggy, which is a rare, and dangerous combination.

My friend decided that he wanted to show off by driving about 100 mph , and he lost control. The car swerved to the left a few degrees, then the right, then the left again, back to the right a bunch more, then spun out to the left completly. We did at least one full 360, maybe two, then an additional 180. We were still doing roughly 100 mph, and the freeway curved, and there was an overpass which we missed hitting by about 30 yards. Instead of hitting the concreate overpass, we hit a 30 foot tall embankment where there was an onramp. We took out a couple of small trees, some shrubs, and a 65 MPH speed limit sign. The embankment slowed us down pretty well, but we still managed to get a little air and come crashing down.

I can still remember the whole thing, years later. The thought that my family would have to identify my body, the fact that i was supposed to be a church youth group that night, and the thought that i really didn't want to be maimed, so I pulled my arms and my legs up close, hoping that the mangled metal that was about to be the car wouldn't take off one of my arms or legs. And during the impact, realizing that my friend was dead because he wasn't wearing a seat belt, and that his flying around in the front seat of the car was putting me at risk. So i pushed/punched his body trying to make sure that he wouldn't end up on me.

Amazingly, he actually survived. No injuries. So did I. The only reason why i can figure we managed to survive is that we hit it almost completly backwards, so our bodies were only shoved back in our seats, rather then being thrown through the windshield. The car was destroyed, and i never drove with that friend again. I didn't even tell my parents for a couple of weeks.

I.G.B.
 
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Jesse H

New member
What do you expect when you goose a RWD car that has about all it's available torque at 1500 rpms from a stop? :D

In the meantime, thank God for whatever you haven't broken or killed, and participate in your local Solo II autocross event if you ever plan on borrowing powerful cars and expecting them to drive like a Camry.
 
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Libertarian

New member
I totalled my dad's brand new TR6 when I was young. He didn't kill me but I wished he had.

Your uncle sounds like a kind and generous guy. He will probably be royally pissed but when it comes down to it, he'll realize that you are okay and the Viper is just a car.

Is it salvagable? Perhaps you can work on getting it fixed with your uncle?
 
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Long Path

New member
This isn't all that off-topic.

It only takes a split second of inattention or stupid action to end yours and/or others' lives.

I went to a funeral last week. Some new traffic construction on the interstate caused some traffic to back up rather quickly. Traffic would be speed along at 65 to 80 mph on open road, only to be confronted with a dead stop. Someone in a van got distracted and rear-ended a stopped family of five at 65 mph. A teenaged boy, much loved loved in the community, died, despite instantaneous medical attention, and CareFlight to the hospital. What do you think that the driver of the van would give to regain that split second?

More than you or I could ever imagine. :(

Be safe. Be safer than you really think you HAVE to be to get by.
 
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Pendragon

New member
Drjones,

I was lucky as a young person.

I had no more sense than you, I was just fortunate to not have access to any cars with more than 90 HP.

I wanted to buy a Mustang GT when I was 18. Fortunately, I could not afford one until I turned 28.

Even then, even being careful, I got 2 tickets and got it sideways more than once ;)

The irony is, I got in a wreck driving my cousins SUV while picking up an antique dresser for my wife.

I though my insurance would cover it, but in CA, the accident is paid by the car owners insurance.

Luckily, my cousin had a good record and the first crash does not raise rates - so I got off for $250 and a helping of humble pie.

Not sure what to tell you after doing enough damage to buy a house in most states.

When in a pickle, most people try to fix the blame - they reason that what is important is dodging responsibility and looking good.

This is an opportunity for you to reach down and find out what you are made of.

Make no mistake, how you handle your responsibility in this situation will define you in the eyes of your family and all who know you - for the rest of your life. More so, you will prove to your self who you really are, and that, you can not run from.

I find I fare much better when I do the right thing, rather than trying to figure out which action, story or excuse will give me the best outcome. The best outcome is always the truth.

Best wishes,
 
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WilderBill

New member
Be careful. The life you save may be your own.

It does seem to take a few years before you come to realize that getting there intact is more important than getting there sooner.
 
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Thumper

New member
To be fair, if someone had lent me a Viper when i was your age, I'm sure I could have managed to wreck it worse.

How's this gonna play out for the uncle financially?
 
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OF

New member
Glad to hear you are OK. Life will hand you a limited number of serious incidents like this. How you handle them will be among the most important things you ever do. They are defining moments in life. A mistake in handling one cannot easily be overcome later, and true regret comes from wishing you could go back and make things right when you had the chance.

Realizing that your life is not an isolated event, that your well-being and behavior directly affects others, is a major part of 'coming of age' and a mark of maturity.

This doesn't mean you can't drive fast cars fast, you just have to do it responsibly. That's the difference between a mature adult and an irresponsible kid. Get your own car and race it with other racers on a closed track, evaluating the risks and making a reasoned decision to accept or reject them.

Sounds like you're taking the right lesson from all this. If you do the right thing now, it'll all be over eventually and that knot in your stomach will disappear in time. If you do the wrong thing, it'll never go away.

- Gabe
 
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hansolo

New member
Viper bites-back

This is an intelligent, worthwhile thread!!!

Whether it is "getting on it" a little too hard in a Full-Race street-rod W/O adequate training and self-control, or not paying attention while field-stripping a certain Austrian handgun and realizing, as you pull trigger to dismantle, you have(had) one in the chamber, we all need "wake-up" calls now & then to maintain our fragile existence in this lifetime.

I think the thread-starter shows maturity by laying his soul out for us to see, so, I, for one, say he's learned a valuablelesson others can learn from.

We are glad you're O.K.! Hopefully, you Unc will not go ballistic!

Take Care,

Steve Pirosh ;)
 
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Hemicuda

New member
My namesake comes from my car... a '70 Hemi'Cuda

a 426 Cu. In engine, far from "stock" (the original engine is in the garage and IS stock)

the 'Cuda has around the 550 horse mark...

I got this car when I was a ttenager... and started what turned out to be a LONG restoration...

now that I am 32 years old, and have learned HOW to handle a high-performance automobile, it's GREAT...

If I'd had this car built and finished when I was 17 or 18, it'd likely be totalled, and me hurt or dead...

no matter how good you may be for a young person, you do NOT have the experience to turn a full 550 horses loose in a car that GIVES those horses at "barely off idle"... (get a hot car, with 300 or so horses, and learn to drive THAT before you get into a "high speed, low drag" race car (which is what a Viper is!)

the 'Cuda occasionally gives me a "reminder" about being careful... and I have had MANY a fast car so far in my life...

good that you learned a lesson, and sorry it had to be so expensive...
 
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Bogie

New member
I've got a friend who recently turned forty. He drives like he's sixteen. Scares the crap out of me, since, while I'm sure that his reactions and control of the vehicle are good, if something breaks or a tire blows, or any little thing happens at 100mph, the thing's gonna get scattered over several counties.

So I avoid riding with him.
 
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Thumper

New member
Good point, Bogie, but anything mechanical can fail. Including the action of that high-powered, optically sighted, fine tuned, contained grenade you hold next to your ear every time you shoot a long gun.

You pays your money and you takes your chances.

Hemi's right though. If you're gonna drive something that'll bite ya, you need to work up to it.
 
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Drjones

New member
Wow. Thank you ALL for your kind words, empathy, and support.

Frankly, I was expecting at least a few people to stick in some crass remarks, but you all have disproved me. Thank you.

I forgot to mention, but as horrible as the accident sounded (and as awful as it looked at the time!) the only damage (cosmetically, at least, mechanically is yet to be determined) is the two tires on the passenger side, and the trim piece that runs along the bottom of the car between the two tires. THAT IS IT.

You wanna talk LUCKY??? I define "Luck." :eek:

Of course I'm paying for whatever I can.

At any rate, the next morning, (yesterday) I went and saw my uncle and told him what happened. He was as calm as a man could be when you tell him you just got into an accident with his Viper. No yelling, no berating...that's not his nature.

He told me later yesterday, that after I left, he said a prayer that perhaps this incident could save my life in a bigger sense. Perhaps I will take this to heart and learn to measure twice, before I cut once. Perhaps the next time I get an urge to do something (handle a firearm, drive, etc. ) that I will rethink my actions; question myself again.

You can bet every last gun you guys own that this is the case. I have learned from this. It has been a humbling and eye-opening experience.


Thanks again for your support and stories! Keep 'em coming!!!
Drjones
 
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garrettwc

New member
drjones, you are most fortunate. You learned a valuable lesson and survived to share it. Whether it is a high performance car or a firearm, you must follow the safety rules and handle them properly.

Like you I was brought up to respect my elders. However, like most young people as I got older and more independent I would often question that wisdom. I am now at the age where my children consider me an old fart. Over time I have learned that the way my elders became my elders is by not getting killed doing some stupid stunt.
 
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foghornl

New member
Valuable life lessons learned at minimum cost. Car can be fixed, and monetary loss recovered.

Not so with life and health.

Case in point:

One of my high school classmates was killed by a drunk driver, who was speeding in an attempt to evade the police. Already had 3 DWI convictions, no license or insurance. Blew a 4-way stop at 65+ MPH in a borrowed Caddy, after dark with no lights on, T-boned my friend in driver's door in her VW Bug. Drunk gets taken away by police, unscathed. Drunk didn't even realize he had hit a car, was trying to restart engine when police [ahem] removed him from the Caddy.
 
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