Slower Traffic in Left Lane

[Pat K]

1st I would like to apologize to Hanson for being part of highjaking his gas pump thread.

A couple of posters in the other thread and a few e-mailers had questions about the context of Col. Loeding's comment that people who drive slower than the flow of traffic in the left lane are some of the most dangerous drivers on the road.

He was speeking at a meeting of a 4-k orienteering group a couple of years after he had retired as the head of the MN Highway Patrol. Alot of the kids were 14 to 15 and would be driving soon, so he was talking about safe driving practices.

During the Q & A session after his talk one of the fathers bragged that he helped the highway patrol by driving the speed limit in the left lane to slow down speeders. Col. Loeding replied that people driving slower than other traffic in the left lane were some of the most dangerous drivers on the road. Enforcing speed laws should be left to the state troopers and other law enforcement agencies not self deputised speed police.

[Iambjm]

This subject has been beaten to death a thousand times and really doesn't belong here. Everyone has their own opinion on this and we all think we are right. Let's concentrate on a more docile subject like fishing.

[Big Tom]

Besides which these folks are easy top spot. They are either old guys in Fords or young ladies on cell phones.

[MN Shutterbug]

I thought old guys drove Cadillacs.

[MSRiverdog]

I thought old guys drove Cadillacs.

Nope, Buick's

[Fisherman For a Lifetime]

I cannot STAND slow drivers in the left lane !!!!!!!!!!!

[IFallsRon]

I'm not all that impatient, but for the times that people need a bit of a lesson, I have the same horn in my truck that you might hear from a fire truck. I can only imagine what has been soiled when I drop hammer.

[DTro]

Ok, here it what ticks me off about this. When on an extended trip, I use the cruise control a lot. I'll be on an interstate or whatever in the middle of nowhere and approaching a slower moving vehicle. I move over to the left lane and start over taking the slower vehicle, then out of nowhere there is someone racing to get somewhere and feels that I am now impeding his progress.

So if I understand this correctly, I need to drop my CC and kick it down to get out of your way?

[katoguy]

I would either step on the gas to more quickly pass the vehicle or step on the brakes do drop back in place behind the vehicle I was overtaking. It isn't the difficult to get the cruise going again.