The Art of Tailgating: Moving Violations. All opinions welcome.

[snowblind]

i ride a motorbike, so when cars tailgate me i get so fucked off. i usually prepare myself then slam my breaks on. twice ive been shunted, but never fallen off. i like it though cus i get their details then quote them for work so their insurance doesn't have to pay and they loose their premiums then do it myself. its been a new liscense plate and new rear wheel cover. it really fucks me off when car drivers do it because i havnt got a nice shiny tin around me so i figure it serves em right.

ive been hit twice by cars who didnt see me and neither has been my fault. both in broad daylight where only a blind pensioner with cataracts couldnt see me. it really fucks me off.

i ride safely and i ride fast, but never stoned. i really don't like it. i like the buzz from teh adrenaline you get when riding. weed kills that. i don't tailgate when riding but when im looking to overtake i always get on the right wing so they see me exactly.

i ride like all car drivers are morons and have saved my skin more times than i care to remember. often due to drivers who dont look and who probably shouldnt have passed. their test. there are however alot of good drivers on the road. its just a shame these are usuaully the ones who you do not notice.

i can't wait to get my car liscense though. a winter on a bike i no fun. coming home at 12 in december and jan i am usually covered in frost. but i love it because im the only person at work who will ride in snow/sleet/hail/thunder/torrential rain/ice. the rest are fair weather pussies.

on the car not and i know im rambling. i have my eyes on a mk4 golf gt tdi 130 3 dr. gonna chip her, get new exhaust system. lowered 18 inch rims and get a decent sound system. and ifi have the cash ill put a 25 anniversary bodykit on it, debadadge it, get it smoothed off and get a nice gun metal paint job on it.

peace

[The Figment]

I drive a *lot*. And generally I don't screw around when I drive, point A to B at the fastest speed possible.

I've seen the view. My brakes are good, I did 'em myself. Full control of the vehicle.

After many years and many many hundreds of thousands of miles, It's become apparent that everybody has a different idea of personal-vehicular space. The skoochers are the most obvious example, they follow with forty feet of space between them and the person in front of them in rush hour traffic. They are unaffected by being repeatedly cut off. Then they stop at a light, and wait till you come to a complete stop behind them, then they get nervous or something and skootch a foot or so. Then they do it again. And again.

I just sit there anymore, pretending there's not ten plus feet of empty space between us now from all the skootching. I know it irritates the herd to not see me skootching too, but when the light turns green, the car in front of them moves, and then, after a five second interval they start to roll, I floor it and tailgate the hell out of 'em.

My logic is: Don't stop before you have to, and don't give out nervous signals to the long line of traffic behind you to "go" when it's not time to "go".

So...... to the original point: What exactly qualifies as tailgating in your book? Do you always go by the two second rule? Do you consider the posted speed limit an actual limit? Are you a skootcher?

Personally I just know anymore the personal space the handicapped woman veteran in the RV in front of me wants, and if she does the speed limit or at least close to it, she gets that space, even if I think it's ridiculous. If she does ten under and swerves a lot, she gets less. The dumber and slower they are, the more I infringe on their perception of personal space, until I can get around them.

I know that makes me the bad guy, but someone has to do it. So what do you guys and gals think is really tailgating?

I drive a 12,000 Lb truck Empty,22,000 Lb loaded...Tailgaters Suck!! If you get so close that I cant see you in my mirrors I will flash my hazard flashers three times,wait a moment and do it again. if you dont back off to a reasonable distance,then on come the brakes...Hard!!!!!! How good is your insurance? Mine is fantastic,and you hitting MY back end puts YOU at fault...Like Tickets do ya?? The cops here would give YOU a BIG handful!!! Then there is the damage to YOUR car....You could rear-end my truck at 55-60 Mph and I would drive away...Can YOU say That?

[LIP]

Only 13k you got a right result on that mate:thumbsup:you wouldn't want the 3l petrol it would cost you a fortune to run, i only get 19.5 mpg around town and 23 mpg on the motorway with a average speed of 90-100 mph, the mondeo est is a great allround car, use to have a 18 lx.

I'm getting about 45 MPG on the long trips and it goes down to about 37 MPG on the short ones. The average is about 80 -100. I'm assuming you've got the little computer on the dash that tells you. First time i have one of em, pretty nifty. The aircon is very nice too - and doesnt dent the fuel as much as i thought it would.

[MadSativa]

I drive a 12,000 Lb truck Empty,22,000 Lb loaded...Tailgaters Suck!! If you get so close that I cant see you in my mirrors I will flash my hazard flashers three times,wait a moment and do it again. if you dont back off to a reasonable distance,then on come the brakes...Hard!!!!!!

haha here we call that a brake check. Never do it in Northern NM though you will get shot or get caught in a fire fight.. haha............I love that you see em come up to yah and bam brake check

[Spoken Word]

Well, I live in Miami and we follow different rules down here.
I've spoken with cops that have seen me drive a little erratically and they told me they would have done the same.

But like you, I drive a lot so now I don't pay attention to anything except the road and the cars around me. I know the laws and what I'm supposed to do and I do it.

When a car doesn't go, I simply beep the horn very politely and promptly.. and i get behind them but with enough room to stop if they decide to brake on a green light. lol.... they do it all the time.

what i love is when you are minding your own buisness in your own lane and a car decides to get right in front of you(when theres another two lanes open) and on top of that, slow down.

it happends to me daily.
im telling you man, miami driving is ridiculous.