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Last Saturday afternoon I was driving home in heavy fog. Suddenly coming towards me was a BMW SUV at least 75% in my lane. I managed to brake heavily and drift

Last Saturday afternoon I was driving home in heavy fog. Suddenly coming towards me was a BMW SUV at least 75% in my lane. I managed to brake heavily and drift towards the outside verge. We didn’t hit. It’s about the closest I’ve come to a head on collision. With my whole family in the car, there was utter silence for the next several minutes. Pretty sure I nearly died three days ago.

antipotoad 4y ago
From one survivor of a near-certain-death scenario to another: glad that you’re still here with us to tell your story. No two experiences are alike, but don’t be surprised if it takes you a long while to process what happened. Good that you’re able to talk about it here; if you can, I encourage you to talk to your family about it, even if only to let them know you acknowledge it happened. (Then again, feel free to ignore the unsolicited advice of an internet stranger, but if you say you nearly died, then you’re likely in shock to a degree. Maybe this sounds excessive, but consider professional support.)
- phillc73 4y ago
  Comment appreciated. My wife, in the front seat next to me, and I were certainly in shock. We pulled over and had a 15 minutes rest while the adrenaline wore off. We breathed deeply and talked about what had just happened. I used to commute in London for many years on a motorcyle and also raced them for a few years. I've had my share of near misses and ended up in hospital once. That was all somehow different - it was only me in danger usually and at least when racing I was always hyper aware that things can go bad fast. This was a totally different experience. Completely innocuous one might think, on a road regularly traveled, at legal speeds. I think having my family with me made a big difference to my reaction. It wasn't just me in danger any more.
  - antipotoad 4y ago
    Glad to be of even the smallest help. I think you have the right head on for dealing with this. Just keep open the door to communication with all the others, especially since the shock will fade differently for each of you. All I can say is that it took me a long time to regain the appetite for calculated risk. My companion in the scenario seemingly shrugged it right off, but only through keeping talking did I know otherwise.
cassepipe 4y ago
In case you had hit, a deadly accident would be more likely because of the SUV's weigh. A 4000 pounds vehicle contains has twice the energy of a 2000 pounds vehicle at the same speed. Just another example of inequality in face of death between rich and poor.
- hex4def6 4y ago
  The solution, obviously*, is to just drive faster if you're in a light vehicle, to match the SUV's kinetic energy. If they're going 40 MPH, you just need to go ~60MPH, thanks to the v^2 in the kinetic energy equation. *(/s)
  - TeMPOraL 4y ago
    Equality of outcome, that's indeed the modern western take on things. That v² in there also means that, if enough people follow your advice, we'll eventually start seeing SUVs equipped with reactive armor.
    - chowells 4y ago
      No one reasonable wants blind equality of outcome. They want an to understand the cause of the differences, and they want that cause to be moral. That's far different from proclaiming either that there is no problem or that outcomes are to be measured blindly.
    - dbspin 4y ago
      An arms race of sorts is inevitable. Your reactive armour will be worthless in the face of my active measures. Innocent casualties are inevitable, but they're the price we pay for freedom.
      - andrecarini 4y ago
        > Your reactive armour will be worthless in the face of my active measures. Suddenly [1] isn't so ridiculous anymore... [1]: https://youtu.be/k7YVxLLIuGM?t=149 https://youtu.be/k7YVxLLIuGM?t=149

antipotoad 4y ago

From one survivor of a near-certain-death scenario to another: glad that you’re still here with us to tell your story. No two experiences are alike, but don’t be surprised if it takes you a long while to process what happened. Good that you’re able to talk about it here; if you can, I encourage you to talk to your family about it, even if only to let them know you acknowledge it happened. (Then again, feel free to ignore the unsolicited advice of an internet stranger, but if you say you nearly died, then you’re likely in shock to a degree. Maybe this sounds excessive, but consider professional support.)

phillc73 4y ago
Comment appreciated. My wife, in the front seat next to me, and I were certainly in shock. We pulled over and had a 15 minutes rest while the adrenaline wore off. We breathed deeply and talked about what had just happened. I used to commute in London for many years on a motorcyle and also raced them for a few years. I've had my share of near misses and ended up in hospital once. That was all somehow different - it was only me in danger usually and at least when racing I was always hyper aware that things can go bad fast. This was a totally different experience. Completely innocuous one might think, on a road regularly traveled, at legal speeds. I think having my family with me made a big difference to my reaction. It wasn't just me in danger any more.
- antipotoad 4y ago
  Glad to be of even the smallest help. I think you have the right head on for dealing with this. Just keep open the door to communication with all the others, especially since the shock will fade differently for each of you. All I can say is that it took me a long time to regain the appetite for calculated risk. My companion in the scenario seemingly shrugged it right off, but only through keeping talking did I know otherwise.

cassepipe 4y ago

In case you had hit, a deadly accident would be more likely because of the SUV's weigh. A 4000 pounds vehicle contains has twice the energy of a 2000 pounds vehicle at the same speed. Just another example of inequality in face of death between rich and poor.

hex4def6 4y ago
The solution, obviously*, is to just drive faster if you're in a light vehicle, to match the SUV's kinetic energy. If they're going 40 MPH, you just need to go ~60MPH, thanks to the v^2 in the kinetic energy equation. *(/s)
- TeMPOraL 4y ago
  Equality of outcome, that's indeed the modern western take on things. That v² in there also means that, if enough people follow your advice, we'll eventually start seeing SUVs equipped with reactive armor.
  - chowells 4y ago
    No one reasonable wants blind equality of outcome. They want an to understand the cause of the differences, and they want that cause to be moral. That's far different from proclaiming either that there is no problem or that outcomes are to be measured blindly.
  - dbspin 4y ago
    An arms race of sorts is inevitable. Your reactive armour will be worthless in the face of my active measures. Innocent casualties are inevitable, but they're the price we pay for freedom.
    - andrecarini 4y ago
      > Your reactive armour will be worthless in the face of my active measures. Suddenly [1] isn't so ridiculous anymore... [1]: https://youtu.be/k7YVxLLIuGM?t=149 https://youtu.be/k7YVxLLIuGM?t=149