Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Vacation Notes

OK, last week was spent vacationing (to my extreme delight) with my wife and kids and I'd have to say it was darned near perfect. Weather, travel, lodging, events, eats, etc., all smoothly flowing and delightful.

Oh, except for automobile traveling which revealed some things I'd rather not have seen...

You guessed it - A Compendium of Car Travel Beefs...

Chief Beef #1. (and I DO mean the BIG #1 on the list) - On any multiple-laned roadway, please note (especially those from Ohio for some reason) that the leftmost lane is for passing ONLY. I know this is no uncommon bitch, but THE DAMNED RULE IS: S-T-A-Y T-O T-H-E F * - I-N-G RIGHT LANE until (and ONLY until) you MUST pass someone. Please note that this is quite different than "I will stay in the left lane because my cruise control is set 0.8 mph faster than the car to my right. I will move back over to the right when there is at least 100 yards of gap to get over - I don't care how much faster you are going when you encounter me in the leftmost lane."

At my peak frustration, (somewhere only a scant 3 hours and 12 minutes into the 17 hours of driving) I had visions of the great 80s arcade game Spyhunter, and equipping my vehicle thusly so as to dispatch of these road-offending and discourteous nitwits. Again, it's very simple - stay to the RIGHT until and only until you encounter and must pass a slower vehicle. You are not entitled to move to the left when there is traffic in those lanes. You will wait until such time as that traffic has cleared. This rule is applied to each and every successive move to the left and the Rule will also have you return to the right as the pass is complete. How about just stay in the right lane? That should be easy enough.

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