Tourists (driving on the highway)

Hucker

~SPONSOR~
Sep 15, 2000
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Everytime a long weekend comes around, or some kind of holiday I see more dumb driving than ever. Today on the way to work (yeah its great to work on a Saturday) I passed all kinds of people crossing the border coming over to Canada to spend sometime probably up north camping. Now this is great, get out, enjoy the outdoors. But use your damn heads when driving, please. I counted about 10 cars (most had US plates) doing 55 in the fast lane. Whats the point of this? There's 2 other lanes you can do 55 in, but you choose to do it in the fast lane?

So, I get behind one about 2 car lengths away, not even close to tailgating waiting for them to move over so I can get by. Do they move over? Nope, its like they are deer caught starring into headlights or something. No idea whats going on, just looking forward and paying no attention to whats going on behind them. The best part is I get dirty looks while passing them in the middle lane. Whats with this? Its not like Canadian roads are any different than those in the states (the ones I've been to anyhow), just move over and let faster traffic by.
 

BRush

LIFETIME SPONSOR
Jun 5, 2000
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Originally posted by Hucker
Everytime a long weekend comes around, or some kind of holiday I see more dumb driving than ever

I hear that. You should see all those Canadian tourists blasting down the Northway to Lake George! :p
 

KWJams

~SPONSOR~
Sep 22, 2000
1,167
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If it's Tourist season--

---Why can't we hunt them? :think

Idiots are universal :eek: just more of them on holidays.
 

Hucker

~SPONSOR~
Sep 15, 2000
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Re: Re: Tourists (driving on the highway)

Originally posted by BRush


I hear that. You should see all those Canadian tourists blasting down the Northway to Lake George! :p

Hey, atleast we are speeding :)
 

scrambler220

Member
Mar 3, 2000
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I understand exactly where you guys are coming from, but believe me, it could be worse. Has anyone been to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park? It's the most visited national park in the nation. How about Cades Cove (in the park)? The Cove gets over 2 million visitors a year (most in July and October). I used to work as a stable guide up there. In the cove there's a one way, one lane scenic drive, with shoulders on both sides to pull off. There's alot of wildlife in the fields, a number of old cabins, and alot of nature to see. The loop road is 11 miles long, and I have seen MANY days that it took at least 4 hours to get around it without voluntarily stoping. With all the pull off areas, you'd think people would use them, but everbody just parks in the middle of the road, gets out, and goes walking through fields, or chasing animals. The real fun is when there's a bear and a mile worth of cars suddenly unloads so everybody can run after the bear for pictures. I've honestly seen people stop to take pictures of grass. Now as I said this is a scenic drive, so people are supposed to enjoy the scenery, but over 4 hours for 11 miles (and that's if you're not trying to stop)!!!?? And of course, like any tourist area, the Tourons have to have a place to stay (no lodging in the national park), so it all spills into the surrounding areas. Especially in July and October I see some stupid stuff, not just driving. I worked as a stable guide in the cove for 3 years (and one year in a nearby town), and if you think people drive dumb, you should see them on/around horses.
 

XRpredator

AssClown SuperPowers
Damn Yankees
Aug 2, 2000
13,510
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You think tourists are bad, try living in a University town when the students get back! :scream: The sudden boom in population and stupid drivers would drive a normal man insane!
 

VintageDirt

Baked Spud
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Jan 1, 2001
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Not all Mericuns are crappy drivers, just the ones that go to Canaduh.:)
 

Dirk Diggler

Member
Jun 28, 2001
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I have a sign in my car:

KEEP LEFT UNLESS OVERTAKING

I show them this sign as I overtake them on the middle lane and give them a dirty look.

It usually wakes them up from their vacent stare.
 

BunduBasher

Boodoo-Bash-eRRR
LIFETIME SPONSOR
Feb 9, 2000
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The Americans get confused when they get to Canada, they see the km sign and think they are in England or the colonies - Keep Left, Pass Right .... confusing ain't it ?! ... Just look at Dirk Digglers post .... that's exactly what he is saying .... the left lane, is the slow lane ...... hmmm , only not in Canada ! :p

I was down in Gaitlinburg this summer, so much traffic, I can only imagine how much worse it is in the park. mind you, this part of the country is so beautiful, one can easily become distracted. :)

ever see an American on a round about ?! :eek:
 

gospeedracer

Chat Mom
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Feb 8, 2000
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Uhhhg! I hear ya Hucker. This is one of my biggest peeves on the road (that and the fact there are other people on it!) :p

Around here the Right lanes are the fast lane! I don't know what everyone's facination is with the "fast" lane. Many times there will be an endless line of cars in the "fast" lane and NO ONE in the right lanes! I usually travel much faster in the far right "slow" lane because there is never anyone in it! I too give the dirty looks as I pass by if I have to go around someone that won't move over. The sunroof comes in handy for 'gestures' as well! :p

I like Dirk's sign idea though! :)
 

firecracker22

Sponsoring Member
Oct 23, 2000
3,217
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I went to high school in a small tourist town. Lake Chelan is a cute little vacation spot on a lake in the mountains and has a resident population of probably 2500-3000, but in the summer it multiplies exponentially. We have everything from college partiers heading for the beach to blue-hairs on their way to the casino to multi-families at the RV Park. This is such a tiny town that traffic is insane, pedestrians are suicidal, the boats and PWCs on the water are worse, and since it’s not their town, everyone seems to feel they can be a jerk without repercussions. I hated it.

They are either barreling through the downtown and park areas at thrice the limit or going 25 (I’m not exaggerating, that’s true) on the windy 2-lane highway (posted 45) between Manson (where the casino and lots of condos are) and Chelan.

I will admit I pissed a lot of people off on that highway by passing in less than optimal places, passing multiple car strings and tailgating (sometimes it makes them speed up. This worked better when I drove a 25-year-old lifted pickup). I just couldn’t take it anymore!

You want my theory? I know a lot of people from urban/metro areas where all the highways and major streets are multi-lane don’t ever learn how to pass. So when they go to visit a more rural area with 2-lane highways, they aren’t comfortable putting on their turn signal and going into the other lane to pass. So instead they group up, tailgate each other and then get freaked out when someone isn’t afraid to pass them. That’s just an observation on my part—maybe it’s only around here. But when all these Seattle-ites go to east WA for vacation, they just can’t seem to get out and pass people.
 

Strick

LIFETIME SPONSOR
Nov 8, 1999
1,782
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So no one except locals and frequents have a right to your road (s) people??

Get over it! I live in a tourist town, and yeah, it is real incovenient sometimes, So? You are a tourist sometimes too, unless you are too poor or too scared to travel!

:silly:
 

ultrachrome

Member
Oct 25, 1999
88
0
It's not just the tourist who can't drive. The locals can be just as bad. I think they have made it way too easy to get a drivers license. Maybe that's why mass transit sucks, it's too easy to avoid using it.
 

gospeedracer

Chat Mom
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Feb 8, 2000
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I know the original topic of this thread was about Tourists, but my reply was to all drivers in general.

If it wasn't for Tourism I don't think Santa Barbara would even exist! I cut tourists who are obviously lost or confused some slack for the most part but usually if I'm in unfamiliar surroundings and I don't know where I'm going or what I'm doing I try to be as little of a menace as I can to the others around me. If you don't know where you're going, pull over and look at your map. If you're in the wrong lane for a turn, go around the block, don't dart across 4 lanes cutting off traffic so YOU can make your turn! If you're going slow on a 2-lane road and there are 50 cars behind you, PULL OVER!
I believe there are some basic courtesy rules of the road that some people either aren't aware of or just don't care.
 

oabike

Member
May 15, 2001
69
0
Don't get me started on this one. My shop is about 30' from the Amtrak station and I see hundreds of tourists everyday. If I had a nickel for every time a tourist pulled me away from my work to ask where State Street,the Mission, the ocean( er - turn around dumbass),the restroom, the taxi,the trolley, those six wheel bikes, etc., I could buy everyone on this site a new 450F. Ugggggghhhhhhhhhhhh. I say shoot em! Sure, I've been a tourist before. I just try not to be a dumbass too.
 

gospeedracer

Chat Mom
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Feb 8, 2000
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LOL oabike! Sounds like you should post a sign outside your shop with directions to the Information Kiosk just around the corner on Cabrillo. :)Speaking of dumbasses..... I just figured out what "oabike" stands for! :confused:
 

oabike

Member
May 15, 2001
69
0
And another thing......those dumbass 4-wheel 6 passenger bikes that all the tourists ride on the bike path by the beach are called surreys, they are not Open Air Bicycles!!!!!!!!!! Thats just the name of my shop.
 
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