[Vwdiesel] Poor guy in front of me-ran over a 500 lbs tractor weight

[Doyt W. Echelberger]

Yeah Travis, great story.  Paying attention is good advice and all you can 
do sometimes. I had a crappy thing happen in front of me once....it 
probably ended as bad or worse than  what you describe. But I'll never 
know...I just kept driving because stopping would have gotten someone (me?) 
killed, or lots of people.

I was numbly cruising along about 50 on a four lane inner-belt in 5 o'clock 
traffic when the car in front of me (four car lengths) dropped its ENTIRE 
exhaust system, which came bouncing back toward me like a giant steel 
python that had eaten a pig (the muffler). It looked like it was alive, 
writhing and twisting and bouncing and skidding. It moved along at 50 
behind it's former owner because it had momentum, and it skidded and threw 
sparks and seemed to be looking around uncertainly for something to attack.

It all happened in about four seconds, but time slowed down and seemed 
like....... much longer.  I had no choices except to grip the wheel and let 
it all happen........ the lesser of all the available evils. Slam on the 
brakes and get rear-ended? No.....Sideswipe the cars on either side of 
me?.....bad idea. Ignite the rocket jets and fly over it? .....On Prancer, 
on Vixen.....

The steel python laid down flat and skidded sideways just as it encountered 
my front wheels.  Both wheels hit at the same time and the muffler-pig 
passed under the center of my car. All I heard and felt was a 
WHUMP-WHUMP  and everything just went on as if nothing had happened. 
(Inspection after the trip showed no cut tires, bent wheels, dented 
underbody, scratched paint.....nothing.) The snake let me pass. Probably 
smelled the diesel and wanted none of it.

Unlike Travis, I'll never know what happened behind me as the next hundred 
cars and trucks driving home from work unexpectedly slammed into that same 
steel python. But just like Travis....luck was with me. I'd like to hear 
the  story from the viewpoint of the steel python.....or the guys behind 
me......and find out how it all ended.

Doyt Echelberger
 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
At 09:36 PM 12/2/2011, Travis wrote:

>So coming into town I see the car just in front of me ......kind
>of jerk to a stop. I was the next car in line ...drove over a tractor weight.

....snip......That gal is luck to not be sued or have hurt or totaled a 
car. The bolts
>  sticking out were 8.5 inches high and about 2.5 feet wide. That was
>just in front of me is the scary part.
>
>I don't think my car would have made it with the bolts sticking out.
>But I thought I would post this as crappy things can happen so pay
>attention to the things in front of you.