Turn signals and you

We've all heard the joke. A blond has her boyfriend change a turn signal light bulb because her turn signals stopped working. He changed the bulb and then asked her to go to the back of the car to see if it was working. He hit the signal, asked her if it was working and she said "yes, no, yes, no, yes, no...." Funny when I was fourteen. Now.....not so much.

We all have seen a "seasoned driver" driving down the road, with the left turn signal blinking and blinking and blinking. I am sure they will make a left turn eventually, just maybe not today.

For those of you who have ever visited Chicago, or live there, you know that turn signals do not work there. Drivers in Chicago use ESP (Extra Scary Possibilities) This means that the possibility of the person in front of you making a erratic turn or lane change to the right or left is at any time possible, and if you are not alert, it will scare the bejesus out of you. If you have never experienced this, I highly recommend it. It will give you a new appreciation for life, liberty, and the pursuit of clean underwear. (A little known line in the bill of rights)

Turn signals are a necessary tool for safe driving. So easy to use, and yet so under utilized. I know it is a lot of work to push that little lever up or down. Thank God they return to a neutral position most of the time, or they would NEVER get used.

But don't let them scare you. They can be our friend. You have probably seen a truck driver going down the highway with a line of traffic next to them and their turn signal on like one of those "seasoned drivers" There is a reason for that. Wanna know what it is? Well, I am going to tell you anyways!

Truck drivers not only use them to let you know what they are planning on doing, we use them as a clearing device. Let me explain.

As I have written before, the sight lines of a truck are limited. Even with all the mirrors we have, there are still several blind spots. There are tricks to seeing these vehicles, such as looking for shadows, or reflections of light under our trailers at night. But these blind spots make changing lanes an especially dangerous task. So many drivers use the ten second rule.

First you turn on the turn signal. for the next 3 seconds, we look in our mirrors and "clear" them. All this means is we make sure that there are no vehicles next to us. Then we take 7 seconds to change lanes. At least the considerate drivers do. 18 wheelers have a very high center of gravity, and changing lanes too quickly could cause the trailer to flex and force the truck into a very undesirable position. That is also why we take exit and entrance ramps slower than a car. Rollovers are never good and can put a crimp in an otherwise really good day.

So, while we are making this lane change, we are looking in our mirrors, 90% of the time, glancing forward occasionally to make sure traffic is still moving in front of us. We do this because many times, impatient drivers will try to scoot around us even though we have clearly stated our intentions with the use of that pesky little turn signal. We need to be ready to change lanes back at the drop of a hat AND make sure we do not do it too quickly because of that whole rollover thingy.

So, if you are next to a truck and you see that turn signal on, don't panic and think he is coming over right away (Although some drivers do because they are only worried about themselves). Just accelerate and get out of his way, or if there are too many cars in front of you to accomplish this, slow down and let him over. Remember, he may not see you, and that few seconds you may save by getting in front of him is not worth the risk of being run over.

You may have noticed a theme in some of my posts. Give trucks plenty of space. Most truck drivers try to manage their space safely. Some do not. I do not want to see anybody stuck next to one of those drivers when he decides to change lanes.

And if there are any of "those" drivers reading my little ole blog.......CHECK YOUR MIRRORS AND SLOW YOUR BUTT DOWN. THAT MIGHT BE MY FAMILY OR FRIENDS NEXT TO YOU. I WATCH OUT FOR YOUR FAMILY, PLEASE WATCH OUT FOR MINE! (yes, I was yelling there!)

Drive safe ya'll. See ya out there.