Titanic sized mistakes with sinking results

After reading an article about the Titanic disaster, I realized that the Captain had made some mistakes that led to the ships demise. I then thought about the mistakes we make while driving are no different. The Captain, who was hailed as being the best at cruise navigation type vessels, simply let many elements build up and then was overwhelmed. Some of the mistakes include; not heeding the warnings about the conditions, putting too much faith in his own ability, trusting the ship builders integrity of the ship, not heeding the information given by the passengers, and not leaving himself an out. These are just of few of the things on a long list of mistakes.
"Driving" the Titanic, is nothing like driving a car, obviously! However, you as a driver are the responsible "captain" of your "ship." If you prepare for EVERY trip, no matter how far and heed warnings about conditions, your own driving skills, passengers warnings or their distractions, and remember cars are not indestructible vessels, your driving experience will be much more successful than that of the Titanic.
As drivers we can become complacent with routine. We tend to drive by feel and familiarity, rather than with our eyes wide open and moving. In our courses we teach a technique used by truckers and race car drivers called a 'running commentary'. This is, saying out loud, what you observe while driving, and you can't be detailed enough. You should not leave out anything! not the color of a persons hair, not the # of times a light blinks, not the license plate of a vehicle, absolutely include EVERY possible detail. This technique will improve your awareness and help you to drive with a purpose. You can even insist that your riders do the same and make it a family affair. Most of the students who have attended one of our courses, usually get back to us and tell us that they have seen things they never knew where on their daily commute. This is the result we hope for. We know then, we have improved a drivers awareness and that results in a safer driver overall.
The Captain of the Titanic could have benefited from this. If he had been employing this technique maybe he would have seen that iceberg! But then we wouldn't know Leonardo Dicaprio or Celine Dione. The survivors and affected families wished he had been MORE AWARE.

Thanks for reading and Talk to yourself about your driving.

They defend these actions?

The growing interest in motorcycles with the current economy is understandable.
The growing culture of the Sport Bike is acceptable.
The increasing use of the highways for the sport bike "show-off" is INSANE!

As an instructor of safe driving and with our focus on awareness. I find it appropriate to WARN YOU about the sport bike Bozo, who rides his two-wheel "rocket", on one wheel down rush hour highways. That's right rush hour highways. These types are usually 17-30 year old males, who defend their actions, regardless of the obvious hazard. (women are integrating into this also) Recently, on a busy Texas metro freeway, one of these "dudes" caused a fatality accident and never knew it. He was traveling at an estimated 120 mph+, weaving through traffic, when one of his sudden lane changes caused a chain reaction collision of 5 vehicles. This resulted in one teen driver being killed. Ironic maybe, sad definitely.
Besides the speed factor of these sport bikes, the maneuverability and relatively reasonable price are the attractant. The owner can quickly become socially accepted and then learn the "art" of sport bike from any parents worst nightmare. These young people, fueled by NO FEAR, learn some impressive tricks on these things and before you know it they are out on some street trying them out. Search You Tube for these guys and you'll spend most of your day viewing some flicks that will have you scratching your head. Now I love a good exhibition of speed and great handling, however, I prefer it to be in the right venue, NOT on the highway I share with them.

I recently had a chance to talk with a few young men in this culture and hear them actually speak positively about what they do. I asked all of them (7) if they thought what they did was safe. All said "sure." One of them stated, that he felt he had better control of his bike on one wheel, than most car drivers have on 4! OK?! As the discussion continued, I got the vibe, these guys feel like the bikes were made for road racing so, why not do what they do on the road? I asked them "What about the other people on the freeway?" They said they are aware of them, but since they have the size advantage to keep moving between lanes and on shoulders that they should have the right to keep moving forward. Huh?! So, again they find a way to justify themselves. When I asked them if they had any friends die while riding one, 5 of the 7 said yes and 1 said his brother had been killed while performing a difficult rear wheel "wheelie" in traffic. Ya think?!

Neighbors, these kind of people are out sharing the roads with us. It has become apparent, that if we want to avoid an incident with one of these "YAHOO's", we are going to have be fully involved in our driving task. There will no room distraction or bad judgment. As much as I understand where they are coming from, I still can NOT defend their actions.

Please commute with this new information fresh on your minds. If you see these guys, usually traveling in "packs", please adjust your driving and hope they do not involve you in one of their "tricks"

Thanks for reading and keep your eyes moving!

Rain drops can flip you on your lid.....

Well, that's not exactly the words to that tune, but I found it amusing. In the area of the country where we are, it has been raining for the last 5 days, about an inch a day. As I traveled about, I noticed the increasing number of vehicles involved in wet road incidents. Surprisingly, many of these involved roll- overs. So I believe I will use this weeks blog to warn you all AGAIN about "Slippery When Wet". Roads are the most slippery in the first 20-30 minutes of the rain contacting the surface. This is because the oil and other petroleum products that have been deposited on the roadway will rise to the top and create a layer of nothing but SLICK! In contrast, the roads become even more dangerous if the rain continues for a long period (over a 2-3hr span) or is heavy on concentrated
areas. This causes water to pool or form a layer that gets between your tires and the road surface, making it difficult for your tires to perform properly, therefore, causing your vehicle to "hydroplane". Hydroplaning causes loss of control and rarely ends with a smooth finish. Large vehicles are not immune to this. An 18 wheeler weighing 80,oo0 lbs can hydroplane. The proper way to help gain control is #1 reduce speed and #2 turn into the skid. This technique is not guaranteed, however, it is worth the attempt. The most common mistake made when driving on wet surfaces, is drivers fail to slow down for the conditions. Reducing speed can help reduce the risk of hydroplaning and also allows the driver to "feel" the road better. When you can feel the road, you become more of aware of the amount of water on the surface can adjust driving accordingly. The next mistake drivers make, is not allowing for the increased braking distance.
Wet surfaces make braking more difficult and drivers should increase following distances by 1 car length and should prepare earlier for stop lights and exiting freeways. Becoming a more aware driver can keep you on the highway during inclement weather. Everyday I see drivers making poor choices in bad conditions and can almost point out the next driver to be involved in an incident. The picture above is of a SMART car. As you can see, this is probably the smartest car ever. Letting someone else do the driving, talk about saving fuel! Even the smartest car is only as intelligent as the person behind the wheel. Harmony on the Highways and Trucking 101.biz want to remind you that becoming more aware of your highway surroundings and driving within your own limits is the smartest thing you can do. Check out the following link about the vanishing vehicles and drop us an E with your comments, it is the subject of a future post and your feedback is important.

Thanks for reading and Please be courteous to your commuting com padres.
Ron Bakken

When left is right and right is wrong.

This week, in the column, I would like to address Big Trucks and cars. I would like to remind you that large vehicles are plagued with "Blind Spots". These are the areas around the vehicle that the driver CAN NOT see by direct sight or with the mirrors. Most commonly, these areas are on the right side of the vehicle. However, they are also on the left and definitely to the rear.
It would be a safe practice to keep these areas clear and not hang out in the blind spots. The best idea is to keep the driver visually in your eye contact anytime you are driving around a large vehicle. I would recommend a practice, of passing a large vehicle called "Take 3",
which simply improves your chances of a safe pass. The maneuver is simple and goes like this: Upon approaching a large vehicle and deciding to pass, begin the pass at least one truck length behind the target vehicle, pass with a purpose. I use the phrase, "pass like Petty", in the courses. NEVER pass with the cruise control set! Get clear of the target, as quickly, as is safe to do so. Continue past the target for an additional truck length and then begin to merge safely back into the right lane. In short, "take 3" means execute a pass, as if, you are passing 3 trucks instead of the one! I would also recommend leaving large vehicles an "out" at all times. Consider, if the vehicle had to make an evasive move, where could they go? Are you hindering the vehicle from avoiding an incident, or are you setting yourself up to be involved in the collision? There is a sign that some trucks display, letting others know that the left side is the passing side and the right is SUICIDE! This is very true. There should never be a reason to pass a big truck on the right. If the situation does arise, PLEASE DO SO WITH CAUTION.
Forward thinking is key for both drivers of autos and trucks to coexist safely.

Large vehicles, must maneuver in such ways, as to allow for weight, height, length and overall size of the cargo, to be stopped, turned or negotiate obstacles. You see the signs all the time, on the rear of the trailers, that warn of the trucks need to make a wide right turn. In some cases, it is necessary, to do the same for a left turn. We mentioned earlier, that it is NOT wise to hang out in a trucks blind spot. Big trucks and other large vehicles are effected by numerous elements such as, weather, road conditions, drivers skill level, other traffic, drivers physical or mental state and many others. Traveling next to a large vehicle puts you at a greater risk for involvement in an incident. Did you know, that it has been proven, a blowout from a semi-truck could cause death to a near by traveler? (MYTHBUSTERS episode) That's right! DECAPITATION! (ouch!). The link also describes the other idiotic stuff folks believe to be good ideas around big trucks. Look, if Adam and Jamie says it's nuts, Then TAKE HEED!
Big trucks are effected drastically by wind. They may turn over in high winds, even if fully loaded. Trucks that travel in ruts of highways or veer to a shoulder, could suddenly loose control.

So, if you still desire to travel next to big truck or large vehicle, you have been warned, AGAIN!
Harmony on the Highways teaches these dangers and ways to improve your habits for sharing the road. We are committed to safer highways. Our goal is to reduce the car/truck incidents and bring a more caring motorist to the highways.