Saturday I was at B&B Spyder in Clearwater Florida to pickup my car after it had its last major surgery - a targa top. Things were a little hectic because I had to be in Gainesville at a certain time to pick up a cabinet for my wife. Mind you I made that trip alone, since Elvira is in the hospital. So I get to B&B about 10:00, we work on finishing off some things till 2:00 and had to call it quits, load up and get to be in Gainesville by 7:00. We get everything loaded and back on the road I go...
Well, I'm on I75 north about 15 miles south of Ocala, cruising in the right hand lane pulling my car doing about 70. I look in my side view mirror and see a new black Honda Accord coming up on me rather fast, but at this point I really pay it no mind - until she got beside me! As she pulls up beside me I hear tires on rumble strip then gravel - SH!T - I look over and see the Honda loosing control as she caught the soft shoulder with her left wheels. I spike the brakes - literally STAND on the pedal. Locked up the Trailer brakes and had the anti-locks going hard on the Blazer. I look over and see her trying to correct and get back on the road - too much! She came skidding sideways across the highway about 1/2-1 car lengths in front of me, hit the soft shoulder on the right and rolled the car! The first roll impacted the roof and sent the car airborne where it flipped 2 more times IN THE AIR and came to rest in the bushes on the side of the road. That put a whole new meaning on the expression - HOLY SH!T! It was like something you would watch on COP'S on TV - It was surreal. I pulled over got on the cell and called 911. I thought she would be pretty messed up. I run up to the car and she's clutching her cell phone asking me "What just happened?!" I replied "Ah, you just rolled your car 3 times!" She had no recollection of the impact or what happened. Other then being disorientated she was fine. We walked around and picked up her belongings like her purse and laptop which were ejected out of the car. From what I saw when I walked up to the car, it appeared that she was trying to place a call on her cell when she took her eyes off the road and caught the shoulder. 5-10 seconds sooner and I would have been entangled in that mess. For those of you who know me I've had my share of excitement on trips from Florida.
Anyway, thought I'd share - here are a few pics!
Rob D.
------------------ The Dirty Rat Chopped, dropped and just plain NASTY! 383 Stroker MPFI with N2O 1" Drop 3" Chop 11" Brakes 19" Motegi Roja's wrapped in BFGoodrich Gforce T/A KDW-2 rubber RCC Coilover Suspension Updated Jan 21 '04 www.dirtyratracing.org
Thank goodness for trailer brakes. You don't seem to have much luck when it comes to other people and your cars. If I was you I might just keep them locked up at home in a bomb shelter.
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04:44 PM
ryan.hess Member
Posts: 20784 From: Orlando, FL Registered: Dec 2002
Nah, didn't really need them but I'll tell ya what - she wouldn't have been ok if she made me wipe out my...hell, I don't even want to think about it !!
Rob D.
[This message has been edited by chester (edited 04-19-2004).]
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04:53 PM
chester Member
Posts: 4063 From: State of insanity...moved in and comfortably numb... Registered: Jun 2001
I had to read it twice to get the gist of it <I thought you F**** up the rat it looks like you are accident prone Chester.
Accident prone? - Nah - as a matter of fact I feel as if someone wants me around for a while! I consider myself a good driver and am always aware of my surroundings. I've been driving since I was 13. Now if I was just day dreaming - things probably wouldn't have panned out the same. BTW I've only been in 2 accidents in my life - one was not my fault.
Rob D.
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05:00 PM
jscott1 Member
Posts: 21676 From: Houston, TX , USA Registered: Dec 2001
sorry to hear this and that your wife is in the hospital. i had just pm'd her about picking up the bumper this weekend. let me know if that's is a no go then. i can pick it up later.
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05:09 PM
PFF
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chester Member
Posts: 4063 From: State of insanity...moved in and comfortably numb... Registered: Jun 2001
sorry to hear this and that your wife is in the hospital. i had just pm'd her about picking up the bumper this weekend. let me know if that's is a no go then. i can pick it up later.
were you jealous that her roof was lower then yours after the accident? Another cadidate for a choptop! But seriously...looking at the photos the roof doesn't look that crushed. I guess they are building safer cars these days.
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10:16 PM
Soaper Member
Posts: 1417 From: Nashville, TN Registered: Jun 2002
rrr hope everything is ok with yourself, wife, and the cell phone user... hmmm
Just curious when you were hauling that home do you catch people staring at it or giving ya thumbs up ???
Soaper
Thanks everyone should be fine. Yup a lot of stares and thumbs up. Most would ride in my blind spot to check it out. Got kinda annoying after a while. Had mechanics at a few of the gas stations react like "That's on hell of a Fiero! Had a few mods done eh?" I'm like "Yeah and check out whats under the hood." typical reaction was "Bet it hauls a$$!"
Rob D.
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10:39 PM
mrfiero Member
Posts: 9002 From: Colorful Colorado Registered: Mar 99
Thanks everyone should be fine. Yup a lot of stares and thumbs up. Most would ride in my blind spot to check it out. Got kinda annoying after a while. Had mechanics at a few of the gas stations react like "That's on hell of a Fiero! Had a few mods done eh?" I'm like "Yeah and check out whats under the hood." typical reaction was "Bet it hauls a$$!"
Rob D.
I got the same reactions when I was on the maiden trip in the convertible last year. I would see a car in the mirror move over to pass me, but they never would. I'd look over and they'd be staring at the car and giving the thumbs up. I think Chris paid off a few people in Indiana though......I don't get as much attention anymore!
I think your car will be even more impressive once you get it painted. I'm glad you didn't get wiped out on your trip. It sounds like this woman "flipped" over seeing your car.
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11:37 PM
Soaper Member
Posts: 1417 From: Nashville, TN Registered: Jun 2002
Thanks everyone should be fine. Yup a lot of stares and thumbs up. Most would ride in my blind spot to check it out. Got kinda annoying after a while. Had mechanics at a few of the gas stations react like "That's on hell of a Fiero! Had a few mods done eh?" I'm like "Yeah and check out whats under the hood." typical reaction was "Bet it hauls a$$!"
Rob D.
Just since you mentioned, check out whats under the hood.... my brother asked me what was under the hood on my old formula... well he was standing at the front of car so i pulled the latch for the front hood... he was like where ther !@#$ is the engine... heh. ill never forget that
Glad the trip went um pretty well
Soap
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11:52 PM
Apr 20th, 2004
avengador1 Member
Posts: 35468 From: Orlando, Florida Registered: Oct 2001
I had a similar experience one winter. A woman in a red Grand Prix found herself heading down an off ramp of the 401 outside Toronto and tried to cut back over to the highway. She ran out of room and literally ramped into the air with the help of a huge pile of snow that was packed into the V of the highway and the offramp. I know the surreal feeling you mentioned cause I found myself staring at the roof of her car as she flew up in front of me, slowly rolled over in the air and landed on the roof. It was like a scene straight out of the movies. What really got me is how far the car continued to slide on the roof after it impacted. As I followed the car to it's resting place I remember thinking, "When is this thing going to stop?" I was doing 120 KPH at the time and she had enough speed to get out in front of me after hitting the snow bank so, she must have been cruisin'.
So, for the record, GTP's can fly too!
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12:49 PM
Apr 21st, 2004
Elvira Member
Posts: 933 From: Frankfort, Kentucky Registered: Jun 2001
Well against the nurses and hospital administrator's advice, the doctor discharged me in worse shape than when I went in the hospital, but I am feeling a little better today and am going to a new doctor tomorrow and am getting a lawyer. It doesn't look like Rob posted the rest of his fun from that Florida trip in here: As soon as he got home he got in our Intrepid to come and see me (they transfered me from one local hospital to a larger hospital in Louisville while he was gone). He got stuck in traffic and the Intrepid started knocking. A little while later I get a call from him telling me he has to turn around and get the car home. By the time he got turned around and heading home he said it was REALLY knocking so, on top of his Honda "FUN", we now have a blown motor in our Intrepid! So it looks like he needs to get on the ball and get MY GT on the road!
------------------ Elvira www.dirtyratracing.org Blue 87GT 5sp (True-Blue) Black 86GT 5sp (The Dirty Rat) 84 Indy-19k&300HP SD4! Maroon 88 T-top Formula (1988-2003 RIP) Gold 87GT junkyard rat!
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10:26 AM
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Raydar Member
Posts: 40963 From: Carrollton GA. Out in the... country. Registered: Oct 1999
Mannnn.... I think folks are gunning for you. Be careful out there. Did you drive through Atlanta? If so, I'll bet that was a real treat. [/sarcasm] (I've lived here all my life, and I'll be the first to say it... We can't drive.)
Anyway, I'm happy that you and the Honda missed one another. (Not like *she* played an active role in the "missing" part.)
Hope Renee is okay. Didn't even know she was sick.
Best.
[EDIT] Renee posted just before me... You take care Renee. Hope you feel better.
------------------ Raydar 88 3.4 coupe........... Coming soon... 88 Formula, presently under the knife. Read Nealz Nuze!
[This message has been edited by Raydar (edited 04-21-2004).]
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10:30 AM
B&BSpyder Member
Posts: 104 From: Clearwater, FL Registered: Oct 2003
Glad to hear you are back home Renee, hope you continue to feel better As for the Intrepid don't bring it to the shop soon, it'll make you sick all over again, we did one a couple months ago and we had "sticker shock" over the price to do it. Joyce
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10:35 AM
DotTC Member
Posts: 2345 From: Hamlet, North Carolina Registered: Nov 2003
(I've lived here all my life, and I'll be the first to say it... We can't drive.)
I'll second that.. and I've only been there twice. Last time I was there I had an arsehole that wouldn't get off my bumper.. bah on arses.
------------------ *ring* *ring* *ring* *ring* *ring* Hi, this is Kettle, leave a message at the beep.. *beep* Hello Kettle, this is the pot.. You're black
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10:38 AM
Elvira Member
Posts: 933 From: Frankfort, Kentucky Registered: Jun 2001
Glad to hear you are back home Renee, hope you continue to feel better As for the Intrepid don't bring it to the shop soon, it'll make you sick all over again, we did one a couple months ago and we had "sticker shock" over the price to do it. Joyce
Motors are something Chester and I do ourselves. I LOVE playing with motors!! ;-) Of course my GT is waiting to come and pay you a visit (emphasis on PAY!!!)
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11:21 AM
Elvira Member
Posts: 933 From: Frankfort, Kentucky Registered: Jun 2001
Mannnn.... I think folks are gunning for you. Be careful out there. Did you drive through Atlanta? If so, I'll bet that was a real treat. [/sarcasm] (I've lived here all my life, and I'll be the first to say it... We can't drive.)
Anyway, I'm happy that you and the Honda missed one another. (Not like *she* played an active role in the "missing" part.)
Hope Renee is okay. Didn't even know she was sick.
Best.
[EDIT] Renee posted just before me... You take care Renee. Hope you feel better.
Thanks. The administrators at the hospital told me to go BACK through the ER to get re-admitted and hopefully I would get a different doctor. I looked at her like SHE was the one one meds! It took 5 TIMES to get my IV in after they discovered the first one had literally broke and ALL the pain meds and IV fluids were leaking out all over the bandages they had over it. The nurses kept commenting on how they were going to have muscles from giving me my neds. You should have seen the look on the nurses face when they took me down for the procedure when they tried flushing the IV and untaped it and the needle came out at a 90 degree angle! It was like a straw with a hole in the side. Hopefully my new doctor that I go see tomorrow will take my advice and get my records from NH to see exactly what is going on. I have been through this twice and unfortunately the only fix was major surgery. I told Rob that the next time I get operated on, don't be surprised if I have X's and O's on my stomach from all the other surgeries I have had in the past 3 years!
- I look over and see the Honda loosing control as she caught the soft shoulder with her left wheels. I spike the brakes - literally STAND on the pedal. Locked up the Trailer brakes and had the anti-locks going hard on the Blazer. I look over and see her trying to correct and get back on the road - too much! She came skidding sideways across the highway about 1/2-1 car lengths in front of me, hit the soft shoulder on the right and rolled the car! The first roll impacted the roof and sent the car airborne where it flipped 2 more times IN THE AIR and came to rest in the bushes on the side of the road. That put a whole new meaning on the expression - HOLY SH!T! It was like something you would watch on COP'S on TV - It was surreal. I pulled over got on the cell and called 911. I thought she would be pretty messed up. I run up to the car and she's clutching her cell phone asking me "What just happened?!" I replied "Ah, you just rolled your car 3 times!" She had no recollection of the impact or what happened. Other then being disorientated she was fine. We walked around and picked up her belongings like her purse and laptop which were ejected out of the car. From what I saw when I walked up to the car, it appeared that she was trying to place a call on her cell when she took her eyes off the road and caught the shoulder. 5-10 seconds sooner and I would have been entangled in that mess. For those of you who know me I've had my share of excitement on trips from Florida.
- Nah - as a matter of fact I feel as if someone wants me around for a while! 
I consider myself a good driver and am always aware of my surroundings. I've been driving since I was 13. Now if I was just day dreaming - things probably wouldn't have panned out the same. BTW I've only been in 2 accidents in my life - one was not my fault. 
I'm glad you didn't get tangled up in that mess. Maybe she was distracted by the sight of the Rat?
