Most liked posts in thread: The Dragon Slays a Countryman

I'm the OP on the NAMeless forum using your image. Thanks for making it available so we can be exposed to the need for paying attention to both the road and our capabilities.

 

The posted limit on the ENTIRE Dragon is 30 MPH. If you don't know that, you weren't paying enough attention during your runs.

 

Cool... and I hope it helped somebody realize the dangers. I was just surprised to click on this link and see my pic :biggrin5:

 

This accident was on the mild side of Hellbender not the Dragon.

If you are going Going to drive like a Harley or Honda cruzer go to one of those weeks.

FYI tell your grand kids not to play in the street on the Dragon.

People please get a life and quite telling others how to drive.

 

As far as I remember we did not have cars when the Constitution was written either. DUH but what would I know I only live in the city where it was signed.

I also pass slower drivers on Hellbender (28) as the road markings allow for it.

So my point is if the road is 55 MPH speed up or pull over and lets us that'll can drive .....DRIVE.


Oh and blah blah blah, nice job adding to your post count. :lol:

 

I agree, accidents happen that's why they call them......

Wait for it



"Accidents"


My friend was driving the Black Mini that was t-boned last year at the top of a hill going into the sun. Everyone on every site ripped him for being careless and blah, blah,blah.

He did nothing wrong. He just did not see the car coming up the hill at a high rate of speed as he looked to turn into Fontana because of the Sun and the crest of the hill.

He was ok and the other driver was ok and all was fixed in the end. That is why they call them accidents, they happen to the best of us and all of us.

I am glad your friend is still with us. Don't worry all these Internet drivers they will go away in time after they preach and get 15 min of fame by posting.

 

Did you understand my point, which is that there is nothing anywhere in law that gives anyone the right to test their skills on a public thoroughfare? Not you, not I, not even Mario Andretti.

As for your point, I'm unlikely to need to pull over. (Conditions permitting, I have a heavy foot.) If I do need to, though, I will (or give a wave-by in a passing zone). Assuming it's safe to do so, anyway; if in my judgement it isn't, see my previous post about waiting patiently and politely.

:confused5: I don't remember using this: ostcount:...

 

My goodness, it took me a few minutes to quit laughing before I could see straight to post back.

What in the world does this conversation have to do with any Constitutional rights? I'm pretty sure they only had horse and buggies back then. I guess you are the guy that would have had his wagon hooked to a donkey and slowing up all the stallions that want to pass :biggrin5::biggrin5:

I also pretty sure that the turn-outs were designed so that the SLOWER drivers could pull over to let others pass. Sounds like a lot of fun pulling over every few minutes to let the slow guy get a lead and then catch back up.

Mini's on the Dragon is an event with multiple purposes and one is to let Minis get together and run the Dragon at an exciting pace (I didn't ever say recklessly). The whole community knows it and I bet they are happy to see us, as we spend a lot of money there.

I also don't recall seeing anybody's grandkids frolicking by the side of road picking daisies, etc. Or maybe I was just going to fast to see them. Either way, shame on whoever let them out there................The road serves two purposes. One as a service road for the locals and two TO GO FAST FOR THE REST OF US.

Just don't cross that yellow line.

 

My point exactly. If I want to risk that, it's my choice. Just don't cross the yellow line.

When I run the Dragon and I want to take a corner really aggressively, I always do it on a curve against the mountain and away from opposite traffic. This way if I don't make it, I endanger nobody but myself. I also don't risk catapulting myself 100 feet into the air over a cliff. I don't have a death wish. I just want to drive my Mini like it was designed for and want the slow pokes to pull over.

 

OK, now I understand. Your style is to drive the dragon very fast and safe of course, so anyone that likes to drive it in a different style should get the hell out of your way, because it is all about YOU. How silly of me not to catch that right away. :mad2:

Jim

 

And anybody that putzers down the Dragon in the middle of an annual Dragon event without getting over using the supplied pull-overs is ALSO saying "hey, it's all about me"

Pull over and let me by. Then I go fast and am happy and you go slow and is happy......What? You don't like win-win's for everyone? You enjoying seeing a line of cars behind you? Makes you feel powerful?

I literally saw a Mini with a line of other Mini's, mini-vans and a boxtruck behind it. Just enjoying a leisurely stroll down the Dragon. What a moron.....

 

I applaud your efforts to drive aggressively as safely as possible. Thank you for thinking of others. A couple of questions though...


Once you wreck against the mountain will you really have control over where you ricochet? I would guess that it would be pretty easy to go into the other lane after the initial impact so you would be crossing the double yellow line then, right? Assuming that isnt an issue I would also think that you might be endangering others when your wrecked car finally come to a halt in the appropriate lane. I mean there are enough blind curves that once the slowpoke behind you finally catches up, said slowpoke might not be able to stop without hitting your wreck.


I really dont think that there is a way to ensure that others wont pay the price if you should end up wrecking.

 

Hey Foggie, I doubt you want to help a brother out under the circumstances, but I just posted another post asking where to buy the front air spoiler that I noticed you also have on your Mini. Very nice looking. Let's put our differences aside for a second on this one because "it's all about me" :biggrin5:

 

True. We can always dream up worst case scenarios and they are all realities in everyday life. The minute you exceed a posted speed limit, you are liable for your actions, yet the same people crying "foul" about speeding on the Dragon don't mind speeding to work, church, the gym, etc.

Who follows the rules 100% of the time? Cmon, let's be real again. Drive within your comfort zone. If somebody has a faster comfort zone, pull over. If you drive reckless, then shame on you. I do not drive reckless on the Dragon. I happen to enjoying living and have 4 kids and a pretty wife that I'd like to come home to. But ya gotta live a little at the Dragon..........

 

I answered you on the other thread and gave you a link for the splitter. I really don't have any differences at all, just messing with ya.

Jim

 

Cool! Sweet ride by the way :biggrin5::biggrin5:

 

Very few Accidents, are actually "accidents"

This wrecked CM was not an accident.

like fastrack1 said, he goes fast into mountain side corners, if he wrecks into the wall, that is not an accident, sure it is not a desired outsome of said events, but had you not been pushing the limits, the hypothetical accident would not have happened.

I lost my passport on a turn, I keep it on my visor, took a turn hard, the g-force threw it out my window... ( I retrieved it ) but was that situation avoidable, sure it was, if I would have thought it through.

The posted limit on the Dragon is 30MPH, used to be 40 I believe, and I think it's 35-40MPH all the way down and past Ridge Parkway.

A busy weekend IMO is not the time to push and test your limits.

I ran the Parade last year at 64KM/h, cause that is what my GPS said the conversion was for the speed limit... we passed a LEO and he let us go by, all 150 of us... I actually had no idea I was speeding...

on the way back there were 4 of us, and I was leading, doing 64 again... guess what, he pulled me over and I got a ticket. Because the posted limit had been lowered to 30...

This year I ran the parade at 48KM = 30MPH, I did get up to approaching 64 on some places, where you are correct, 48 just seems so slow, I even commented to my navigator, "does this feel slow cause the MINI can handle more, or cause I know I have driven this road faster?"

either way, it's still breaking the law.

I don't push my limits though, and I don't think anyone has really thought the "paying for my mistakes through". Most people assume that paying means paying the fine. What about paying for the potential loss of life.

2 years ago Zinvestor and I helped rescue a father and son team, that wrecked, one hit a guardrail, one didn't and was down about a 20metre ravine, with a broken colar bone, at the least. The son, had a gash in his leg, some other Miata drivers were already stopped as well. Seeing as it appeared I was the only one that knew first aid. I helped.

They were both driving above their skill level, they had both ditched their bikes previously, and were on bald tires, and I mean BALD tires for I-75 driving, let alone the Dragon.

Was that a true "accident"? There were lots of things that could have been done to avoid it. None were followed.

I pull over and let the crazies pass, as often as I can.

I have some motoring awards for high rate of speed, and when I get them, I accept my punishment, am I happy about it... hell no... but I made my bed, and I am lying in it...

I know, I am all over the map with this post... bottom line.. push your limits at the track, drive well within your limits on public roads.

FYI, if you come to Ontario... don't exceed 50KM over the posted limit... your car just may get crushed... and up to $10,000 fine... Just sayin... (also includes if you are racing with the car next to you at any speed)

 

I didnt cry foul nor did I say I follow the rules 100% of the time. I know that is unrealistic. I was just responding to how you felt you were minimizing risks. I just wanted to point out to you that once you are actively wrecking your car, odds are that you will have little to no control over what happens and that those results could easily affect others (which you were allegedly trying to minimize). Just following the natural conclusion to the scenario you laid out for how to correctly aggressively drive the Dragon.