Reply to "Proposed New Forum - Drving Tips & Techniques"

I'll offer up a driving tip/technique to get started:

TIP No. 1:

When going from lock to lock with the steering wheel in a very fast situation, let go of the steering wheel and let it slide through your hands, that is, let the caster built into the front steering geometry turn the front wheels straight again, and then start cranking to opposite lock.

Example:

I was going into a gradual left turn on the freeway and saw a bunch of cars already crashed on the side of the road. It had just started snowing that Thanksgiving weekend. I slowed to 40 mph, a speed I thought was conservative.

As it turned out, the apex of the turn was a "bridge" for a railroad track underneath. What I didn't realize was that the "bridge" was getting hit with sub-freezing temperatures from both the top and bottom of the "road" and had thus "iced over", just the "bridge" part of the turn at the apex.

Things were going well until I hit the "bridge" (unnoticable except for the concrete barriers on the sides). My truck (no not my Pantera) wanted to go straight, so it was hard left with the steering wheel. Well, as I avoided the concrete outer wall, the "bridge" came to an end. Now, my vehicle jerked left, as the front tires caught on the "dry" pavement. Realizing I could not possibly 'correct' fast enough, I let the grip on the wheel loose and used the front caster to go back to the straight position on the steering wheel AS FAST AS POSSIBLE, then when that occurred, I cranked hard to the right with the steering wheel as fast as possible. I saved a crash. 40 mph was way too fast, and I barely had time to negotiate with all my reflexes, and saved an expensive ordeal. I came very close to hitting both outer and inner concrete barriers across both of the two lanes of North-Bound traffic on I-25.

As I was driving away, at what again seemed like a slow 40 mph, I noticed in my rear view mirror a dozen admiring and astonished on-lookers, who were amazed and perhaps a little jealous, that I accomplished what they wished they had accomplished. Their cars were "toast" on the shoulders and median of that curve, in the light frost of snow that was not even covering the ground. The speed limit was 70 mph.

I saw a driver of an F-1 car probably use the same technique at the 1982 Gran-Prix in Long Beach, CA. He avoided hitting the concrete barriers at the end of the 1st long straight-a-way, going from Ocean Blvd to make a right hand turn down Pine St. Bet he used "my" technique! 360 degree spin and never hit the concrete barriers. I still remember that! Wow!! Tell me some of your driving techniques, and maybe we'll all learn something we may need to know.

We're all happy to learn how to drive better on this Forum, aren't we?