Things are always funny..... until something terrible happens..... [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pq5kXiLkNLU&hd=1]30[/ame]
They didn't appear to be speeding and there was surprisingly little traffic. Other Dragon videos I've seen have shown a much more crowded roadway. Yeah, they should have kept to the right more than they did, but from the way the conversation has been about this video, I expected sphincter puckering near misses. I don't think it was that bad at all! Dave
I don't understand what that disturbing video has to do with a wayward countryguy? FWIW Yep he crossed over the line, but he was not driving like a tool. He appeared to be in complete control to me. Yep by all means stay on your side of the line. I did see a bit of tooling last weekend. Just my .02 & worth every penny. :wink:
I can understand thinking that , that video is cool and wanting to brag to your friends that you drove the Dragon and all ...BUT just be safe out there its not just your life that can be put in danger..How would you feel if you were following the rules and staying on yourside of the DOUBLE yellow line and some guy with a bunch of stickers on his car came around that BLIND corner crossing the yellows smashed into you? Probably not so good.. Its not just you its the other driver the passenger the kid in the backseat...THINK! Off of my soap box.....now get back out there and MOTOR safely.
after nearly bring a victim of someone not respecting the double yellow this year i have a whole new perspective on the matter and i think that anyone who crosses the double yellow like that should be banned from the dragon! there is NO reason to cross the double yellow, and if you cant keep it between the lines then you dont belong on road!
IndiCooper-I've had that happen to me too. Not a fun experience as you know. How do you ban one from a public road? Don't think you can do it. When you drive the dragon there are risks involved, from the road itself & from folks who want to fulfill their boy racer fantasies. You can control how you react to the road. But you can not control the other road users. You either go ahead drive the dragon & accept the risks or you do not. There are so many wonderful roads in the area so I tend to stay off the dragon & let the boy racers have their fun.
We stayed off the Dragon precisely because we knew that with that many people around at least a few would go beyond their limits and then it was just a matter of luck if everything would turn out ok. And I tend to have crap luck. My idea of a good vacation is not visiting a hospital and dealing with insurance companies. And there are loads of other great roads in the area where you can have a nice, fun drive but wont likely encounter as much traffic or bravado.
I too agree that no one should cross the double yellow lines, so I hope what I have to say doesn't result in a ton of backlash. I shot some video from my cell phone, mounted slightly off center toward the passenger side of my R53, and was shocked when I watched it to see that it looked as if I was crossing the yellows all over the place. Keep in mind that the R53 is much lower than a Countryman. I can tell you with absolutely certainty that I did not cross the yellows, and in fact, have seen several shots of my car via Killboy, 129 Slayer, and others that confirm I was solidly within my lane in the twisties, especially on the bits where you'd expect to see a little transgression. I don't know one way or the other whether the driver everyone is commenting on was indeed over the yellow lines. I would hope that no one would drive with such disregard. All I can say is that, based on the position of the camera and the angle it's shooting at, looks can indeed be deceiving. I've been in professional video production for well over 15 years, and you'd be surprised what illusions can be created just based on placement and angle alone. Just my two cents. Motor hard, but motor safe.
im with you April, i tried to avoid the dragon during the peak hours after wed. but I came around a blind corner and came face to face with a pick up truck pulling a uhal trailer (thank god i was next to a pull off) mon. evening before everybody even got down there. i know i take a risk driving that road or any road for that matter, you cant control other drives, i just wish people had enough common sense to stay on their side of the road, their not just putting themselves in danger but others on the road as well. idk maybe everyone should have to sit through a saftey video or sit in a simulator and get run off the road or have some type of super high tech double yellow cameras with $100 fine for every wheel that crosses the line.
The first year we did the newbie video and run. About 3 miles in I realized that having a bunch of people unfamiliar with the road may not be the best situation. lol We were following someone that even at a slow speed had issues staying between the mustard and mayo. It was an interesting run. I was very happy that was the year of the rock slide thereby guaranteeing that no big trucks were going to be coming from the opposite direction. Kidding aside I do think that everyone should do the newbie orientation at least once as it kind of forces you to do it at a slow pace and there are other people around to help if needed. I am loving the simulator idea. It would be a fun game if nothing else.
The driver of the White CM "Zane Brooks" can't drive for crap. That was an epic display of a guy that thinks he is a professional driver acting like an idiot on the Dragon. I so hope he are at the Dragon Next Year so we can use this failure video of how to NOT to drive on the Dragon as a demo film.