And "I" Walked away

MrMoparCHP

Old Man with a Hat
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Lompoc, CA
Ok, we all have our stories, I'll start.

I believe it was Jan/Feb 1982 and I had my driver licence for about a year now. At the time I was driving a 1955 Chevy but it was not running so I borrowed my mothers 1978 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Brougham, his car was fully loaded and a great car to drive.

Either way I was on my way home from school midday about 1:00 and cruising in the number 1 lane at maybe 65 (old 55 MPH days), this freeway is straight as an arrow for 10 miles but at the midpoint the whole freeway jogs over about 100' and continues, so first a right sweep then a left sweep after a 100 yard straight.

Well needless to say I made the first sweep but not the second, zzzzzzzzz bump, bam, awake now and fully aware of what just happened and where I was. At this point the landscape shoulder is a 20' drop down an embankment. Not wanting to end up in a houses backyard i turned the wheel with hopes that the car would turn. I managed to keep the car in the right of way and stop it gradually. I think it was about 150 yards.

Once stopped I get out of the car and step through the fence that just got pushed over and asked if I could use a phone. The lady was frantic, "is everybody ok!!?" "I'm fine" (calmly), "what about the driver!!?" "I'm fine" (still calm). I call my brother and head back out just to get the same spiel from someone from the freeway side. I circle the car the best I could with the front end nosed into a bush, hmm? doesn't look all that bad?

About this time the CHP shows up along with my brother and mother, I I speak with them briefly before talking with the officer. I backtrack with the officer telling him how I borrowed the car and must have been way to comfortable compared to my noisy 55 Chevy. We get to the point where I made the turn along the fence and there is this 20' sweeping furrow from where the front right wheel dug in. The office looks at me and say impressive, most people end up in this yard pointing to the house at that point. We turn to go up the embankment but there were no tracks leading into the sweeping furrow. We continue up the embankment and stop at a tree trunk that was about 3' high and ripped in shreds, it was about 9" in diameter, he tells me I didn't do that but probably cleared it, a week earlier a big rig sheared it off, most likely would have stopped me. Back up to the freeway we see the impact marks and they line directly with the number 1 lane, oops.

We walk back the shoulder and by this time the tow company was pulling the car up and I was trying to tell them to be careful pulling over the curb. My family needed to go so I didn't stay to see the car as it was loaded.

The next day I go to the body shop and look at the car, ouch!

The insurance totaled to car and my parents replaced it with a new 1982 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Brougham, my mother never liked that car as much and I'd have to agree.

My only injury was a sore thumb from hooking the steering wheel on impact. To this day I do not hold the steering wheel with my thumbs inside the wheel, keep them up on the face.

olds-34.jpg


Not a great picture, driver side was almost straight, passenger side bent up about 9"

Ever since then I take every yawn, head nod very seriously.


Alan
 
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Ah, first car accident. Well here are my shots which I like for the cars in the picture. Good car spotting. the first shot looks down the road I was driving up. Where the truck is was a car trying to make a left turn. I came up alongside the truck intending to go straight like everyone else. As I get there at 40 mph a car, from the opposite side starts a left turn, sees me , and then stops! I now have no way out and no way to avoid. On one side a car and the other side a curb and light poles. I angle slightly right putting the left corner of the Cougar into the right fender, in front of the tire, of a 1965 Ford Galaxie. It's hood flew open and the battery flew out down the street. I was wearing my seat and shoulder belt as taught, so hit the shoulder belt, and my glasses flew off into the windshield.

The driver is in the purple dress and if she had kept going we would have cleared. She tried telling the officer that I was running the red light. I could see, from off to the side, the officer shaking his head as in yeah right. My car is down the street in the second picture barely visible past the yellow merging traffic sign. My car needed a new left fender, a new bumper and an inner apron. Hers was a mess. Not knowing anything about body work I later found corners the dealer cut. They put the hood latch in upside down. They didn't create the typical square cut outs in the top of the apron for j-clips to hold the fender on. They just drilled holes through the apron and put nuts on the back of the fender bolts. Had that been several years later they would have never gotten away with that. They were sloppy with their painting, though, and I insisted on it being right which they did under threat from AAA.

Location Mission Gorge Rd. Santee, CA.
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rsz_1accident_1970_012.jpg
 
Ok, we all have our stories, I'll start.

I believe it was Jan/Feb 1982 and I had my driver licence for about a year now. At the time I was driving a 1955 Chevy but it was not running so I borrowed my mothers 1978 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Brougham, his car was fully loaded and a great car to drive.

Either way I was on my way home from school midday about 1:00 and cruising in the number 1 lane at maybe 65 (old 55 MPH days), this freeway is straight as an arrow for 10 miles but at the midpoint the whole freeway jogs over about 100' and continues, so first a right sweep then a left sweep after a 100 yard straight.

Well needless to say I made the first sweep but not the second, zzzzzzzzz bump, bam, awake now and fully aware of what just happened and where I was. At this point the landscape shoulder is a 20' drop down an embankment. Not wanting to end up in a houses backyard i turned the wheel with hopes that the car would turn. I managed to keep the car in the right of way and stop it gradually. I think it was about 150 yards.

Once stopped I get out of the car and step through the fence that just got pushed over and asked if I could use a phone. The lady was frantic, "is everybody ok!!?" "I'm fine" (calmly), "what about the driver!!?" "I'm fine" (still calm). I call my brother and head back out just to get the same spiel from someone from the freeway side. I circle the car the best I could with the front end nosed into a bush, hmm? doesn't look all that bad?

About this time the CHP shows up along with my brother and mother, I I speak with them briefly before talking with the officer. I backtrack with the officer telling him how I borrowed the car and must have been way to comfortable compared to my noisy 55 Chevy. We get to the point where I made the turn along the fence and there is this 20' sweeping furrow from where the front right wheel dug in. The office looks at me and say impressive, most people end up in this yard pointing to the house at that point. We turn to go up the embankment but there were no tracks leading into the sweeping furrow. We continue up the embankment and stop at a tree trunk that was about 3' high and ripped in shreds, it was about 9" in diameter, he tells me I didn't do that but probably cleared it, a week earlier a big rig sheared it off, most likely would have stopped me. Back up to the freeway we see the impact marks and they line directly with the number 1 lane, oops.

We walk back the shoulder and by this time the tow company was pulling the car up and I was trying to tell them to be careful pulling over the curb. My family needed to go so I didn't stay to see the car as it was loaded.

The next day I go to the body shop and look at the car, ouch!

The insurance totaled to car and my parents replaced it with a new 1982 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Brougham, my mother never liked that car as much and I'd have to agree.

My only injury was a sore thumb from hooking the steering wheel on impact. To this day I do not hold the steering wheel with my thumbs inside the wheel, keep them up on the face.

olds-34.jpg


Not a great picture, driver side was almost straight, passenger side bent up about 9"

Ever since then I take every yawn, head nod very seriously.


Alan
All young drivers have had their own "wake up call" behind the wheel. Glad you made it through so you could do the great job on your Polara.
 
Ok, we all have our stories, I'll start.

I believe it was Jan/Feb 1982 and I had my driver licence for about a year now. At the time I was driving a 1955 Chevy but it was not running so I borrowed my mothers 1978 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Brougham, his car was fully loaded and a great car to drive.

Either way I was on my way home from school midday about 1:00 and cruising in the number 1 lane at maybe 65 (old 55 MPH days), this freeway is straight as an arrow for 10 miles but at the midpoint the whole freeway jogs over about 100' and continues, so first a right sweep then a left sweep after a 100 yard straight.

Well needless to say I made the first sweep but not the second, zzzzzzzzz bump, bam, awake now and fully aware of what just happened and where I was. At this point the landscape shoulder is a 20' drop down an embankment. Not wanting to end up in a houses backyard i turned the wheel with hopes that the car would turn. I managed to keep the car in the right of way and stop it gradually. I think it was about 150 yards.

Once stopped I get out of the car and step through the fence that just got pushed over and asked if I could use a phone. The lady was frantic, "is everybody ok!!?" "I'm fine" (calmly), "what about the driver!!?" "I'm fine" (still calm). I call my brother and head back out just to get the same spiel from someone from the freeway side. I circle the car the best I could with the front end nosed into a bush, hmm? doesn't look all that bad?

About this time the CHP shows up along with my brother and mother, I I speak with them briefly before talking with the officer. I backtrack with the officer telling him how I borrowed the car and must have been way to comfortable compared to my noisy 55 Chevy. We get to the point where I made the turn along the fence and there is this 20' sweeping furrow from where the front right wheel dug in. The office looks at me and say impressive, most people end up in this yard pointing to the house at that point. We turn to go up the embankment but there were no tracks leading into the sweeping furrow. We continue up the embankment and stop at a tree trunk that was about 3' high and ripped in shreds, it was about 9" in diameter, he tells me I didn't do that but probably cleared it, a week earlier a big rig sheared it off, most likely would have stopped me. Back up to the freeway we see the impact marks and they line directly with the number 1 lane, oops.

We walk back the shoulder and by this time the tow company was pulling the car up and I was trying to tell them to be careful pulling over the curb. My family needed to go so I didn't stay to see the car as it was loaded.

The next day I go to the body shop and look at the car, ouch!

The insurance totaled to car and my parents replaced it with a new 1982 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Brougham, my mother never liked that car as much and I'd have to agree.

My only injury was a sore thumb from hooking the steering wheel on impact. To this day I do not hold the steering wheel with my thumbs inside the wheel, keep them up on the face.

olds-34.jpg


Not a great picture, driver side was almost straight, passenger side bent up about 9"

Ever since then I take every yawn, head nod very seriously.


Alan
Glad you're still here, man. My first and only real accident was with my first girlfriend behind the wheel. First and only time I didn't wear my seatbelt. Pushed the windshield out about 6" with my forehead... good times.
 
The "I walked away" accident I was in happened in December of 1979.

I was with this girl in her 68 Camaro and we were headed back to her place. The roads were getting slick and I told her to slow down. She wouldn't listen and decided to pass a car. The road had turned to black ice by this time. Two lane blacktop country road.

As we passed and she pulled back in, the rear of the car came around and she lost it. The car hit the deep ditch on the left side of the road, rode up the side of the ditch and rolled once, landing on its wheels.

Neither one of us had seat belts on. The dome light came on as we hit and I remember watching her and her purse roll around on the inside of the car. I ducked down and held on.

The car behind us stopped and helped her out through the windshield... They walked away with her and left me there to crawl out myself.

There's more to the story... dealing with the cops was good for a laugh, but I'm not going to bore you guys.

The painful part of the story is the next day, I found out that two of my childhood friends, from my neighborhood, had been killed by a drunk driver on the same evening. These guys were the same age and were my real buddies growing up.
 
No seat belts??? Man, that was drilled into us when taking driver's training in 1969. Effective since I have never gotten into a car without putting it on first thing. I feel naked in a car without it around me. Now ask my son what happens to his ear drums if he doesn't put his on in the back.
 
Here is the story of the one I walked away from, in other threads you have heard me say the 1969 Imperial my father had saved my life. Here is the full story, Christmas eve 1972 we had a party at our house, one of my dads friends got to tipsy, so my dad asked me to drive him home.
Dropped him off at his house and was driving on a four lane road, when I see headlights going from side to side of the road. Being a very young driver, (only had my licence 8 months) I figured the best place was to pull over to the side. The idiot driving a brand new Camero sure enough came right at me, I was just smart enough to hit the gas and he hit the car just behind the drivers door and took off the rest of the side.
What made it so really bad was we were just over the crest of a small hill, and coming up behind me was a couple in a Cadillac, and well they unfortunately hit head on and did not survive.
I still to this day freak if someone driving comes at me head on.
 
You were going to Have sexual Relations with a Chevy chick!?!
Yes, I was and yes, I did... She had two Camaros.. a new one and the 68. Rich girl too... She dropped me like a hot rock a while later.
 
Here is the story of the one I walked away from, in other threads you have heard me say the 1969 Imperial my father had saved my life. Here is the full story, Christmas eve 1972 we had a party at our house, one of my dads friends got to tipsy, so my dad asked me to drive him home.
Dropped him off at his house and was driving on a four lane road, when I see headlights going from side to side of the road. Being a very young driver, (only had my licence 8 months) I figured the best place was to pull over to the side. The idiot driving a brand new Camero sure enough came right at me, I was just smart enough to hit the gas and he hit the car just behind the drivers door and took off the rest of the side.
What made it so really bad was we were just over the crest of a small hill, and coming up behind me was a couple in a Cadillac, and well they unfortunately hit head on and did not survive.
I still to this day freak if someone driving comes at me head on.

Hmm, wonder what would have happened had you turned your lights off and not presented a homing beacon?
 
Hmm, wonder what would have happened had you turned your lights off and not presented a homing beacon?
After his autopsy, they said he had so much alcohol in his system it probably wouldn't have made a difference. The main thing is I am here today to bug the poop out of you guys.
 
My story was about 2 years ago on the move to Texas from California. My father joined me for the drive out here. I was coming out 2 weeks before the wife and kids to get the house ready. My 2005 Chevy Tahoe towing a 28" trailer with a bunch of stuff for the move (clothes, valuables, misc). We were about 10 miles outside of the town of Ozona on July 5th and were rear-ended. The trailer spun around into the #2 lane then eventually started to roll and drug the Tahoe with it. I don't remember much, my dad says we rolled 2x before coming to a stop on the roof. We were able to unbuckle ourselves and had to kick the passenger door open to crawl out onto Highway 10. My dad hurt his knee a bit and we both were sore the next day, but we walked away.

The bastard that hit us turned tail and ran. His car broke down 20 miles down the road due to a busted radiator. The cops picked him up and for a misdemeanor - excessive speed and fleeing the scene of an accident. I felt like it should have been something more along the lines of criminal negligence. The son of a ***** almost killed us.
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After that I started taking life a little less serious and started to look around and enjoy things more.
 
I have been very fortunate to have never been in any kind of serious accident, but the stories I have heard from a friend of mine WOW!!! He should have been dead a few times but cancer got him in the end at 80yrs old
 
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