A very close call

[sheridany]

Sunday I was just on the outskirts of Eugene, OR traveling in the right lane on Interstate 5. I saw a vehicle moving onto the on ramp and they were moving fairly quickly so I slowed down to allow them to merge and proceed ahead of me. Once they were in front they decided to brake almost stopping with nothing in front of them and it took every bit of effort to stop to avoid hitting them. They then took off. I was very shocked by the close call and I pulled over as did others. Everyone who saw the incident said it was intentional so that I would hit them so they could pursue damages and file an injury claim. I regret I didn’t have a dash cam for this trip as it’s in the toad that went home with the DW. I never imagined anything like this but it makes some sense. Big shiny motorhome going down the road spells big bucks. Insurance fraud is real. Be careful out there and use a dashcam every time.

 

[Neal]

Wow, sorry to hear that. And yes, if you don't have a dash cam (you being anyone reading this) then you are setting yourself up for trouble. Get one NOW! I have a 1 channel Blackvue in my RV and a 2 channel in my toad. They are invaluable these days and your defense lawyer all in one.

1-channel (front view only)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08DQLLVC6/?tag=rvf01-20

2-channel (for toad so you have front and rear cameras)

Amazon.com

256 GB microSD card:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08GY8NHF2/?tag=rvf01-20

 

[Neal]

Also, there was once a discussion (on another forum) where I brought up people not knowing how to merge onto highways (freeways for lefties). While common sense applies there was also discussion on who's responsibility it is and also that there are laws, supposedly, such as highway traffic is not supposed to slow down as it can cause a conflict for merging traffic. Repeat: common sense applies, but sometimes you have to be a bleep and not be nice and maintain speed and let the oncoming traffic manage their merge.

 

[sanda]

Exactly. Merging traffic does not have the right of way onto the highway. It is up to them to match their speed to that of traffic when merging. The idea is to keep traffic moving and to prevent an accident with multiple vehicles who suddenly have to stop to let merging traffic in. We can't make the world idiot proof no matter how hard we try.

 

[Lab00Rat]

Wow, sorry to hear that. And yes, if you don't have a dash cam (you being anyone reading this) then you are setting yourself up for trouble. Get one NOW! I have a 1 channel Blackvue in my RV and a 2 channel in my toad. They are invaluable these days and your defense lawyer all in one.

1-channel (front view only)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08DQLLVC6/?tag=rvf01-20

2-channel (for toad so you have front and rear cameras)

Amazon.com

256 GB microSD card:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08GY8NHF2/?tag=rvf01-20

We went with this..

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074JT3698/?tag=rvf01-20

and it works well to continuously loop 10 min of video to keep an eye on my coach.
The lens and suction cup are not vertical flush. It does tilt down and point forward to watch the front end of the coach to down the road. I have not had issues with aiming where I wanted to point the unit.

We had a Newmar build a custom 12V placed in the center of the dash next to the front window for this reason, and it's direct tie to the chasse battery. It's always powered, so we can keep it running when parked/camping to watch people coming to our coach from the front.

 

[Neal]

Whichever you choose I highly recommend a 4K camera. Why? So you can have the quality to actually read a license plate when zoomed in. Ever notice local news crime footage from break-ins and wonder why the resolution is so poor? Doesn't help to attempt to record something you need for evidence and the quality sucks. Pay a little more and ensure 4K and a large enough storage card to capture the footage.

 

[DKRITTER]

Wow, sorry to hear that. And yes, if you don't have a dash cam (you being anyone reading this) then you are setting yourself up for trouble. Get one NOW! I have a 1 channel Blackvue in my RV and a 2 channel in my toad. They are invaluable these days and your defense lawyer all in one.

1-channel (front view only)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08DQLLVC6/?tag=rvf01-20

2-channel (for toad so you have front and rear cameras)

Amazon.com

256 GB microSD card:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08GY8NHF2/?tag=rvf01-20

How long on the 1 channel does it take to eat up the 256gb SD card?

 

[Neal]

How long on the 1 channel does it take to eat up the 256gb SD card?

I don't know but it deletes old files as new ones are created if insufficient space. Blackvue's site may have that info.

 

[Jim]

What kind of idiot comes up with a plan to jump in front of 25 tons of rolling steel and slam on their breaks? Alcohol just had to be involved.

 

[Bob K4TAX]

I'd say just more of what is taking place in this country. It is so sad to see the demoralization of society as it is today.

 

[MapNerd]

We can't make the world idiot proof no matter how hard we try.

Okay, but what if we just took down all the warning labels and signs down for a year or so and just let things work themselves out.

I am glad you are okay @sheridany. Good on you for being on point. I myself might not have been as it sounds like you had to react extremely fast.

sometimes you have to be a bleep and not be nice and maintain speed and let the oncoming traffic manage their merge.

Wait…we’re only supposed to do that sometimes? Oh man, I always thought everyone was telling me I was a #1 driver, I’m not sure sure anymore..

 

[DKRITTER]

What kind of idiot comes up with a plan to jump in front of 25 tons of rolling steel and slam on their breaks? Alcohol just had to be involved.

The world is rife with them. 2 weeks ago coming home on I-20 on the south side of Dallas. Some idiot in a Honda pulls in-front of me from the left lane then proceeds to take the exit across 4 lanes.

Remember you can't fix stupid.

 

[Bob K4TAX]

The world is rife with them. 2 weeks ago coming home on I-20 on the south side of Dallas. Some idiot in a Honda pulls in-front of me from the left lane then proceeds to take the exit across 4 lanes.

Remember you can't fix stupid.

Sure one can. It is math issue. One big truck goes over one little truck, once!

 

[sheridany]

While common sense applies there was also discussion on who's responsibility it is and also that there are laws, supposedly, such as highway traffic is not supposed to slow down as it can cause a conflict for merging traffic. Repeat: common sense applies, but sometimes you have to be a bleep and not be nice and maintain speed and let the oncoming traffic manage their merge.

I had another experienced Prevost owner who was a truck driver in his previous life give me a lot of education when I first got behind the wheel. If the truckers can move over to the next lane, they do traffic and laws permitting. If I can't get over I will ease off the gas and give them some room to merge in ahead or stay the course and let them merge in behind me. It really depends on the actual situation and like @Neal says common sense applies. I would guess 9 out of 10 times, there is adequate time and room to move over if warranted.

Out of curiosity, I looked up Oregon law. The driver was in violation but it always comes down to the proof. Your word against theirs and hopefully witnesses that can clearly articulate what they saw.

(1)​

A person commits the offense of failure of a merging driver to yield the right of way if the person is operating a vehicle that is entering a freeway or other arterial highway where an acceleration or merging lane is provided for the operator’s use and the operator does not look out for and give right of way to vehicles on the freeway or other arterial highway.

(2)​

The offense described in this section, failure of a merging driver to yield the right of way, is a Class B traffic violation. [1983 c.338 §613; 1995 c.383 §55]

 

[DKRITTER]

Sure one can. It is math issue. One big truck goes over one little truck, once!

I understand where your coming from but I think the original point is to vigilant and aware of your surrounding. Just deciding to take out a smaller... with your bigger... would most likely create a situational issue beyond belief.

 

[gibsito]

I've been driving with dash cams in my truck camper and car for years. I have an "idiotic driver" collection that I just might put on Youtube one of these days. But I got them mostly for my own protection in case of an accident. Haven't had to do that yet, but it's nice to know the video is there if I need it. I have the kind that straps to your rear view mirror. They've been working well for a year or two now. I especially like it in the truck camper since before that if I looked in my rear view mirror I just saw the front of the camper.

 

[Rich W.]

I dont know about other brands, but one nice thing about the Garmin (since a coach doesn't have a rear view mirror on the center of the windshield) is that you can set it for high, low, left, center, or right placement. So I have mine on the bottom left corner of the dash and its a wide enough angle to get everything pertinent.

 

["EZ"]

I drive 40,000 miles a year with my job making sales calls all over the Southeast. I'm here to tell you it doesn't matter what you're driving there is a HUGE portion of the population that just don't know how to merge!! It's one of my biggest pet peeves. I see it every day.