What the..!

Don't take this wrong (if you're reading this article then it most likely doesn't apply to you anyway) but there is a small percentage of the population that is just, what's politically correct here, oh the hell with it, stupid. Plain and simple dumb asses when it comes to maneuvering a motor vehicle. I am reminded of a saying from years ago: "Ignorance can be cured through education while stupid is forever." Here's my shirt!






A few weeks back Debbie and I were riding to Morehead. We were in fairly heavy traffic just east of Newport. For the past few miles a yellow Mustang, about ten years old, had been bouncing ahead and behind in the left lane. I had also noticed that the car did not have the normal passenger side mirror on the door. It's not that the mirror was broken it just did not have one and no sign on the door that it ever did. Sure enough, in a few minutes a quick right merge was initiated with no signal, warning or glance to the right. Thank goodness Harley put dual rotors on the front wheel and I have a habit of covering the brakes in close traffic. It wasn't a panic maneuver on our part since we had noticed the twitchy buffoon but it was still surprising.


I am riding in the right half of the left lane at 35 miles an hour on a city street and there is a blue Ford in the right lane about 15 feet in front. The brake lights go on and an immediate shift to the left is started. I quickly counter steer to the left and apply both brakes. The idiot has yet to see me. Now I know I was very visible to the driver since I had the dual spot lights on as well as the headlight. I could also clearly see the driver, or a portion of, in the cars mirror. Maybe it was the fact that the driver created a blind spot for himself with his hand and his cell phone to his left ear. I guess he couldn't apply the turn signal since his left hand was holding the stinking phone.


I am leaving Wal-Mart on a Saturday morning about 11:00 riding the Ultra. In the parking lot in front of the store I make a right to go to the highway exit. A woman in a white Cadillac begins backing out of a space in front of me about 40 feet away. She glances to her right and we make eye contact but she continues to back out. She has difficulty maneuvering the land yacht and initiates some kind of three point road turn. Why the difficulty you may ask? It seems she is doing all this with one hand because SHE IS ON THE FRIGGIN' PHONE! I swear if the phone is to the ear then the brain must be in neutral. If Harley-Davidson had a handle bar mount activation button for a grenade launcher, Wal-Mart would be having a pool accessories sale around a small pond in the parking lot this morning.


On a recent ride we were following some Gold Wings that just happened to be leading the group. As we approached Pamlico county they must have changed lanes five times in two minutes and could not maintain a steady speed, 60 to 40 and back to 55 and then almost make a panic stop to start a turn. It was becoming obvious that we were being led by someone that rides maybe 500 miles a year. Then at a stop light the leaders accelerated hard to make the light. To hell with the rest of the pack that was following. Debbie asked from the passenger seat: "What is their problem?" Needless to say with a knowing glance from Chad and Lynn we left the Wingers to navigate on their own. Since a Honda gets good gas mileage they may still be aimlessly meandering down the back roads in Pamlico county.