Zoom Zoom Equals Tickets

I believe that if I had been brought up in a racing family, I would probably would have made a really good race car driver :)

I love to drive and have many hours behind the wheel of a car. I used to drive from Altus, OK to Lake Tawakoni, TX all the time. Any time off from the Air Force was spent traveling home and I had the kind of job in the Air Force where you worked four twelve hour shifts and got four days off. I really should have stayed in and retired. Anyway, I digress. The following are some of my driving experiences.

I got my first car my Junior year of high school. It was a 1976 Mercury Cougar.

I don't think it had a first gear. It had no pickup when the gas pedal was pushed to the floor but could easily go 110 once up to speed :) I know this because one day I was driving behind a friend and decided to pass him on a two lane road down 276 from Emory to Lake Tawakoni. He sped up, of course, so it took about a mile to do it but I finally got around him. My friends gave me a bumper sticker that said, "Don't honk, I'm pedaling as fast as I can".

I had a friend in the Air Force that was shipped to the Gulf and he owned a Pontiac Fiero.

I am not sure of the year but he bought it new from 1990 to 1994. The picture shown here looks very similar except his was black. He didn't want it sitting around for months so he let me drive it while he was away. I'm pretty responsible but I don't think I would let anyone borrow my car. I did my duty though and drove the car, probably much more than he thought I would. I drove that car to my friend's house between Sulphur Springs, TX and Emory, TX. His place was out on back roads. We went out to meet with some girls on a rainy, cold night. The road I drove on was under construction in some parts. The bridges were being worked on. There were wood slats on the bridge and only one car could cross it at a time. For some stupid reason, I stopped the car to take off from a dead stop. As soon as I let out on the clutch the car starts spinning. I let off the gas, pushing the clutch back in and start fighting the steering wheel to keep the car from going off the edge of the bridge (it had no railing). When the car came to a complete stop, we had spun 360 degrees on that single lane bridge. I expected to get punched right away by my friend in the seat opposite me. Still not sure why I never received the blow. I apologized for scaring him and began driving more sanely. I never took chances in my Air Force friend's car after that experience. I was very lucky. I could have easily screwed up and ended in the ravine below the bridge.

I now have a 2008 Mustang V6. I love this car. I have actually started following the speed limit signs but I still speed from time to time. I get a ticket about once a year. I'm lucky it isn't more than that though. My wife beats me every time I get a ticket. I'm still waiting for her to get her first ticket. I doubt she will ever get a ticket but if she does *laughs evilly* ;)

Here are reasons the above experiences should never be repeated:

• Fast cars do not stop quickly. It is not that uncommon for people and animals to be crossing the road. If you ever hit anyone while speeding excessively, you will most likely go to prison for man slaughter. At the least you will have to live with it for the rest of your life. Though animals are not as precious as people, the owners believe they are. Not only that but your car is going to get damaged pretty bad.
• Speeding twenty miles over the speed limit could get your license taken away for a long time, jail time, and a large fine.
• Tickets are very expensive even if you take defensive driving to get them off your record.
• Though you might have quick reflexes, others on the road may not. They may not see you speeding up on them and cut you off. If you are going to speed make sure you have an out by looking around you and seeing where you can divert your course.

Enjoy your car but do so safely and lawfully. Though I have talked only of speeding, driving slow is also dangerous. If you are on a multi-lane highway and you are driving slower than the flow of traffic around you, move over to the right so the faster traffic can go around you. It frustrates drivers when they are stuck going a speed that is too slow. This leads to bad decisions and though you think these decisions are the fault of the ones behind you, it is equally your fault for holding up the flow of traffic. So, please get out of the way.