I Got Into A Wreck Tonight

I made it into Detroit tonight around midnight local time. There was almost no traffic in the city at all. Perfect.

It turned out the directions I was given were not good at all. I drove around for about 30 minutes trying to figure out how to get to the loading/unloading area of this civic center. I was going down one street that became very obvious was not the one I wanted, and I decided that I need to back track. I saw a good place to make a u-turn, hit my signal, double checked what was behind me because there was a ramp right there where traffic could be coming down onto the street. Everything was clear so I started to make my left turn.

Suddenly a white pick up truck came flying around me on my, you guessed it, left side. He was really moving, but not fast enough to avoid hitting my left front corner as I was already half way into the turn. It almost tore my bumper off, damaged the fender, tore off the chrome work around the headlights on that side, and pretty much scared the shit out of me. Just what I need at half past midnight.

Luckily nobody was injured. It was obvious to the guy that he had seriously screwed up. I called 911 and waited over 30 minutes for a cop car to finally show up. I walked the cop around showing him where the impact happened, which was easy as my chrome was still laying there, and then showed him the damage to my truck.

Once he saw how the bumper was pulled out instead of pushed in it was obvious to him what had happened. If I had hit the pick up my bumper would have been pushed in, not pulled out.

The cops did their report and ticketed the dummy who hit me.

Now I have to go through the hassle of having my bumper replaced and fender repaired all over again.

When I called "R" to report the accident while waiting for the cops he laughed and said "You have a dark cloud following you around."

No shit.

It's now 2:00am. I need to get some sleep if I can now. I have to be up in less than 6 hours to deliver this load. What a way to end your day.

But at least the cop gave me proper directions to this place.
4,077 views 24 replies
Reply #1 Top
Well at least you weren't hurt but it definately seems like an aggravation you didn't need. Hopefully, your luck will change.
Reply #2 Top
Glad you and the bloody idiot in the pickup weren't hurt (though I bet the idiot's pocket will be smarting after this).
Reply #3 Top
That would have been a good moment for the video blogging.

Reply #4 Top
When I had my accident, the police where there within 5 minutes!  A tale of 2 cities.
Reply #5 Top
Glad you weren't hurt, and also glad the police handed the ticket for the accident to the right person.
Reply #6 Top
Thanks folks. After unloading at the civic center this morning I wrapped a chain around the bumper and used a forklift to pull it back so that it looks a little better and isn't sticking out 3 feet in front of the truck.

This is the second time this year someone has tried to take the bumper off my truck. The boss was joking around when I talked to him this morning and said that if it happens again he's going to buy me a cab over.

I told him to please not do that, my back is bad enough already.
Reply #7 Top
Glad to hear that you weren't hurt. The title had me worried--and thinking "poor Mason, not something else!"

Reply #8 Top

Glad to hear that you weren't hurt. The title had me worried--and thinking "poor Mason, not something else!"




Yeah, like I needed something else to go wrong.

I'm waiting for dispatch to call me back with the details for my reload back to Wisconsin. I already told them that I would load and then was going to find some place to take a nap. I'm running on about 3 hours sleep and am starting to feel it.
Reply #9 Top

Geez!!  Good thing you're an experienced trucker! 

What a dope the other dude was....btw how young was he??  just kinda curious.

We had a 70 vehicle pile-up out on one of the highways,  southern MN. I think.  Darn snow yesterday and then cold temps. froze it all up,   made it just ripe for accidents.  Glad you weren't in THAT one,  had pedestrians and people in the vehicles injured.

Hope it gets better soon for ya

Reply #10 Top

Geez!!  Good thing you're an experienced trucker! 


What a dope the other dude was....btw how young was he??  just kinda curious.


We had a 70 vehicle pile-up out on one of the highways,  southern MN. I think.  Darn snow yesterday and then cold temps. froze it all up,   made it just ripe for accidents.  Glad you weren't in THAT one,  had pedestrians and people in the vehicles injured.


Hope it gets better soon for ya




I'd guess he was in his 40s. Old enough to know better.

There were a lot of wrecks and spin outs in Wisconsin yesterday. I made it through all of that really dangerous weather and road conditions only to get clobbered by an idiot in a pick up.
Reply #11 Top

Glad the accident was relatively minor.

And welcome to Detroit, you're about a 40 minute drive or so from JU HQ 

Reply #13 Top
I guess when you say your day is gonna be crappy you ain't lying.

I'm glad it wasn't worse. Hope today is better.
Reply #14 Top
I'm glad you're ok. Ditto what Shades said.

You're a magnet for trouble.
Reply #15 Top

try driving with those idiots during rush hour!

Detroit- home to the idiot drivers.

Reply #16 Top

Glad the accident was relatively minor.


And welcome to Detroit, you're about a 40 minute drive or so from JU HQ 




Thanks. I just drove past you guys a little while ago. I'm taking a short break in Ann Arbor before continuing on my way.
Reply #17 Top

Thank heavens you're ok!


Thanks Just very tired at this point. I do hate missing my sleep


I guess when you say your day is gonna be crappy you ain't lying.

I'm glad it wasn't worse. Hope today is better.


Thanks. Some days are just not worth getting out of bed for.


I'm glad you're ok. Ditto what Shades said.

You're a magnet for trouble.


Yeah, Murphy hates me. The feeling is mutual.


try driving with those idiots during rush hour!


Detroit- home to the idiot drivers.




I have, and did so this morning. Detroit is one of my least favorite places to drive in this country. Well, it's in the top five anyway.

Reply #19 Top
Detroit- home to the idiot drivers.

Basic Rules for Driving in Metro Detroit

1.A right lane construction closure is just a game to see how many people can cut in line by passing you on the right as you sit in the left lane waiting for the same jerks to squeeze their way back in before hitting the orange construction barrels.
2.Turn signals are clues as to your next move. A real Detroit driver never uses them.
3.Under no circumstances should you leave a safe distance between you and the car in front of you or the space will be filled by someone else putting you in an even more dangerous situation.
4.Crossing two or more lanes in a single lane change is considered going with the flow.
5.The faster you drive through a red light, the smaller the chance you have of getting hit.
6.Never get in the way of an older car that needs extensive body work. Michigan is a no-fault insurance state and the other guy doesn't have anything to lose.
7.Braking is to be done as hard and late as possible to insure that your ABS kicks in giving a nice relaxing foot massage as the brake pedal pulsates. For those without ABS, it's a chance to stretch your legs.
8.Construction signs tell you about road closures immediately after you pass the last exit before the traffic begins to back up.
9.The new electronic traffic warning system signs are not there to provide useful information. They are only there to make Detroit look high-tech and to distract you from seeing the Troy police car parked in the median.
10.Never pass on the left when you can pass on the right. It's a good way to scare people entering the highway.
11.Speed limits are arbitrary figures, given only as suggestions and apparently not enforceable in the metro area during rush hour.
12.Just because you're in the left lane and have no room to speed up or move over doesn't mean that a Detroit driver flashing their high beams behind you doesn't think he can go faster in your spot.
13.Please remember that there is no such thing as a shortcut during rush hour traffic in Detroit.
14.Always slow down and rubberneck when you see an accident or even someone changing a tire.
15.Throwing litter on the roads adds variety to the landscape, keeps the existing litter from getting lonely and gives Adopt-A-Highway crews something to clean up.
16.Everybody thinks their vehicle is better than yours, especially pickup truck drivers with stickers of Calvin peeing on a Ford, Dodge or Chevy logo.
17.Learn to swerve abruptly. Detroit is the home of high-speed slalom driving thanks to the road commission, who puts potholes in key locations to test drivers' reflexes and keep them on their toes.
18.It is traditional in Detroit to honk your horn at cars that don't move the instant the light changes.
19.Seeking eye contact with another driver revokes your right of way.
20.Never take a green light at face value. Always look right and left before proceeding.
21.Heavy snow, ice, fog, and rain are no reasons to change any of the previously listed rules. These weather conditions are God's way ensuring a natural selection process for body shops, junk yards, and new vehicle sales. After all, this is the Motor City and we do have our priorities.
22.Remember that the goal of every Detroit driver is to get there first, by whatever means necessary.
23.Real Detroit women drivers can put on pantyhose and apply eye makeup at seventy-five miles per hour in bumper-to-bumper traffic.
24.Real Detroit men drivers can remove pantyhose and a bra at seventy-five miles per hour in bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Reply #20 Top
(Citizen)uDigItTheMostApril 12, 2007 16:10:06Reply


bwahahahahahahahah......... great laughs... thanx

Glad you were not hurt mason..
hate to say this but if not for shiddy luck recently you would have no luck at all.
Reply #21 Top
15.Throwing litter on the roads adds variety to the landscape, keeps the existing litter from getting lonely and gives Adopt-A-Highway crews something to clean up.


I've done that before. I mean be a part of a adopt-a-highway crew. One thing about it I learned from doing that -I'VE NEVER LITTERED AGAIN!     
Reply #22 Top
Oh Mason, my heart dropped when I saw the title. I immediately thought of you without even knowing you had written it. I was worried about you and your back. I'm glad that you're ok. Good ol' Deeeetroit. I went to WSU there for six years. Used ta drive 75 and the lodge (10) ever weekday. Ugh. I got pretty good at it though it didn't seem like such a big deal. Of course I was a stupid kid and didn't know how bad it really was.

I would cut through some of the worst areas to get around construction - which was nonstop for the entire six years.

One time a hit a 4x4 piece of wood that was laying in the road and lost two hubcaps. After class I acually drove back around and picked them up - running across the lanes of traffic to the center median. One guy stopped - I told him to leave me alone. Stupid kids - Stupid me.

Another time I had a flat tire and pulled into an empty parking lot to change it. The tire iron was my best friend. It's a hard choice of whether to wait for AAA or just hurry up and change it so you can get the heck out of the area.

Basic Rules for Driving in Metro Detroit

uDigItTheMost, you've nailed it exactly. I saw one guy run into an orange barrel. Pretty intersting, but not when you're beind them in the next lane over.

And when I used to drive through the bad neighborhoods I never ever stopped for a stop sign or red light. They were really only yield signs. Slow down, look back (to make sure no ones following you). Look left, then right. Make sure there's no cop around (as if they'd care) then jamb the gas and keep going.

Reply #23 Top
55 feet and 40 tons vs 10 feet and 2 tons...you win! Glad you are ok .
Reply #24 Top

glad your okay. I always hate hearing about wrecks.


Thanks.


Detroit- home to the idiot drivers.

Basic Rules for Driving in Metro Detroit


This wouldn't be funny if it weren't so true.



(Citizen)uDigItTheMostApril 12, 2007 16:10:06Reply


Glad you were not hurt mason..


Thanks.

hate to say this but if not for shiddy luck recently you would have no luck at all.

Tell me about it.


Oh Mason, my heart dropped when I saw the title. I immediately thought of you without even knowing you had written it. I was worried about you and your back. I'm glad that you're ok. Good ol' Deeeetroit. I went to WSU there for six years. Used ta drive 75 and the lodge (10) ever weekday. Ugh. I got pretty good at it though it didn't seem like such a big deal. Of course I was a stupid kid and didn't know how bad it really was.

I would cut through some of the worst areas to get around construction - which was nonstop for the entire six years.

One time a hit a 4x4 piece of wood that was laying in the road and lost two hubcaps. After class I acually drove back around and picked them up - running across the lanes of traffic to the center median. One guy stopped - I told him to leave me alone. Stupid kids - Stupid me.

Another time I had a flat tire and pulled into an empty parking lot to change it. The tire iron was my best friend. It's a hard choice of whether to wait for AAA or just hurry up and change it so you can get the heck out of the area.

Basic Rules for Driving in Metro Detroit

uDigItTheMost, you've nailed it exactly. I saw one guy run into an orange barrel. Pretty intersting, but not when you're beind them in the next lane over.

And when I used to drive through the bad neighborhoods I never ever stopped for a stop sign or red light. They were really only yield signs. Slow down, look back (to make sure no ones following you). Look left, then right. Make sure there's no cop around (as if they'd care) then jamb the gas and keep going.




Thanks.

Yeah, Detroit has more shitty areas than not.



55 feet and 40 tons vs 10 feet and 2 tons...you win! Glad you are ok .


Thanks. Actually my rig is closer to 75 feet than 55. My trailer alone is 50, but you are still quite correct.

Every day I drive out here I am more and more convinced that Physics should be hammered on more in High School. A one ton vehicle is simply not going to win a pissing contest with a 40 ton vehicle. Simple physics. Also, two objects can not occupy the same space at the same time no matter how fast you drive.