riding in back of pickup trucks
 

On Tue, 8 Aug 2006 01:38:03 -0400, "John Gaquin"
> wrote:
>Amazing! I should think they would just drop dead of inappropriateness.

I grew up in a place where it was never done, so it just looked very
unusual to see it several times on a 45mph heavy traffic route.

But if everyone's an adult and they choose to take the risk, by all
means...

Safer than riding a bike on that route for sure. But I wouldn't do
that either.

riding in back of pickup trucks
 

C. E. White wrote:

> I don't know about Florida, but now NC has a law prohibiting minors from
> riding in the back of pick-ups. I don't have the statistics available, but I
> don't recall many deaths or even injuries associated with riding in the back
> of pick-ups. It strikes me as a nanny law. Around here this is the sort of
> law that Damn Yankees (the ones that come and won't leave) like to
> promulgate. I grew up on a farm, and I probably spent as much time in the
> back of pick-ups as in the cab. And my Father always removed the tailgate as
> soon as he got a new truck, so I never even had to deal with those.
>
> Ed

That's probably one of the reasons that farming has long been
considered one of the more dangerous occupations.

Personally, I'd consider riding in the back of a PU on the farm, or
slow farm roads, an acceptable hazard. The risk of an accident and the
injuries resulting will increase with speed. Riding in the back on a
fast road or freeway is just asking to be turned into a human meatball.
The pieces don't always fit back together properly.

riding in back of pickup trucks
 

"gpsman" > wrote in message
oups.com...

> We used to criticize him amongst ourselves back in the bed because he
> didn't know how to drive, that stupid SOB would be in 3rd (top) gear at
> 25 mph!

Now you are reminding me of my Grandfather. I can remember riding in his
1964 Ford Fairlane as a young boy. It had a three speed manual transmission.
He would start off in first gear but shift to third (skipping second) almost
immediately. Once he was in third, that was it, he never downshifted unless
he came to a complete stop. When taking a slow corner he would slip the
clutch to keep from killing the engine. The first clutch lasted less than
20,000 miles. I blame his driving style on learning to drive Ford Model T's.

BTW, we (my sister and me) inherited the car when my Grandfather passed away
in 1969. It was the first car I drove (when it was new and I was 11). It was
a four door Fairlane with two options - a 260 V-8 and a heater (it even had
rubber floor mats, no carpet). I loved the car until I blew the motor by
missing a shift when screwing around. I have no idea how high I revved the
engine, but I floated the valves. It bent one intake valve and spun a
bearing. My Father had it fixed and unloaded it.

Ed

riding in back of pickup trucks
 

Scott en Aztlán wrote:
> "C. E. White" > said in
> rec.autos.driving:
>
> >BTW, we (my sister and me) inherited the car when my Grandfather passed away
> >in 1969. It was the first car I drove (when it was new and I was 11).
>
> Ah, so your illegal driving started early. :)

I got my first ticket at 14 in a '64 Dodge crewcab (inoperable
headlamp/no license). I'd been driving for years by then. The Trooper
followed me maybe 3 miles to home where I'd claimed I left my license.
Activated his lightbar as we turned in the driveway. Nice move, I
thought.

Parents were off doing something (or I wouldn't have been driving
without permission) and I prayed the whole way that they hadn't yet
returned. I wasn't worried about the state, the beating I could expect
bore much more weight upon my mind.

As a minor, I had to appear in court. The Trooper testified I was
driving ok, it was just the equipment violation that caused him to stop
me.

The judge (in Chambers) sentenced me to write a "500 word composition"
on OH traffic code. The proceeding complete, my mother sent me out to
wait in the hallway and went ****ing ballistic on the judge, to no
avail. Nice move, I thought.

I never did get that beating. But then again, some of the previous
beatings covered the offense pretty well...
-----

- gpsman

riding in back of pickup trucks
 

"Scott en Aztlán" > wrote in message
...
> "C. E. White" > said in
> rec.autos.driving:
>
>>BTW, we (my sister and me) inherited the car when my Grandfather passed
>>away
>>in 1969. It was the first car I drove (when it was new and I was 11).
>
> Ah, so your illegal driving started early. :)

Yup, I was legally licensed at 14, but started driving at age 12. Oh, and I
didn't do it behind my parents' backs, either. -Dave

riding in back of pickup trucks
 

On 10 Aug 2006 07:53:44 -0700, "gpsman" >
wrote:

>The judge (in Chambers) sentenced me to write a "500 word composition"
>on OH traffic code. The proceeding complete, my mother sent me out to
>wait in the hallway and went ****ing ballistic on the judge, to no
>avail. Nice move, I thought.

For being too tough, or too lenient?
--
Bill Funk
replace "g" with "a"

riding in back of pickup trucks
 

Bill Funk wrote:
> On 10 Aug 2006 07:53:44 -0700, "gpsman" >
> wrote:
>
> >The judge (in Chambers) sentenced me to write a "500 word composition"
> >on OH traffic code. The proceeding complete, my mother sent me out to
> >wait in the hallway and went ****ing ballistic on the judge, to no
> >avail. Nice move, I thought.
>
> For being too tough, or too lenient?

Which would you think if a beating was the typical corrective action
for, say, spilling your milk? <(;^)>
-----

- gpsman

riding in back of pickup trucks
 

"Scott en Aztlán" > wrote in message
...
> "Mike T." > said in rec.autos.driving:
>
>>> Ah, so your illegal driving started early. :)
>>
>>Yup, I was legally licensed at 14, but started driving at age 12. Oh, and
>>I
>>didn't do it behind my parents' backs, either.
>
> Ah, so your parents aided and abetted your lawbreaking, eh? :)
> --

Damn straight. And it was my brother teaching me to drive, as my parents
couldn't drive worth ****. :) -Dave

riding in back of pickup trucks
 

>>> Ah, so your parents aided and abetted your lawbreaking, eh? :)
>>
>>Damn straight. And it was my brother teaching me to drive, as my parents
>>couldn't drive worth ****. :)
>
> So who taught your brother to drive? ;)

My brother was much older than me. By the time I was ready to start driving
(just shortly before I could legally get a license), he was already an
accomplished stock car racer and dirt bike racer. He was more or less
self-taught, as he could drive circles around anyone in our family,
specifically including myself. He was also an award-winning mechanic by
that time (I'm not exaggerating, he had a shelf full of trophies from
various competitions). He just had a love of all things mechanical that
went fast. :) One of his favorite toys was a used VW bug that he
shoe-horned a used porsche engine into. That sucker was frighteningly fast.
He never let me drive it, but I would have been terrified to try at that age
anyway. -Dave

riding in back of pickup trucks
 

On 10 Aug 2006 13:46:10 -0700, "gpsman" >
wrote:

>Bill Funk wrote:
>> On 10 Aug 2006 07:53:44 -0700, "gpsman" >
>> wrote:
>>
>> >The judge (in Chambers) sentenced me to write a "500 word composition"
>> >on OH traffic code. The proceeding complete, my mother sent me out to
>> >wait in the hallway and went ****ing ballistic on the judge, to no
>> >avail. Nice move, I thought.
>>
>> For being too tough, or too lenient?
>
>Which would you think if a beating was the typical corrective action
>for, say, spilling your milk? <(;^)>
> -----
>
>- gpsman

It's really hard to say. Many parents, while tough on their children,
reserve that option to themselves, and visciously attack anyone else
who dares to offer criticism to their children.
From your response, I will assume your mother was not one of those.
--
Bill Funk
replace "g" with "a"