T Break thread 2023

[VIVA GT]

One simple trick I've used in the past to check suspicious emails is to click the 'reply' button and check the address. I have had instances where although the stated address that the email has come from looks authentic, the actual reply email is totally different!

[Gerard C]

Originally Posted by VIVA GT

One simple trick I've used in the past to check suspicious emails is to click the 'reply' button and check the address. I have had instances where although the stated address that the email has come from looks authentic, the actual reply email is totally different!

Thanks. Have to check the last one I received for a forum tho…

[Tel 911S]

Originally Posted by VIVA GT

One simple trick I've used in the past to check suspicious emails is to click the 'reply' button and check the address. I have had instances where although the stated address that the email has come from looks authentic, the actual reply email is totally different!

I find that if you hover the pointer over the senders Name ? , that will usually tell you the country it comes from and the real name .
Usually best not to click on anything until you are sure it is real .

[Gerard C]

Originally Posted by Tel 911S

Usually best not to click on anything until you are sure it is real .

Works in a zoo.

[Tel 911S]

Originally Posted by Gerard C

Works in a zoo.

Also in nightclubs , bars and a lot of other places

[Gerard C]

[Mike Harte]

Today's rant is about driving standards on the roads.

I had to go down to Hertfordshire over the weekend to help one of my sons clear his house of stuff that my late daughter in law was going to do before they went to live in Japan. Due to the rail strikes and the fact that I might need to bring stuff back up here, I drove down. Going I went via the A1 and returning I chose the M1.

The weather was atrocious on the Saturday which made it a really unpleasant experience especially when overtaking HGVs and it seemed as though no road maintenance had been done for years with potholes nearly all the way down. the worst part of the trip was joining the A1 from the M62 where they were supposedly doing some roadworks on the A1 although for the 2 miles or so of the works, no-one was was actually working and the road was reduced to a single lane. To get to the single lane, traffic was filtering in from both directions of the M62 causing havoc and with impatient drivers swapping lanes that took over an hour which I will never get back.

Although all the A1 should really be converted to a motorway, in the non-motorway 3 lane parts I often witnessed 3 HGVs abreast which would be illegal on motorways although I'm not certain about on other roads.

Coming back on the M1 was an eye opener, and boy did you need your eyes open. Firstly, lane hogging was absolutely ridiculous and it seemed to make any difference whether the drivers were male or female or any creed; they just sat in in lane 2 of 3 or lane 3 of 4 regardless of whatever speed they were doing.

But far, far more dangerous than that was that I witnessed on many occasions that these drivers seemed to dislike being passed by cars that were travelling at just a few miles an hour faster; I could literally see them in front of me accelerating so that they would be keeping pace or going slightly faster than the overtaking vehicle.

I tried to keep a steady pace the whole way and often passed a slower car and then a few miles down the road they would come sailing past and then slow down again to the speed at which I first passed them. One car in particular did this to me a couple of times and it was so annoying that I decided to take a comfort break so that they disappeared rather than playing their silly game.

I used to really enjoy driving, but thankfully I don't need to do much nowadays because I get no joy from it any more. And that's rant over!

[VIVA GT]

Mike, I do feel your pain, driving on UK roads is certainly no fun anymore for all of the reasons you've mentioned.
Like you, I always try and maintain a steady cruising speed when driving on the motorway (being tight-fisted I've found this helps with fuel economy!) and nowadays this is helped by using cruise control. On our longer journeys to places like Cornwall I am continually annoyed/dumbfounded by car drivers who appear from nowhere in my mirrors, come bombing past me and after a short while, slow so that I have to overtake them (to retain my constant speed) and the a few miles later, they repeat the process! I'll be driving either of our 'normal' family cars (not some rare classic that they may want to photograph) and generally these drivers appear to have no interest in us either.
All very strange.

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by Mike Harte

But far, far more dangerous than that was that I witnessed on many occasions that these drivers seemed to dislike being passed by cars that were travelling at just a few miles an hour faster; I could literally see them in front of me accelerating so that they would be keeping pace or going slightly faster than the overtaking vehicle.

I tried to keep a steady pace the whole way and often passed a slower car and then a few miles down the road they would come sailing past and then slow down again to the speed at which I first passed them. One car in particular did this to me a couple of times and it was so annoying that I decided to take a comfort break so that they disappeared rather than playing their silly game.

This is probably the one part of UK drivers' mentality that I never understand.

If I am going from point A to point B, and another driver is going from point C to point D, our journeys may merge at a certain stretch of road.
Each of our respective journeys is entirely unrelated to the other, and our purposes are mutually exclusive.

So why do some drivers begin to act as if they are in competition with the other? Surely the easiest (and safest) way to proceed is to just get on with your own journey, and not worry about the other driver's progress?

[Peter Mallett]

Don't know if it is restricted to the M25, where I've often seen it, but cars, usually either pick ups or "slammed" Golf's and Novas, weaving in and out of traffic that is already at or around the speed limit. This includes running down the Hard Shoulder (if there is one).

[Tel 911S]

Originally Posted by VIVA GT

Mike, I do feel your pain, driving on UK roads is certainly no fun anymore for all of the reasons you've mentioned.
Like you, I always try and maintain a steady cruising speed when driving on the motorway (being tight-fisted I've found this helps with fuel economy!) and nowadays this is helped by using cruise control. On our longer journeys to places like Cornwall I am continually annoyed/dumbfounded by car drivers who appear from nowhere in my mirrors, come bombing past me and after a short while, slow so that I have to overtake them (to retain my constant speed) and the a few miles later, they repeat the process! I'll be driving either of our 'normal' family cars (not some rare classic that they may want to photograph) and generally these drivers appear to have no interest in us either.
All very strange.

I have done a lot more driving than most people , and I believe that you are correct in that the driving standards in this country have gone very much downhill over the last 20 or 30 years .
At one time , many years ago , UK roads had some of the best drivers in Europe , but now they are among some of the worst .

Just remember what George Carlin said . " The average driver is pretty poor , which means that half of them are worse than that "

[GORDON STREETER]

Originally Posted by crmalcolm

This is probably the one part of UK drivers' mentality that I never understand.

If you think that driving in the UK is bad I suggest that you pop down to Spain and have a drive in the towns, parking on pedestrian crossings/stopping on the road to talk to their mate on the other side whilst blocking the road completely/parking using as many spaces as possible/never use indicators etc etc, I could go on !! I won't mention push bike pelotons holding up traffic for miles, Oh I just did

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by GORDON STREETER

If you think that driving in the UK is bad I suggest that you pop down to Spain and have a drive in the towns, parking on pedestrian crossings/stopping on the road to talk to their mate on the other side whilst blocking the road completely/parking using as many spaces as possible/never use indicators etc etc, I could go on !! I won't mention push bike pelotons holding up traffic for miles, Oh I just did

This is current local driving conditions:



Note that this is a two-way road. Also see the car in the bottom left and the scooter on the pavement in the top right. Neither is abnormal!!!

[morninggents]

Originally Posted by crmalcolm

This is current local driving conditions:



Note that this is a two-way road. Also see the car in the bottom left and the scooter on the pavement in the top right. Neither is abnormal!!!

Which country is this? Not UK.

[Mike Harte]

Originally Posted by GORDON STREETER

If you think that driving in the UK is bad I suggest that you pop down to Spain and have a drive in the towns, parking on pedestrian crossings/stopping on the road to talk to their mate on the other side whilst blocking the road completely/parking using as many spaces as possible/never use indicators etc etc, I could go on !! I won't mention push bike pelotons holding up traffic for miles, Oh I just did

You've just reminded me of two things that I saw when in Spain. First one was in the car park of a large supermarket when I witnessed an old man attempting to park in a reasonably decent parking space. With the assistance/directions of his wife standing outside of the car he managed to hit 4 cars; two on the opposite row behind him plus the two on either side of the space that he was trying to get into. After all that he gave up and drove off elsewhere, no doubt bashing a few more cars.

The other thing that astounded me was on one of my trips to Barcelona where I found, on more than one occasion, that people double parked on the side of a large roundabout which was somewhere near Barcelona Sant station.

And in response to crm, Paris used to be the worst for cars, taxis and mopeds/scooters to drive on the pavements. Whether that still applies, I know not.

[BertMk2]

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

... pick ups or "slammed" Golf's and Novas, weaving in and out of traffic

I think you're driving in the 1990's not on the M25 you don't see many Novas around these days!

Agree about the state of driving on the M25 though - it's certainly 'an experience'. Usual culprits are in knackered old 3 series beemers.

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by morninggents

Which country is this? Not UK.

A quiet day on the streets of Napoli.

[Gerard C]

Originally Posted by Mike Harte

And in response to crm, Paris used to be the worst for cars, taxis and mopeds/scooters to drive on the pavements. Whether that still applies, I know not.

Of course it does! You can add trottinettes, electric or not, tuk-tuks and many other bad things on wheels. As to the pavement, should you need a piece of, you can find them in many shops now… And I find that the driving standards are far better in England than here. Re the cruise-control thing, it gives strange situations on the highways, overtaking can take ages depending on the settings.

[John Elwin]

Originally Posted by Gerard C

Of course it does! You can add trottinettes, electric or not, tuk-tuks and many other bad things on wheels. As to the pavement, should you need a piece of, you can find them in many shops now… And I find that the driving standards are far better in England than here. Re the cruise-control thing, it gives strange situations on the highways, overtaking can take ages depending on the settings.

Sorry Gerard, I can't agree with you there - driving in France is a lot better than England, or at least it is up here. You of course are in Paris...

One of the worst things now is following a new car fitted with the Brussels 'spy in the cab nonsense'. The minute it reaches the speed limit, or the limit changes, it's like they throw an anchor out of the window! Very frustrating & not a little dangerous.

[Mike Harte]

Originally Posted by John Elwin

You of course are in Paris...

In '89/90, I took the winter off from work, and did most of the ski season, acting as a ski guide in Les Deux Alpes. However, I did drive back to Hertfordshire on the odd weekends to check up on how things were going in the businesses, before returning to the mountains on the Sunday.

Whether it was the best or right way to do the trips, I always drove around the Périphérique from the A6 to the A1, which I used to thoroughly enjoy, but only because I drove like the utterly mad Parisienne drivers; it was absolutely bonkers, especially at rush hours. Great fun!

Loved driving on the toll Autoroutes because of the lack of any police patrolling. The trick was to drive as quickly as you wanted but to then stop at the last services before the toll exit. And the French being most helpful used to always have a big sign on the roadside telling you that the last service area of the toll section was coming up. So, all those with the knowledge of how it operated would rest up for a few minutes whilst enjoying the facilities available , before driving at the speed limit to the toll booths.

Even better, back then you could sometimes drive miles without seeing another car, and even fewer trucks. Someone told me that the French objected paying the tolls, so avoided them like the plague.

For those who are unaware of their system, the speed limits are "enforced" by the time taken between various toll booths, and if you take less time the Gendarmerie were always on hand to give you speeding ticket which, for foreign driven cars, had to be paid on the spot before you could go on your way.

[midgetman]

When travelling in the Sprinter I set the cruise control well below 70 to try and get some economy from the thing. It's amazing how many times I overtake the same car, and I absolutely know it's not me changing speed!

Sent from my AC2003 using Tapatalk

[John Elwin]

Originally Posted by Mike Harte

In '89/90, I took the winter off from work, and did most of the ski season, acting as a ski guide in Les Deux Alpes. However, I did drive back to Hertfordshire on the odd weekends to check up on how things were going in the businesses, before returning to the mountains on the Sunday.

Whether it was the best or right way to do the trips, I always drove around the Périphérique from the A6 to the A1, which I used to thoroughly enjoy, but only because I drove like the utterly mad Parisienne drivers; it was absolutely bonkers, especially at rush hours. Great fun!

Loved driving on the toll Autoroutes because of the lack of any police patrolling. The trick was to drive as quickly as you wanted but to then stop at the last services before the toll exit. And the French being most helpful used to always have a big sign on the roadside telling you that the last service area of the toll section was coming up. So, all those with the knowledge of how it operated would rest up for a few minutes whilst enjoying the facilities available , before driving at the speed limit to the toll booths.

Even better, back then you could sometimes drive miles without seeing another car, and even fewer trucks. Someone told me that the French objected paying the tolls, so avoided them like the plague.

For those who are unaware of their system, the speed limits are "enforced" by the time taken between various toll booths, and if you take less time the Gendarmerie were always on hand to give you speeding ticket which, for foreign driven cars, had to be paid on the spot before you could go on your way.

Autoroutes can still be pretty quiet, especially now the cost of the tolls have risen. I've never really known whether to believe the story about speeding on the autopoutes. I've never seen it in action, not that I use toll roads very often. We've got a long drive down to Angouleme in September (anyone here going?) so I will to find a route avoiding them as much as possible. The return route will be a bit circuitous, taking in three of Michele's relatives in Poitiers, Nantes & Tours!

[Gerard C]

Originally Posted by John Elwin

You of course are in Paris...

Sure John, and I feel better in Lyon or even Marseille where people have better driving standard imo.

I dont think the average speed is checked at toll, now, there are so many automatic radars and on-board radars too. I've been checked once, doing Paris-Rennes but reading the average speed calculated from the tickets they thought the computer was wrong!

I still use the toll autoroutes because of the numerous gaz stations and the recovery patrols (at cost!). Quite helpful at night when towing a race car.
I think you'll love Les Remparts, John, relaxed atmosphere, and good racing.

[Mike Harte]

John, it definitely was how it operated back then. On one occasion, a few of us were waiting to exit through the toll booths, one of which had a light flashing on the roof. The gendarmes came over and took the car and driver over to the side, and fined him; and it was cash only to be paid on the spot. The driver then went over to every right-hand driver car asking for a hand out to pay the fine, as he claimed to have no money on him.

[Gerard C]

Originally Posted by Mike Harte

The driver then went over to every right-hand driver car asking for a hand out to pay the fine, as he claimed to have no money on him.

It does not work like that in Belgium, at least when a French is caught, you have to leave the car where it is and cops bring you to the next cash window. It must be Royale Gendarmerie if I remember well. No fun to expect with those.