Picked my son up from school yesterday. Come to the first traffic light beyond the school parking lot, about 200 yards away. Lights are red but the green right turn arrows are lit. Means you don't have to stop if you're turning right. High school guy driving a Chevy Blazer with two girls in the back is sitting there, not moving. I tap the horn. Move you goof. Kid rolls a few feet real slow then decides to go. I'm happy again. Now he's being a schmuck and driving real slow. It's a divided highway with a speed limit of 55mph. So I hit my turn signal and change lanes to pass him. Oh look, he's waving at me. Nope. He's got his middle finger plastered up against the window and a big smile on his face. I smile back, slow down and move in behind him. Not threatening, I keep the two second rule in mind.
Here comes the next traffic light. He decides to make a left turn and so do I. Traveling nice and easy down a side street we come to a stop sign and he runs it. I stop at the sign and follow. He makes a few turns through a residential neighborhood and I'm staying with him. He's not speeding and I'm not following very close but we never lose sight of each other. He finally pulls up in front of a house, I pull in behind him. I can see him smiling and laughing in the mirror. I put my car in park, take my seat belt off to go have a talk with the youngster and as soon as I remove the seat belt he takes off. So I follow him some more. We go by a couple of police cars parked in a gas station and I'm hoping that he stops to talk with them. Tell the cops some madman is following him. No such luck.
So we drive around for another 15 minutes or so going through residential neighborhoods. Each stop sign I stick my hand out the window and wave at him to stop. I notice the smile has left his face. He's also on his cell phone. I'm hoping he goes home, I'd like to say hi to his folks. No luck he just keeps driving. The next stop sign I'm waving my arm again and I see him roll his window down. He sticks his head and shoulders out the window and looks at me. No sign of that smile. I've got one now. Big one.
I stick my head part way out the window and I ask him why he thought I deserved that finger. I'm not yelling or threatening at all. I have a smile on my face. He says because I yelled at him. Kid is shaking in his boots. I replied I didn't yell at you, I honked at you for being stopped at a green light. You were busy talking with the girls in the back and weren't paying attention to driving. Then I told him I thought I deserved an apology for that finger he gave me. He agreed and said he was sorry. I said thank you for the apology. Then I told him to think before he acts because the next guy he flips off might not be as nice as me. He then went his way and I went mine.
That felt so good.
I decided at the beginning of the chase if the kid got stupid and tried to outrun me I would have let him go. With the exception of running the stop sign it was a very mundane car chase through the 'burbs. Never broke the speed limit.
But damn that felt good.
Here comes the next traffic light. He decides to make a left turn and so do I. Traveling nice and easy down a side street we come to a stop sign and he runs it. I stop at the sign and follow. He makes a few turns through a residential neighborhood and I'm staying with him. He's not speeding and I'm not following very close but we never lose sight of each other. He finally pulls up in front of a house, I pull in behind him. I can see him smiling and laughing in the mirror. I put my car in park, take my seat belt off to go have a talk with the youngster and as soon as I remove the seat belt he takes off. So I follow him some more. We go by a couple of police cars parked in a gas station and I'm hoping that he stops to talk with them. Tell the cops some madman is following him. No such luck.
So we drive around for another 15 minutes or so going through residential neighborhoods. Each stop sign I stick my hand out the window and wave at him to stop. I notice the smile has left his face. He's also on his cell phone. I'm hoping he goes home, I'd like to say hi to his folks. No luck he just keeps driving. The next stop sign I'm waving my arm again and I see him roll his window down. He sticks his head and shoulders out the window and looks at me. No sign of that smile. I've got one now. Big one.
I stick my head part way out the window and I ask him why he thought I deserved that finger. I'm not yelling or threatening at all. I have a smile on my face. He says because I yelled at him. Kid is shaking in his boots. I replied I didn't yell at you, I honked at you for being stopped at a green light. You were busy talking with the girls in the back and weren't paying attention to driving. Then I told him I thought I deserved an apology for that finger he gave me. He agreed and said he was sorry. I said thank you for the apology. Then I told him to think before he acts because the next guy he flips off might not be as nice as me. He then went his way and I went mine.
That felt so good.
I decided at the beginning of the chase if the kid got stupid and tried to outrun me I would have let him go. With the exception of running the stop sign it was a very mundane car chase through the 'burbs. Never broke the speed limit.
But damn that felt good.
Thanks for sharing Potawie!
