Reluctance to overtake!! Surprise at overtake!!

[trophy176]

Has anyone noticed the shock on other motorists faces when you overtake? Perhaps when on an A road?

On my regular two weekly drive to see the girlfriend in Edinburgh via the A68 I ve noticed that other motorists are not willing to overtake. In fact they would prefer to be stuck doing 40 in a 60 stuck behind a bus or truck or tractor or old polo!!!

I have noticed this overt the past two months but was under the false illusion that their cars where simply not quick enough to overtake!! I now realise that speed does not matter and it is in fact the drivers.

An example of this can be taken from my last trip at the weekend. On just leaving Ponteland and entering the A68 I became apart of a long snake of traffic moving at a speed considerably under the 60mph speed limit. In my attempt to hastened the pack up I began to overtake and move up the snake. On two occasions when I overtook, with plenty of space and clear timing, I was greeted by flashing lights, mlip read swearing and waving arms. I dont understand this? The road was clear the space was big and I endangered no one. Can anyone think of reasons for this?

This is not the first time I have been greeted by this expression.

Has overtaking become a lost art?

 

[cosmicremedy]

Yes i find this too! Whats wrong with people...? I always overtake safely and consider other road users, but do sometimes get an abusive hand gesture...

I just ignore them and go about my business, it's all just a bit silly :roll:

 

[Renaultsport]

Ditto, i find this happens more and more. I think its just becasue they haven't got the balls or common sense to overtake it so they get annoyed when someone else does it.

The other thing that annoys me is if someone is going slow, they may do 35ish in a 60 when its busy the other way... As soon as a gap in the other traffic appears, they speed up to stop you over taking and when its not safe for you to do it, they slow back down again...

There is one fix for that! They should simply catch the bus!

 

[trophy176]

Yeah definately, some nut in a Volvo on Sunday between Peebles and Edinburgh tried to do that. He did get a slight shock when the wee Trophy left his barge for dead.

Whats the point in speeding up?

Jealous as they cant be bothered to press on!!!!

 

[g40steve]

I find on the 'b' roads some drivers vere across to stop you overtaking, :x

 

[trophy176]

Now on B roads I ve had a couple of really good experiences with people putting their hazards on then pulling in.

I have a feeling they must be local residents in villages/small hamlets and respect that their roads are used for enthusiastic driving.

So big up!!

However, vere would not surprise me on todays roads. A few months ago I saw a Golf driver vere in front of a bike when it attempted to overtake. Once again clear road and good conditions.

 

[Johnnytheboy]

I think the speed kills brigade are gradually veering towards the belief that overtaking is inherently evil.

I've had a few :twisted: complaints about overtaking in my work van, and in almost all cases I wasn't even exceeding the speed limit during the manouvre, people just don't like being passed. The best one was some village idiot in a jap 4x4 who pulled out on me from the right when I was doing about 50, and didn't accelerate much, so I just steered around him without changing out of 5th. So he rang work and told my boss I was driving like a maniac. Nice.

Someone on the Safespeed forum claims to have seen a car sticker that said "Overtaking is Queue-jumping" for God's sake.....

My father taught me that the second vehicle in a queue of cars is as much to blame as the first, as their failure to overtake prevents anyone else doing it.

 

[Luke335]

My father taught me that the second vehicle in a queue of cars is as much to blame as the first, as their failure to overtake prevents anyone else doing it.

I hate it when everyone sits on the bumper of the car in front with no intention of passing. You often find that you have to overtake the lot in one go. :evil:

 

[Steve]

My father taught me that the second vehicle in a queue of cars is as much to blame as the first, as their failure to overtake prevents anyone else doing it.

I hate it when everyone sits on the bumper of the car in front with no intention of passing. You often find that you have to overtake the lot in one go. :evil:

This is all very true, a modern condition it seems, 'the lost art of overtaking'. It used to be the way you drove but it is increasingly becoming as anti-social as drink driving in the minds of the brain dead automatons inching along in their wheeled coffins.

A large Mercedes sped up upon my overtake on a short dual-carriageway section (designed for overtaking) coming out of Goodwood. Luckily I was in VTEC and made his luxobarge look like he had the handbrake applied! Fuckers, they should all be cleaned.

 

[Cool Hand Luke]

Yep i agree, it is indeed the 'Lost Art of Overtaking'.

The other thing i hate is when you are stuck behind two or three of these fools doing 45mph on a country road and you cant get the chance to overtake - you then hit a 30mph limit and they proceed to keep trundling through at 45mph! F*cktards!

 

[hoolio]

:lol: at all this, overtook a low loader a little while back, him on one side the river on the other,as we went past could have sworn he got a whole lot closer, Claire very nonchalently turned to me and said 'he tried to run us into the river didn't he'

 

[g40steve]

Like when i'm late for work, Stuck in traffic, i get told 'but you car is supposed to be quick' to which i reply 'i can overtake most cars, it's the seven behind the tractor i have problems with' :lol:

 

[Steve]

All it takes is one fucktard (nice word Luke) to not have the ability or conscious reason to safely pass a slow moving vehicle to make it harder for the next zombie who may have had the gumption, then impossible for you. What I want is Sat-Nav with a live video feed showing you half a mile of the road ahead, so you can overtake a whole convoy on the approach to a blind, cresting bend, nailing the apex then demolishing the straight in one terrific lunge. Oh God, the freedom, just think of it! I would give my left testicle for that. And the right. Who wants kids anyway? 17 years and they'll be another addition to the car park that is Britain's road system.

 

[Cue]

the best for me was last week - i had my dad in the car and I overtook a merc - i think it was a E200. As I passed him he put his foot down to stop me from getting past As I blitzed him my dad started laughing. Good fun

 

[trophy176]

Excellent stories guys.

On my frequent trips along my beloved A68 I often have to duck and dive through queues of traffic in order to simply make progress. But as a few of you have commented upon already I have noticed that zombie drivers do stick to the bumper of the car in front religiously.

Whats the point?

It hinders anyone else trying to make progress. I always leave a gap in case something quicker and with bigger minerals decides to overtake me (usually some form of pelvic rocket).

Is thsi not simply driver etiquette? Or even, more simply, common sense?

 

[ken wilson]

I think its a British thing, some people almost take it as a personal insult to them that you dare to want to go faster

 

[Steve]

The gap you leave should ALWAYS be more than your stopping distance anyway, that's what these mongoloids don't realise, you are perfectly in your rights to overtake safely but they are not in theirs to sit on the arse of the car in front. It's all here;

http://www.highwaycode.gov.uk/09.htm#105

Stopping distances

105: Drive at a speed that will allow you to stop well within the distance you can see to be clear.

You should;

Leave enough space between you and the vehicle in front so that you can pull up safely if it suddenly slows down or stops. The safe rule is never to get closer than the overall stopping distance (see Typical Stopping Distances diagram below).

Allow at least a two-second gap between you and the vehicle in front on roads carrying fast traffic. The gap should be at least doubled on wet roads and increased still further on icy roads.

Remember, large vehicles and motorcycles need a greater distance to stop.

Whereas they are unaware of this part;

http://www.highwaycode.gov.uk/15.htm#139

138: Before overtaking you should make sure;

the road is sufficiently clear ahead
the vehicle behind is not beginning to overtake you
there is a suitable gap in front of the vehicle you plan to overtake.

139: Overtake only when it is safe to do so. You should;

not get too close to the vehicle you intend to overtake
use your mirrors, signal when it is safe to do so, take a quick sideways glance into the blind spot area and then start to move out
not assume that you can simply follow a vehicle ahead which is overtaking; there may only be enough room for one vehicle
move quickly past the vehicle you are overtaking, once you have started to overtake. Allow plenty of room. Move back to the left as soon as you can but do not cut in
take extra care at night and in poor visibility when it is harder to judge speed and distance
give way to oncoming vehicles before passing parked vehicles or other obstructions on your side of the road
only overtake on the left if the vehicle in front is signalling to turn right, and there is room to do so
stay in your lane if traffic is moving slowly in queues. If the queue on your right is moving more slowly than you are, you may pass on the left
give motorcyclists, cyclists and horse riders at least as much room as you would a car when overtaking (see Rules 188, 189 and 191.

Oh and lastly, don't flash me for safely overtaking me you complete turnip, read here;

90: Flashing headlights.

Only flash your headlights to let other road users know that you are there. Do not flash your headlights in an attempt to intimidate other road users. Or to let them know you do not approve of their safe overtaking maneuver just because you are a lifeless turnip without the skill to do so.

 

[trophy176]

It is allowed to over take more than one car if they are not prepared to overtake?

 

[patrickkonig]

Just back from manchester and went over some great A roads, I'm a Londoner so 4th gear was a little strange, but Fook me how good is 3rd gear, it pulls like a nutter and just rockets off, been using my sat-nav to see if the road is straight or is a blind left, what a great toy, boot it and it goes.
See you all at WSR, I'll be in a cowboy hat for some reason, don't ask.

 

[trophy176]

Coolest thing about sat nav, well Audi sat nav, is that the ring comes up and you can zoom right in for clarity!! Be excellent if you could make it a heads up display like on a corvette.