Big boat little truck

[deepportage01]

we drive to our cabin every weekend and it always seems like I get stuck behind a guy towing a huge boat with a mini van or a S10/ford ranger driving 45-50 mph all the way there.It seems to me that if you know you are under powered to tow at normal speed you should pull over and let the train of cars behind you pass.just a thought and drive safe.

[Guest]

Just my opinion here.. but if the driver is driving within the speed limit, and safe operating speeds(considering the heavy load).. isnt the driver already driving as safely as they can?

And no, they shouldnt pull over to let traffic pass them. Why should they endanger themselves by driving onto a rough shoulder with a heavy load just to let people pass that are in too much of a hurry... one wrong move on a rough shoulder and that vehicle can be upside-down in a ditch just because other people feel it in their best interest to drive at higher speeds and the person towing the load doesnt have the right to use the road because they dont want to drive at unsafe speeds... DOesnt sound right, does it?

How about slowing down and trying to have some respect for other drivers on the road? If a vehicle is going too slow in front of you.. wait for a safe opportunity and pass them in a way that doesnt endanger yourself, and more importantly the other driver that is pulling the heavy load.. and has just as much right to use the road as you.

[deepportage01]

why should one person slow down the hole road when they can pull over SAFLY AND LET EVERY BODY AROUND THEM.I NEVER SAID PULL OVER AND FLIP YOUR CAR OVER IN A DITCH SO PEAPLE CAN FLY BY YOU GOING 80MPH.ALSO I HAVE RESPECT FOR OTHER DRIVERS AND IN NO WAY WANT TO ENDANGER ANYONE BUT COME ON 40 MPH IN A 65MPH ROAD WITH NO WAY TO PASS LET THE OTHER PEOPLE BY FOR THE LOVE.

[BigWadeS]

I am one of the one's that uses a mini-van to pull my boat. I agree it gets frustrating but, I can assure you that you wont find me driving that slow...I would say chances are pretty good that even though you may be stuck for a little while, you will be able to pass soon enough...just my 2 cents

[Gus]

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why should one person slow down the hole road when they can pull over SAFLY AND LET EVERY BODY AROUND THEM.I NEVER SAID PULL OVER AND FLIP YOUR CAR OVER IN A DITCH SO PEAPLE CAN FLY BY YOU GOING 80MPH.ALSO I HAVE RESPECT FOR OTHER DRIVERS AND IN NO WAY WANT TO ENDANGER ANYONE BUT COME ON 40 MPH IN A 65MPH ROAD WITH NO WAY TO PASS LET THE OTHER PEOPLE BY FOR THE LOVE.

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Last time I checked MN does not have a two lane road with a 65mph speed limit.

[nofishfisherman]

If the slow driver is to pull over to let all the cars pass him before he pulls back onto the road when do you think he would actually be able to pull back out onto the road?

Some of these roads heading to lake country are pretty full of cars. There is always another car behind you.

If the guy towing the load goes as fast as he safely can then thats all he can do. You can't expect him to pull of the road everytime some people are behind him. He'll never get where he's going.

Yeah its frustrating but he isn't doing anything wrong or illegal, you just need to be more patient and learn to be more tolerant. Like I should be the one talking I get annoyed with slow cars like everyone else but I do actually try to remind myself that they aren't doing anything wrong and that I need to be more patient and I will pass when I have the chance. If I see a guy towing a big load I usually don't get mad at them, its the slow drivers just out for a sunday drive that get me.

[nitroant]

This is why I stay home on Memorial Day. Too many people with pent up cabin fever looking to cure it for the 1st time this year and their patience level is 0. Yes it is no fun being stuck behind a guy that is not going the speed limit, but you'll get there soon enough. Settle back, find some good tunes and enjoy the ride, its part of the whole experience too.

[TSCTSC]

I have to agree with ThatGuy and NoFishFisherman. I have been there and done that. I used to be really impatient and can see where you are coming from about people not driving fast enough. The reason why u are frustrated is because you are impatient. And you are not comfortable passing the guy or just choose not to. I think everyone has a right to the road and the speed limit is what it is... a limit. U cannot fault anyone for not driving at the limit unless the law has a lower speed limit. If you do not want to stay behind him, then find a safe opportunity and in a safe manner, overtake him. But I do not think that you should expect him to pull to one side for you to pass. If that happens, he is never going to be able to finish his journey cos he will be pulling onto gravel every few hundred yards for others to pass. Please put yourself in that driver's shoes. If the road is very lightly travelled, then I guess it would be reasonable for him to pull over just for you, but then again, if the road is so isolated, I think it would be far easier for you to overtake him in your faster, more powerful vehicle than it is for him who is so challenged in his vehicle to pull to one side for u to pass. However, I do recognize that each situation can be unique and u may have been upset about a specific situation where the slow driver appears to be DELIBERATELY trying to slow u down. I guess we all have to make our judgements, but in general, when I see slower cars, I do not let it affect me. People usually have very good reasons why they do not drive at the limit...let them be.

[fishinchicks]

We pull our grain truck onto the shoulder to let people pass if we are going 45 mph on the 60 mph highway. It is much safer to pull over than to have people make unsafe passes. For a two lane road in MN to be a 60 mph road, the shoulders have to be able to accomodate a car on the shoulder out of harms way. I believe most are paved, as well.

If the string of traffic behind is just cars, it is not as big a deal as if it were a semi. A lot of the truckers around here do not have the time or patience to follow a vacationer going 45 in a 60.

[solbes]

This is one of those 3 weekends a summer where we all have to be patient. We have some lakeshore as well and I'm usually jumping at the gun to get on the road. But I don't think it helps to try and get there faster. Just get yourself in line; it's going to take what it's going to take to be safe.

I've been in both situations, usually more in the waiting behind the underpowered vehicle. But on three occasions I've used my V8 Dakota to pull a 28 foot camper. Most of the poeple driving around me were courteous which I appreciated. I drove the limit and tried to be as safe and accommodating as possible to those around me.

[BobT]

Consider this fact. It is unlawful to drive on the shoulder in Minnesota, although by the way most of us drive it would appear we don't know that, not to mention that in most cases probably not entirely safe.

Bob

[deepportage01]

I'm sure it is unlawful to drive on the shoulder in mn but its not unlawful to pull over.

[LocalGuide]

It’s just another one of those situations that gets me...

You can afford a $40,000+ boat but not a truck/vehicle to pull it! Like I saw a $45,000 boat being pulled by an old mini-van worth less that $10,000. Cmon! For one, you’re going to wreck your vehicle and 2, what your going to spend to fix it you might as well get a truck to pull it. Even your expenses out. Buy a 20K truck and 20K boat. You’re much better off!

Also, im sorry, but going 45 in 60mph 2 lane highways is just arrogant. They make shoulders wide and safe enough to pull over. If its doesn’t look safe by any means, then Im with ya on not pulling over. It’s still really not safe though since 95% of the traffic probably travels around 62mph on average. Not seeing a slow vehicle on the other side of the hill with a line of 15 cars going 60-65mph is DANGEROUS!

Just my opinion on the subject.

[deepportage01]

Thank you LG that was the hole point of this post I feel the same way. size your invantory the right way and drive around the speed limit not 40 in a 60.I new when I posted this it would be a hot one but man thanks for saving me.Later DP

[nofishfisherman]

How about the flip side of the argument?

I hate when I am going 70-75 on 35 where the speed limit is 70 and a guy towing a large trailer or boat flies by at about 85-90 mph. They kick up so many rocks and dust.

Thats is probably my biggest pet peeve on the roads.

The other day I was in Eagan on 35E going south I was in the left lane doing about 75 at about 5:30 pm so there was a good amount of traffic from people going home after work.

This guy was tailgating me super close. I was waiting for an opening to safely move over but he cut into the right lane before I was able to and passed by me. Normally not that big of a deal, but he passed my half in my lane and half in the right lane and he just glared at me as he drove by, he basically ran me half off the road, I had to get on the shoulder partly to avoid him. Apparently he wanted me to cut off traffic in the right lane so he could get ahead of me. I sort of wish I was driving a beater car and just held my ground so he would have hit me. The only reason he didn't was becasue I moved onto the shoulder.

I was fumming for an hour after that. One of these days i am going to install paintball guns on the hood of my car so I can tag the guys who drive like jerks. That way we all know who they are.

[wx_nut]

I had something happen to me this last weekend. I was pulling my boat on I-94. I was doing around 70-75 (about the speed limit) and I had one guy who pulled in front of me, and then slowed down....way down. Down to 55mph. Then, I put on my turn signal, pulled into the other lane, and started to speed up to pass him. This guy matched me speeding up. So then when it got to above 75, I said "screw it, I'll get back behind him." So I did. And then again, he slowed down to 55mph again. And again I tried to pass him, and nope, he wouldn't let me pass him, as he did the same dang thing.

What does everyone do in these situations? With my boat and trailer, I didn't feel comfortable getting any faster than that.

[fishyguy]

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It’s just another one of those situations that gets me...

Also, im sorry, but going 45 in 60mph 2 lane highways is just arrogant.

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I am glad everyone is in agreement that safety is the #1 issue on the road. I have a full size Blazer and a 16 1/2 foot aluminum boat, but the real balance for me is that they both are old pieces of [PoorWordUsage].

At the risk of offending a few I must ask a question since Localguide brought in the question of attitude of the slow driver. I don't think the slow driver wakes up and says I am going to the cabin really slow this weekend because I am better than those guys in the big truck. I think the slow driver wakes up and says, "Its windy out here and I want to get my family to the cabin in one piece I better be safe on the road".

I used to get overly stressed in traffic myself until the girlfriend made sense for once in her life. Traffic is horrible on the big weekends anyways and the slow driver probabaly at most only costs me a total of 20 minutes on a 3 hour drive. That extra time on a 72 hour long weekend equates to .4% of the minutes I have to myself that weekend but the stress from worrying about it would last for hours.

After that it didn't seem like such a big deal to me. I hope I don't ruffle any feathers but I thought is was unfair to judge a person on his boat/truck combo or determine his attitude toward others based on his driving speed. Grandma drove way to slow but was the most humble person there around.

[dovix]

The first law of driving:

Anyone who drives slower than me is an one-who-thinks-I-am-silly, anyone who drives faster than me is a jerk.

Get frustrated, get past them, and get over it. As long as we all get there and back in one piece, it will be a good weekend.

[deepportage01]

install paintball guns on the hood of my car so I can tag the guys who drive like jerks. That way we all know who they are.

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thats some funny @#$%

[jparrucci]

WX..I had the same thing happen to me on 94 a few years back. I wasn't sure of what to make of it. It was pretty late (after midnight) on a weeknight and the road was empty. I had a new Camaro convertible and this one-who-thinks-I-am-silly was driving crazy to get in front of me, then behind me. He would pass me and then slam on his brakes. I would fly past him and he would speed up again until he was on my bumper; the car is WAY to close when it is night, and their bumber is so close to yours that you can't see headlights cause they are nearly touching my rear bumber. It was near the tunnel in MPLS. I think the person was trying to cause an accident to collect insurance? All I know was a convertible with a full can of Mt. Dew flying out at them will convince them to move at least one carlength from my rear bumper on an empty road.

As far as the person driving too slow thing- I head up north almost every weekend, and I see this all the time. A little common sense prevails. If a vehicle cannot come close to reaching the speed limit on a major road- it should not be on the road. I know I would never do that to other drivers. On the other side of it- you can usually find a place to pass eventually. The worst is when you have a REALLY slow car, and then a bunch of people in front of you affraid to pass. Then you have to make a 5 car pass, which can be a little bit on the unsafe side.

A vehicle driving far to slow for the road is an unsafe vehicle and should not be on the road. PERIOD. Just as people tailgating or driving crazy. It is almost worse when you get that person driving painfully slow, and they don't realize (I hope they don't realize otherwise I would be even more irrate) that they are holding up 100 cars behind them while they take their sweet time.

Common sense people, use it once in a while.

[DTro]

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Thank you LG that was the hole point of this post I feel the same way. size your invantory the right way and drive around the speed limit not 40 in a 60.I new when I posted this it would be a hot one but man thanks for saving me.Later DP

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You will see that the older you get the less "stuff" you let get to you. Yes, we all get frusterated, especially the "big three" weekends of the summer. Relax, enjoy the ride, you'll get there, there's no prize for first place.

Also, how can someone go after another because of the vehicle they drive? So, if I buy a new boat, I now need to buy a "matching" truck?

Look, I drive a small crappy boat and a "girly" SUV, but I also have a big wall FULL of fish pics

[Macgyver55]

We all know that speeding is illegal. Unfortunately what a lot of people dont realize is that it is also unlawful to "impede the normal and reasonable movement of traffic". Lets all try to please use our heads, some common sense and use good judgement on both ends of the spectrum so we can have a good and safe holiday. If you simply cannot drive with the flow of traffic, whether it be the speed limit or slower try an alternate route or an off peak travel time.

[Wade Joseph]

I will warn all of you now. My vehicles are fully capable of pulling loads much heavier than my boat but I rarely go more than 4 mph over the speed limit with or without anything in tow. Seems as is most people I encounter on the roads these days feel the speed limit is merely a suggested speed. If I am towing my boat or driving my company vehicle I do EXACTLY the posted limit. If you don't like it, you have a couple choices. 1) Pass me, blast on down the road at whaterver speed you feel is necessary, or 2) Realize that I am doing the speed limit, readjust your cruise control and realize your getting mad is really only raising your blood pressure and therefore shortening your own lifespan.

[graybeard2]

Now, I'm probably one of the slower drivers around, except when I'm pulling my boat, cause I'm in a hurry to get fishing. But anyway, I thought I would share this story. A couple years ago we were heading up to the Alex area for our annual family vacation. We had lunch in St.Cloud and had just headed back up 94. We were just a few miles out of St. Cloud when we came up behind a big camper. I was driving our Jeep pulling my fishing boat, my oldest son and his wife were behind in his car, and my middle son was behind him pulling my nephew's boat with his pickup. Anyway, this camper was all over the road, sometimes swinging clear over onto the shoulder, other times swinging into the inside lane. Well, after a mile or two, I told the wife, I'm gonna get around this guy before he loses it.(We were travelling at speed limit or over, with the flow of traffic) So we passed, my son passed with his car, and other son passed with his truck. As my one son passed, the camper took a swing, and about hit him, but we made it. We kept the speed up a little way, then slowed back down to the flow, thinking we could stay in front of him. After a short time, I looked in my mirror, and he was bearing down on us, and went around us like we were standing still.(We were doing about 75 at the time.) I said screw this, and told the wife we're gonna stay back and let him get ahead of us.BTW, this guy was driving a Yukon or Suburban, pulling as long a bumper trailer as I've seen. Well, we went about 3 or 4 miles, and I looked ahead, and this camper was going down 94 on it's side. Slid into the ditch, still hooked to the vehicle by the chains, facing the direction it had come from. Traffic was heavy, but somehow no one hit it. We slowed down and stopped, wife went to check on them,(She's an ER nurse and paramedic) and came back and said no one was hurt, so we got the heck out of there before traffic was all backed up. The whole back was ripped off the trailer, all the furniture and appliances were tossed around, it was a real mess. I'm guessing the occupants had to dig around to find some clean underwear, but I couldn't feel too sorry for them.

[Mr.Perch]

On my job I have to drive from Marshall to Bemidji the two lane roads have either 60 or 55 speed maxamum limit and a 40 MPH minimum so if they are pulling at 40 lighten up and live they are not breaking the law or endangering anything but the chances of me getting home by suppertime.