OT but great

On Jul 2, 5:31*pm, rruff wrote:

Of course all the paranoid consider themselves merely "aware". How
safe would you like them to be, and how much of your children's living
are you willing to sacrifice to obtain this safety? Life is
dangerous... in fact, everyone dies from it.

Object, in general, being "dying of old age surrounded by loved ones",
not killed by an abductor.

It's safer in traffic than a ****box econocar (aside from the 5-Star
crash rating) *because it is large and accelerates reasonably quickly..

It is safer only when slamming into the "****box econocar"...

Wrong. Sitting up higher is part of the equation.

not when
hitting a vehicle of similar size. We could all be driving Abrams and
getting 3 gal/mi and we still wouldn't be safe.

Machine guns and turret guns a-blazin'. Road rage enters a new
dimension!
--D-y

--D-y wrote:
On Jul 2, 2:46 pm, Donald Munro wrote:
D-y wrote:
Lexus 470, approx 5400lb
Sequoia, 5100 lb
Yukon Denali (now we're getting somewhere) 5800lb
Odyssey (what I drive), 4500lb
It's safer in traffic than a ****box econocar (aside from the 5-Star
crash rating) because it is large and accelerates reasonably quickly.
Far fewer idiots swooping and dodging, cutting me off than in the Camry,
which is a fairly large ****box, actually.
Don't like it? Well, talk to the idiots. --D-y
Fred Fredburger wrote:
Hummer H2, 6614 lb
M1 Abrams with depleted uranium armor, 65 tons.

Rubber treads available for highway use.
That main gun could come in mighty handy occasionally, but probably
not enough to justify the gas mileage (est. 3gal/mile).

But these things DO happen from time to time.
http://tinyurl.com/m89srg

On Thu, 2 Jul 2009 13:36:51 -0700 (PDT), --D-y
wrote:


Rubber treads available for highway use.
That main gun could come in mighty handy occasionally, but probably
not enough to justify the gas mileage (est. 3gal/mile).

Memories of 1961 or so, when my dad was assigned to USAEUR HQ in
Heidelberg, Germany. We got caught in the middle of a traffic jam
during one of the Berlin things, behind a tank with the cannon pointed
directly at us. They look bigger from that perspective.

Curtis L. Russell
Odenton, MD (USA)
Just someone on two wheels...

On Jul 2, 4:45*pm, --D-y wrote:
Object, in general, being "dying of old age surrounded by loved ones",

I think you must have misread the description when you signed on for
this life. You don't get to choose the manner of your parting... but
you do get to choose how you live for as long as you are here.

not killed by an abductor.

How many children are killed by abductors... vs other things... like
getting struck by lightning?

Wrong. Sitting up higher is part of the equation.

Obviously this is only a benefit when running over cars that are
shorter than yours. Otherwise all the height buys you is a greater
likelyhood of roll-over.

On Jul 3, 11:32*am, rruff wrote:
On Jul 2, 4:45*pm, --D-y wrote:

Object, in general, being "dying of old age surrounded by loved ones",

I think you must have misread the description when you signed on for
this life. You don't get to choose the manner of your parting... but
you do get to choose how you live for as long as you are here.

not killed by an abductor.

How many children are killed by abductors... vs other things... like
getting struck by lightning?

If it's your child, "how many" is the one you care about.

Wrong. Sitting up higher is part of the equation.

Obviously this is only a benefit when running over cars that are
shorter than yours. Otherwise all the height buys you is a greater
likelyhood of roll-over.

Wrong-o. I agree that roll-over might be more likely, but for sure,
side intrusion is much more often a factor, and that's why it can be
better to be "up".

I enjoy the intimidation factor, and make no bones about it. "Go cut
some ****box off, jerk". Such is life, and I'm not the one driving
agressively. --D-y

In article
,
--D-y wrote:

On Jul 3, 11:32*am, rruff wrote:
On Jul 2, 4:45*pm, --D-y wrote:

Object, in general, being "dying of old age surrounded by loved ones",

I think you must have misread the description when you signed on for
this life. You don't get to choose the manner of your parting... but
you do get to choose how you live for as long as you are here.

not killed by an abductor.

How many children are killed by abductors... vs other things... like
getting struck by lightning?

If it's your child, "how many" is the one you care about.

Wrong. Sitting up higher is part of the equation.

Obviously this is only a benefit when running over cars that are
shorter than yours. Otherwise all the height buys you is a greater
likelyhood of roll-over.

Wrong-o. I agree that roll-over might be more likely, but for sure,
side intrusion is much more often a factor, and that's why it can be
better to be "up".

Science says you've made a poor choice.

--
Ryan Cousineau http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."

On Fri, 3 Jul 2009 10:42:09 -0700 (PDT), --D-y
wrote:


Wrong-o. I agree that roll-over might be more likely, but for sure,
side intrusion is much more often a factor, and that's why it can be
better to be "up".

The downside is the number of short drivers that have poorly adjusted
mirrors. The most common vehicle in my experience to merge badly onto
the Interstates around here are SUVs, often with a completely clueless
5 foot or so woman driving right into your car.

Curtis L. Russell
Odenton, MD (USA)
Just someone on two wheels...

On Jul 3, 5:11*pm, wrote:
On Fri, 3 Jul 2009 10:42:09 -0700 (PDT), --D-y
wrote:



Wrong-o. I agree that roll-over might be more likely, but for sure,
side intrusion is much more often a factor, and that's why it can be
better to be "up".

The downside is the number of short drivers that have poorly adjusted
mirrors. The most common vehicle in my experience to merge badly onto
the Interstates around here are SUVs, often with a completely clueless
5 foot or so woman driving right into your car.

Curtis L. Russell
Odenton, MD (USA)
Just someone on two wheels...

Odyssey has terrible mirrors, and headrests have "caused" lots of
accidents in all kinds of MV's since being mandated.

The Odditiy does have a fair amount of up/down as well as back/forth
and tilt in the seat (power versions, don't know if they come without
power driver seats).

You have to move your head around to see for safe lane changes. Lots
of folks are allergic to that, similar to turn signal use.
Not the way I roll g. --D-y

On Jul 3, 1:29*pm, Ryan Cousineau wrote:

Science says you've made a poor choice [sitting up higher v. lower COG).

Our Camry isn't much in the handling dept. as I found out, without
harm, when a bad (woman) driver in the next lane yanked it over
towards me at a very bad time. Not saying the Oddity is better, but
I'll take higher pending an exhaustive rbr crunching of impact-with-
injury statistics.

Another cool thing is the bike goes in the back, wheels on, and
another bike fits behind the front seats, wheels on.
If I were traveling to races, etc., we'd put some kind of interior
rack in there, I guess.
--D-y

In article
,
--D-y wrote:

On Jul 3, 1:29*pm, Ryan Cousineau wrote:

Science says you've made a poor choice [sitting up higher v. lower COG).

Our Camry isn't much in the handling dept. as I found out, without
harm, when a bad (woman) driver in the next lane yanked it over
towards me at a very bad time. Not saying the Oddity is better, but
I'll take higher pending an exhaustive rbr crunching of impact-with-
injury statistics.

Another cool thing is the bike goes in the back, wheels on, and
another bike fits behind the front seats, wheels on.
If I were traveling to races, etc., we'd put some kind of interior
rack in there, I guess.
--D-y

Actually, as these things go, minivans don't have a horrible safety rep.
They're a far cry from some of the odd things that seem to go on when
certain types of pickups and SUVs crash, or to put it another way:
rollovers are serious crashes.

What did your Camry do?

I'm sorely tempted by the whole van-for-bikes thing, though I have to
say that when you look at the interior room in something like a Mazda5,
I think it would hold 2 people, 2 bikes, and luggage for a weekend
(well, I don't know if the rear seats come out of that).

I can fit a bike in my New Beetle, mind, plus I have a roof-rack that
allows it to impersonate the Barnum & Bailey Team Support Car. Two bikes
is a bit sloppy.

The number of not-especially-big wagons that will accommodate multiple
bikes in the back, laid flat, is vast. And trailers, btw, are awesome.

--
Ryan Cousineau http://www.wiredcola.com/
"In other newsgroups, they killfile trolls."
"In rec.bicycles.racing, we coach them."