A Weapon Against Gappers?

Billsey · Posted: Tue Dec 01, 2009 9:16 am Post subject: A Weapon Against Gappers?

First, what is a "gapper"?

A gapper is someone who, when driving in very heavy traffic, insists on keeping an enormous (i. e. FAR more than needed) empty space in front of them, instead of moving with the traffic.

I think I might have happened upon a weapon against this behavior, but I'd like to hear the solutions of other victims of gappers first.

bern · Joined: Mar 12, 2007 Posts: 1487 Location: ann arbor

Billsey wrote:

First, what is a "gapper"?

A gapper is someone who, when driving in very heavy traffic, insists on keeping an enormous (i. e. FAR more than needed) empty space in front of them, instead of moving with the traffic.

I think I might have happened upon a weapon against this behavior, but I'd like to hear the solutions of other victims of gappers first.

I find, increasingly, that gappers are using their cellphone, and are not really paying attention to the road and traffic. Thus they are oblivious to tailgating, honking, finger displaying, etc. I usually just pass them (on the right if necessary) and leave them to their fate.

micker377 · Joined: May 27, 2005 Posts: 1059

You'll also find that "gappers" are the the ones driving the speed limit! Drive the legal speed limit and watch all the people pass all around you!

BudDurland · Joined: Dec 05, 2002 Posts: 526

[quote="Billsey"A gapper is someone who, when driving in very heavy traffic, insists on keeping an enormous (i. e. FAR more than needed) empty space in front of them, instead of moving with the traffic..[/quote]

If they are moving at the legal speed limit, exactly why is this bad, other than it prevents you from getting where you're going 3 seconds sooner? OTOH, the gapper had some extra room to navigate around the unexpected. I could be called a gapper, I suppose, especially when I'm on my motorcycle.

Billsey

kenmabmcc

Why is driving at the legal speed wrong ?

bern · Joined: Mar 12, 2007 Posts: 1487 Location: ann arbor

Driving at the speed limit is not wrong. But driving in such a way as to obstruct traffic is wrong.

Interestingly, around here the setting of speed limits on major roads is a somewhat arbitrary affair done by some bureaucrat. Occasionally, in response to requests, the traffic department will do a speed survey, and if the average speed is greater than the arbitrarily set limit, and there have been few accidents, the limit will be raised.

If everybody is driving faster than the limit in a certain stretch of road, it is likely that the limit is wrong and needs to be changed. And if somebody is obstructing traffic on such a road, that is wrong too.

CowpokeBob

kenmabmcc

bern · Joined: Mar 12, 2007 Posts: 1487 Location: ann arbor

Billsey

First of all, the incident that I have been referring to was going on in heavy traffic, so, no, the gapper was not driving the speed limit—not even close. In heavy traffic, yes, you keep a safe following distance—but you also KEEP UP WITH THE TRAFFIC. You do NOT lag behind it such that you are then being passed on all available sides at once. That does NOTHING for you and actually causes turbulence and accidents in the traffic flow—like a boulder placed in a stream. All you are doing is pissing other people off; if you're on the road for a power trip then you need to be off the road—perhaps permanently.

As to the motivation of the gapper in question, here is what I did:

I use my camera in my work, so when I 'm driving to work, I have it with me. In the case in question, when the gapper started misbehaving, I pulled out my camera, turned it on (didn't shoot any pictures or video, just turned it on), and held it on the steering wheel aimed at the gapper. The moment they looked in the rear view (and saw the camera aimed at them) they were off—they stopped gapping and hit the gas. Now, if they were not knowingly doing wrong, why did they react like that when they saw my camera?

CowpokeBob

CowpokeBob

xavierx · Joined: Nov 06, 2004 Posts: 5438

As someone who was hit and had his car totaled only a month ago because the person behind me wasn't paying enough attention and didn't leave enough of a gap, I'm now very fond of those "gappers"!!!

And in case anyone wants to argue that I was somehow at fault in getting hit from behind, I was 2 cars behind the person who "caused" the accident by cutting off the person in front of me on a highway where the speed limit is 55 mph. The person in front of me stopped and I stopped, but the person behind me hit me so hard that he pushed me into the car in front of me and totaled my minivan (both front and rear were crushed).

I also just got back from a 1750 mile round-trip vacation, almost exclusively on I-95. The speed limit was between 55 and 70. I stayed within 5 mph of the speed limit using the cruise control. I was passed quite frequently. It was also raining quite heavily for most of the trip, and some of those speeders ended up off the road into ditches and trees. Had I "kept up with traffic" I would have likely been one of them.

One final observation - the term is "speed limit", as in the maximum you are legally allowed to drive. It is by no means a minimum speed that you are required to travel. In fact, most of the states I was in on I-95 had a sign that said "Speed Limit 70 Minimum 45". If someone is going too slow for you, but still in the legal range, pass them! But stop the d*** aggressive driving that causes accidents like mine!

kenmabmcc

xavierx · Joined: Nov 06, 2004 Posts: 5438

All very good point, Ken.

Billsey

xavierx · Joined: Nov 06, 2004 Posts: 5438

So, why didn't you just go around like everyone else? Why a camera, why not beep your horn, the appropriate "weapon" to let someone know they're doing something dangerous?