[coolfyre]

There was a grey color santro driving on a narrow lane at about 40-50. There was a guy on his bike riding without helmet tailgating the Santro. The road is narrow but there was not much traffic, as the car was moving ahead, an auto rickshaw appeared from nowhere all of a sudden from one of the side roads. The santro guy was in no hurry was driving at safe speeds applied his brakes to avoid hitting the auto rickshaw. At this moment, the guy on the bike tailgating the santro could not control his speed and stop in time, he hit the rear bumper on the driver side and it was quite an impact.
The santro guy parked his car to the extreme left so that he doesn't block the traffic and then got out from the car and checked if the guys on the bike were ok. On finding they were fine, he asked the guy to pay up for the damage to the bumper. The guy on the bike started arguing that its not their fault but instead the fault of the car guy as he had applied brakes all of a sudden. Since the guy in the car was alone and they guys on the bike started yelling at him asking him to pay up for the bike damages which was nothing more than a few scratches. The car guy never lost his cool this entire time when the bike guys were trying to provoke him and were shouting at him. After a good 10-15 minute arguments, the car guy realizing there is no point talking to these bike guys, he said that he would file a police complaint and noted the bike's number and left. As he was leaving these bike guys tried stopping him from getting inside his car. But the car guy just ignored these people and quietly left without making much fuss. The bike guys stood there for a minute or two saying their bike has stopped because of the accident etc. But as soon as all the people moved away, they just started the bike and sped away as if nothing had happened to the bike.
What I really liked from this incident is the way the car guy kept his cool and the way he handled the situation by ensuring that no passer by pacifiers get in between him and the bike guys.


At a traffic signal, there was a guy in honda activa in the front and behind him was a well dressed guy with sun glasses in a qualis. The signal count down had just reached 15 and the qualis guy started honking away to glory.This irritated the honda activa guy, he just turned back and signalled by his hand to the qualis guy to see the red light. But still the qualis guy was honking away to glory. As the signal turned green and the activa guy started moving ahead, he showed his middle finger to the qualis guy and moved to the extreme left possible to let the qualis guy pass by. I guess the middle finger now irritated the qualis guy, who sped ahead blocked the activa guy, got down and started kicking the activa guy.
The qualis guy was threatening the activa guy saying he has contacts with some local politician blah blah etc.
The activa guy at this point kept his cool by not retaliating physically, but only verbally and soon all the passing by vehicles stopped and made the qualis guy go away.

As far as I have understood about road rage, there are people on the road who are looking to create trouble and they are best avoided.

[sumannandy]

Originally Posted by coolfyre

As far as I have understood about road rage, there are people on the road who are looking to create trouble and they are best avoided.

. Also if a two wheeler is involved, all the fellow pedestrians and two wheeler riders will support him without even knowing the fact.

It is best to note down the number and file a police complaint in the event of an accident.

[anarchist]

Today I encountered 2 different situations, first one on Langford road, well a not so rashly driven blue alto was the right lane behind another car and the signal turned from green to yellow, I was on the left lane right behind the alto and I was prepared to stop my car to respect the signal, this alto almost banged into my car trying to go past the signal when it had turned amber, I stopped and had to blow a long honk, he passed the signal and midway he checked his rearview lowered his window and appologized, though he had made a mistake we barely find a handful of guys acknowledging their mistakes.

The next was on Hosur road near Audugodi, this guy with a school going girl in his pillion was stopped near the pavement and had finished his dialogue with a lady standing there, he immediately moved from the extreme left to the right most lane without bothering to check for vehicles behind him and almost hit my car on the right lane again the same situation had to give out a loud honk, the guy again surprisingly waited for me to right next to his bike, said sorry. wow two times in a day is really a surprise in Bangalore, hope things are changing for the good i good ol' Blore.

[msharma_79]

Digging up the thread at the time of recent road rage brutality!
Road rage claims life at Mumbai airport - Mumbai - City - The Times of India

[prince_pervez]

^^Discussed here in more detail:
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/street...i-airport.html

[ravikn]

msharma Sir,

Thank you for the wonderful words. At times, things are so simple yet our mind makes it complicated by doing too much of calculations while driving in these peek hours in the city. Following these words would certainly makes one a happy driver no matter how worse the situation is

[Sli_ce]

While driving back from work last night, i noticed a Silver Optra coming right at me on the wrong side of the road, trying to overtake a huge queue of vehicles on the other side that are stuck and waiting to move on a signal.

All i did was give him a angry stare. the guy seemed to be around 30-40 years of age, driving alone.

Unbelievably, he crosses me and then takes a U Turn, comes behind me, parks next to me and indicates to lower the window glass, while i am waiting at the red signal.

I pull the window down and ask him whats up. here is the conversation that followed:

me: yes?
him: Kya dekh raha tha! kya ukhaad lega? (what were you looking at? what will you do?)
me: I am sorry, but i refuse to talk to you.

him: (Now boiling with rage): F*** Y**, $%^&*, $%^&*
me: (calm): Yes, F*** me and F*** the world, if that makes you happy.

him: Bahar nikal aur settle kar, banda ban.(Come out and settle this, be a man)
me (Laughing): emm..no thanks

seeing no reaction from me, he gives up and speeds away, making screeching Tyre noises.


reminded me of a Bumper sticker i saw somewhere: "Never argue with an idiot, they drag you down to their level and beat you with experience"

[bblost]

@Sli_ce

You handled it remarkably well.

There is nothing funnier than an angry idiot who has lost it.

To add another quote.

I learned long ago, never to wrestle with a pig. You get dirty, and besides, the pig likes it.
-George Bernard Shaw

[prince_pervez]

Originally Posted by Sli_ce

me (Laughing): emm..no thanks

Very nicely handled. I'm not sure whether I could have handled it that way though. I feel bullies should be taught a lesson so that they will think twice before doing it again.
BTW When he said 'F you' you should have replied "Don't you have a better idea" ? He would have gone blank and recognised the seasoned campaigner in you.

[msharma_79]

Originally Posted by Sli_ce

While driving back from work last night, i noticed a Silver Optra coming right at me on the wrong side of the road, trying to overtake a huge queue of vehicles on the other side that are stuck and waiting to move on a signal.

All i did was give him a angry stare. the guy seemed to be around 30-40 years of age, driving alone.

Unbelievably, he crosses me and then takes a U Turn, comes behind me, parks next to me and indicates to lower the window glass, while i am waiting at the red signal.

I pull the window down and ask him whats up. here is the conversation that followed:

me: yes?
him: Kya dekh raha tha! kya ukhaad lega? (what were you looking at? what will you do?)
me: I am sorry, but i refuse to talk to you.

him: (Now boiling with rage): F*** Y**, $%^&*, $%^&*
me: (calm): Yes, F*** me and F*** the world, if that makes you happy.

him: Bahar nikal aur settle kar, banda ban.(Come out and settle this, be a man)
me (Laughing): emm..no thanks

seeing no reaction from me, he gives up and speeds away, making screeching Tyre noises.


reminded me of a Bumper sticker i saw somewhere: "Never argue with an idiot, they drag you down to their level and beat you with experience"

Excellently handled!! laughing sometimes also can be taken as offence by the road rager so better thing is just smile and let him be.
there is another way of saying the same" Dont wrestle with the pig, pig will enjoy it and you will get dirty".

[pramodkumar]

There is this book i just laid my hand on, The manager asks her team member what will he do if he encounters a insane driver who is nicked his car while over taking. The guy replied i will give him a piece of my mind. Then she says what if this happens in one of those neighbourhoods which are infamous for crime rates, will he still do it? The answer is i will just drive away. I asked this to some of my friends as well and their answers were also the same.

Point is if we can change our behaviour so much depending on the place we are why cant we always do it.

I have noticed onething, if you be plesent others will be. I sometimes end up in narrow lanes, if i stop my car its the other car which usually gets down and makes way for me.

It dosent make sense to pickup a fight with anyone who you dont know. as somebody rightly mentioned these days there are som many anti social eliments on the loose who knows who you might encounter.


Pramod

[prince_pervez]

Originally Posted by pramodkumar

I have noticed onething, if you be plesent others will be.

Good point and a valid one too. Most of the times I am in a very good mood. In that case even if I goof up or someone else goofs up a smile can change everything and rest is forgive and forget.
I remember an incident where at a blind intersection me and a guy braked hard to avoid a collision. He looked at me with a serious face. But I smiled since I was in a good mood any no one was hurt. His face passified too and we went our ways w/o spoiling each other's day.

It dosent make sense to pickup a fight with anyone who you dont know. as somebody rightly mentioned these days there are som many anti social eliments on the loose who knows who you might encounter.

I do not agree with this.
Simple policy: Discretion is the better part of valour.
If you are with your wife and kids then handling a bunch hooligans and drunkards is not the best option. In that case fleeing the scene and saving yourself and your family is the best option and you feel very good that you did best to protect your family.

Most of the people become rough when they have company. Else they are very passive. However if someone rubs me the wrong way even when I have not wronged then letting it go gives me sleepless nights. I have to do something about it.

Once near Turf club Pune, I was overtaken rashly by a new Santro with 4 teens palying blaring music inside. I could have got hit by them. I got pissed and went up to the driver and asked him to stop his vehicle immediately. Sensing trouble and a Traffic Police booth at visible distance he apologised profusely.

Otherwise on any given day I am everyone's sweetheart. I know.

[sriku]

After reading these posts, all I can see are a number of ways in which fellow motorists react to being instigated by rowdy drivers. Some reactions lead to appeasement and reduction of tension, others inflame the situation. Obviously the former is more desirable, however it must be reiterated that in any such encounter, personal safety must be kept paramount. I have been witness to many inflamed situations in which the offenders simply distract the victim, while their cronies walk up to the victim's car (which is unlocked, windows down, key still in the ignition), take the keys and then harass the victim using it as a bargaining advantage. Being the calmer guy in such an event is all good, but not at the cost of personal safety. The first rule I follow, is never get out of the car unless absolutely necessary. If I do get out, I lock the car, and keep the key with me at all times. First thing to do is note down the offenders number plate and fire off an sms to a friend who could be in a position to offer road side assistance at short notice, or arrange for this. Once the playing field has been prepared and made advantageous for myself, then I will try to handle the situation with the offender, keeping the conversation to a bare minimum. If the situation demands aggression, it will be delivered, if it demands a polite and courteous rap on the knuckles, that too will be delivered.

There is a fine line between being a victim and being a pushover. I'd prefer to be the former, and work from that rather than being the latter.

[pramodkumar]

Originally Posted by prince_pervez

I do not agree with this.
Simple policy: Discretion is the better part of valour.
If you are with your wife and kids then handling a bunch hooligans and drunkards is not the best option. In that case fleeing the scene and saving yourself and your family is the best option and you feel very good that you did best to protect your family.

Prince you yourself have reacted in two different ways depending on who you are with. Look i will narrate a small incidance which was a big political issue in kerala for a while.(all this is according to police investigation) Paul M George is a big shot in the moothoot family. He is on his way back home after a party and hits a bike and flees, there is a tempo traveller filled with quotation gang(slang for contract killers) who decide to chase paul and bring him to justice(how cinematic), and they getinto a brawl and paul is killed. The bike guy survives with minor injuries, paul dies in the hands of some quotation gang. The point here is even if you have a sctrach on you car, When will you insurance come in use, There is no point saving no claim bonus even if its a huge amount. I insure my car for peace of mind, so any issue will be taken care of by them. If there is any damage to the other party, i believe in politly settling it. Ask them if they can claim their insurance. If they say yes, shake hands appologise/accept appologies what ever is applicable exchange numbers and move on. There is no point fighting on the streats. Even if the other guy thinks you are a push over, common does it actually matter what a stranger thinks of you.

Originally Posted by sriku

After reading these posts, all I can see are a number of ways in which fellow motorists react to being instigated by rowdy drivers. Some reactions lead to appeasement and reduction of tension, others inflame the situation. Obviously the former is more desirable, however it must be reiterated that in any such encounter, personal safety must be kept paramount. I have been witness to many inflamed situations in which the offenders simply distract the victim, while their cronies walk up to the victim's car (which is unlocked, windows down, key still in the ignition), take the keys and then harass the victim using it as a bargaining advantage. Being the calmer guy in such an event is all good, but not at the cost of personal safety. The first rule I follow, is never get out of the car unless absolutely necessary. If I do get out, I lock the car, and keep the key with me at all times. First thing to do is note down the offenders number plate and fire off an sms to a friend who could be in a position to offer road side assistance at short notice, or arrange for this. Once the playing field has been prepared and made advantageous for myself, then I will try to handle the situation with the offender, keeping the conversation to a bare minimum. If the situation demands aggression, it will be delivered, if it demands a polite and courteous rap on the knuckles, that too will be delivered.

There is a fine line between being a victim and being a pushover. I'd prefer to be the former, and work from that rather than being the latter.

I agree with you completly other than the voilance part, I have been in road rage not once but twice, but i always regretted and repented at the end, even though it was not my fault.

Pramod

[sriku]

Originally Posted by pramodkumar

I agree with you completly other than the voilance part, I have been in road rage not once but twice, but i always regretted and repented at the end, even though it was not my fault.

Pramod

Pramod,

I do not condone or forgive violence in any form, except when it is in self defense. If you consider what I have posted, I speak of two approaches when dealing with a confrontation. One of them being polite but firm, the other, showing aggression when the opposite party is being impolite or crass. There is a large gap between aggressive posturing, intimidation and finally violent action. I hope you see the difference I wished to potray. Being aggressive in this case is simply refusing to cow down to any verbal intimidation from the offender and standing your ground to resolve the matter at hand. In other words, its a show of resistance, not attack. Of course, it is sometimes easier to pull off if you are 6 feet tall, SUV sized, bearded and look ugly enough to be cast as one of the villain's crew in a hindi movie