Hello ambulance

[p.dath]

I had my first "things that make you go hmmm" moment for the first time in a while the other day.

I was coming home on the bike the other day and came around a corner. I was confronted with double yellow lines down the centre of the road, a car on one side, and an ambulance in the other lane - my lane - coming straight towards me (as in head on). No siren, but lights ablazing.

The car moved over a bit further and slowed down. That allowed the ambulance to move over a bit, and fortunately, I moved right over in my lane, and we all went passed each other.


Not an experience I care to repeat. And from observing the ambulance I'm pretty sure he'd be keen not to repeat it again either.


But on the plus side, at least I would have had a first responder immediately available (if he managed to walk away).


What "hmmm" moment have you had?

[slofox]

What "hmmm" moment have you had?

There was one yesterday when I was riding Maungatautari Road. Half way round a 45k corner there was a large patch of new seal complete with a thick layer of loose blue chip and of course, totally devoid of signage. Not visible on approach into the corner.

Less of a "Hmmmm" moment than a "TWOING!" moment...I actually rang the local body today and mentioned that a sign or a sweep might be a good idea.

[MSTRS:Me]

Last night, about 6.45. Full dark. HW 50. On a shortish straight about 100 metres from a righthander.
Cop car mid 3-point turn, right across my lane. At least he saw my light/s and waited for me to cross the centreline to 'overtake' him. Anxious looks in the mirrors - did he want me to stop? - I could have been a 'little' over the 4/9kph tolerance - but relief as he finished his turn and fucked off in the other direction.
I don't trust those U-turning cops. Not sure why...

[Zedder]

I was riding with a couple of mates down the Carpentaria Highway in Aussie a while back.

It was late in the afternoon, I was in the lead and came around a sharpish corner to see two huge water buffaloes lying across the road because the damn things tend to sleep on the roads at night for warmth. Obviously these guys liked to pick their spot early.

Anyway, I managed to stop about 5 metres away from them which was good because they are notoriously bad tempered. My mates came up and we had a quick conference which resulted in us going off-road dodging termite mounds etc (and looking over our shoulders) to avoid annoying the buffs. The locals thought it was hilarious when we told them about it!

[G4L4XY]

Yup I was heading down to Thames going down the old road through waitakaruru, was following a rental car at a good distance and we come around a corner and a cop (oncoming) is passing a car but a bit on our side of the road, the car in front of me slows down and naturally he slows down faster than me, im hard on my front brakes waiting for me to insert myself through the rear of their car or possibly the guy behind me squashing me.

Bit of dodgy passing really, but hey it's just one of those moments

[Big Dave]

I crashed 3mtrs from a fully crewed Fire Engine once. Emergency services were 'very' quick to respond.

[Latte]

Collecting the mail from a house across the road from kingseat (on "the corner" if you know it) a fire engine going full tit loses control then over corrects to avoid wiping me out, ends up upside down in the ditch back on the inside of the corner. Felt like i could reach out and touch as it swung past.

[SMOKEU]

Braking for a tight corner up the Port Hills one day, when I locked the front wheel on a patch of gravel. I ended up going off the road and pretty damn close to falling off a steep cliff. I managed to keep the bike rubber side down, but only just.

[Nova.]

Not sure if this counts seeing as its not bike related buuuuut,
was working on a hill in the digger one day and the battery started smoking, that was okay but i thought i should get a fire extinguisher, not thinking i chucked it under the seat. as i was going down a road i had cut into the side of the hill, steep cliff on one side, hill on the other, it rolled under the track leavers leaving me wondering why the fuck i was heading towards the cliff. pulled the track levers back as hard as i could and thank god it popped out, none the less still had my ass hole quivering.

[mossy1200]

Getting scones out of the oven tonight I didn't realise the oven mitt was slightly wet and it turned to steam and burnt my fingers. I should have checked the condition of my PPE before using it.

[1billyboy]

Getting scones out of the oven tonight I didn't realise the oven mitt was slightly wet and it turned to steam and burnt my fingers. I should have checked the condition of my PPE before using it.

Yes. Glasses, Earmuffs, Hard hat, Steelcap boots.

[nzspokes]

I was riding my mountain bike back to kumeu after a forest ride. Going fairly quickly down a hill. A car pulled out from a side road. I went through the drivers window. It was closed at the time. The most disturbing thing was the squirting blood out of my arm. I felt pretty bad pretty quickly. The driver was trying to get out before a bus that was coming.

That bus had air force medics in that had been at Riverhead doing some training.

I got looked after good.

[SMOKEU]

Yes. Glasses, Earmuffs, Hard hat, Steelcap boots.

You forgot the high viz vest.

[caspernz]

an ambulance in my lane coming straight towards me

Yeah, about a year ago I had one of these moments on the northern side of Paraparaumu, ambo with lights ablaze coming around fully in my lane around the blind bend just before the Caltex servo. Around midnight, the ambo was coming around the outside of the blind bend alongside a truck. Luckily the oncoming truck moved close to the kerb, I drifted wide and the ambo squeezed thru the gap. Oh did I mention I drive petrol tankers for a living?

Must be something in the water in Paraparaumu as a couple or so years ago a fire engine pulled out of Kapiti Rd onto SH1 with lights, no sirens, to attend a pedestrian fatal on the railway line just south of town. No slowing down as he darted into the intersection in front of 35,000 litres of fuel on a green light...me thinks he re-thought his priorities at rushing to an accident where the victim was dead anyway...oh I managed to stop, but I think he got a smack on the head from one of his colleagues for his eagerness to start a bonfire sized BBQ

It's situations like this where the 'professional' part of being a driver is tested. I've got no beef with the emergency services, but can you imagine the footage from the onboard camera?

On the bike it's the weird and wonderful foreign objects that litter the road, usually on tight bends in the rain...that test my nerve and skill.

[slofox]

They say that accidents tend to happen close to home. This one didn't happen at all but it tried to.

Rode the lower Coromandel loop yesterday. Tron, Te Aroha, Paeroa, Kopu. Over the hill and turn south to Whangamata. Thence to Waihi, Paeroa and back home. Some 300km in all of interesting twisty roads. All without any incident at all. Until close to home.

Nearly home, there's a light controlled intersection. Three lanes where I am; a right turner and two to go straight through. On the left is a slip road for left turns. I'm in the LH straight through road, puttering up to the lights (red). Some dude in the lane to my right (straight through lane) decides that, after all, he really wants to turn left. So without further ado, he hauls out of his lane and dives for the slip road. Just as I come up beside him.

Fortunately I had noticed movement from him, had seen that he wasn't using his wing mirror so was primed for something stupid to happen. Close, but not close enough to give the adrenalin rush. A quick blast on the Stebel horn woke him up and he slammed on the brakes.

Gave him the glare from behind the dark visor and muttered a few choice phrases.

Makes ya wonder sometimes.