Stopping to help someone on the hardshoulder?

kluivert

While in college last night the gf texted to say that it took her an extra hour to get home. Why? She had a puncture. So instead of kicking the tyre and giving out she changed it herself.

She could not get over the amount ignorant fookers who drove by and she said there was lads in vans beeping there horns as they passed her. I guessing they where not man enough to be able to get the nuts off.

What has this country come to? I have stopped to help people out if i see them on the hard shoudler harzards flashing. If you know a little but about something why not stop?

Anyone i know who drive dont know anything about cars except how to drive them. Jump start, wheel change, diy mechanics any driver worth there weight knows these simple things. My grandfather will tell you when he was young you needed to know how to keep a car running. No moblie phones to ring mammy and daddy for help or the local garage.

The question is would you stop to help someone?

HelterSkelter

Believe it or not some people can be quite rude when you offer to help. I think this puts a lot of people off.

Big Nelly

You also have the question where you could stop to help a woman and she thinks that you are going to jump on her or something and the way the courts always take there point of view it is a risk not worth taking....especially these days when going home around 6 it is going to be dark.....just a point of view to take.......

I have helped people before without a problem but in the last while having stopped and asked if they wanted a hand I get......"Ahh dont worry, AA is on the way!" seems a change in culture where most people who cant change tyres( and simple things) are buying AA cover for themselves where as years ago this was a no go.....my girlfriend and her two sister have both taken out AA cover......even thou before when she hadnt AA I would get the call to go change the tyre!!! :eek: saying that one time she couldnt get me on the mobile and battery was gone in car.....3 blokes gave her a push....she couldnt jump start it so one of them hopped it and started it while the other 2 pushed.....she stood and watched looking embrassed!!!

Mind you I have never stopped to help a bloke except if I could see they where really struggling with something!!

kluivert

Thats a shame, i crashed the car when i first started driving in 01 and loads of people helped out some made sure i was ok and others looked after the car called a tow everything like. I apologised for the inconveince and they said once i was alive they didnt care. The car was a reck.

Just a warning to people that i noticed yesterday driving down to Dublin in the rain. Please be carefull and give distance between you and the car infront of you especially in heavy rain. People tail gating in conditions like that on the motorway - crazy.

Arrive alive as they say there is no excuse for people dying on the roads it shouldnt happen if drivers took it that wee bit easier, if your ten minutes late so what you could be saving lives by arriving late.

seamus

Last night, if I'd been in the car, yes I would have stopped to help. It was raining. If I'd been on the bike in the rain, no I probably wouldn't have stopped.

Rodney Trotter

HelterSkelter wrote:

Believe it or not some people can be quite rude when you offer to help. I think this puts a lot of people off.

What a load of toss, pure rubbish. You really are taking the pi55 here. It would be better if you just didn't bother contributing to a thread if this is all you can come up with.

Villain

I've stopped on a few occasions and the people I helped have only ever been grateful.

Big Nelly

kluivert wrote:

Thats a shame, i crashed the car when i first started driving in 01 and loads of people helped out some made sure i was ok and others looked after the car called a tow everything like. I apologised for the inconveince and they said once i was alive they didnt care. The car was a reck.

Crashing a car is a different situation......someone with a flat and someone who is crashed is competely different situation and alot more serious! if I seen someone crash and there wasnt anyone already on the scene I would ring Garda straight away and then try to help.....if there already was aload of people around would drive on.....hate people stopping just to try and see if anyone was dead so they can gossip about ti in pub later on.......first put hazards on car and check people in car, if everyone ok try to wave to on-coming traffic to warn them while waiting for Garda and so on!!!

kluivert wrote:

Just a warning to people that i noticed yesterday driving down to Dublin in the rain. Please be carefull and give distance between you and the car infront of you especially in heavy rain. People tail gating in conditions like that on the motorway - crazy.

Arrive alive as they say there is no excuse for people dying on the roads it shouldnt happen if drivers took it that wee bit easier, if your ten minutes late so what you could be saving lives by arriving late.

Have talked about this a few time between you and me man!! I brought it up first and you continued a few weeks later....on my thread everyone was saying that traffic is so slow when it rains is because they are going slower to give more breaking room....once I explained on my home from work that day on clear open road there was 2 crashs where people where rear ended there was suddenly no reply to the thread so I left it.....

Anyway was driving around yesterday and this morning in the dreaded "rain" and as usual was a f**king joke.....first of all a woman moves across and blocks up a whole round about at Blanch shopping centre so I cant get past her.....beeped horn because she had plenty of room to pull over and let me thru.....she was trying to go straight thru to village and I was able to go past her if she moved....nothign.....sat singing away to radio......bloke behind me lost it anyway and hop out of car.....went over......tapped on window on which she turned around with a hop.....she opened window and he told her to move out of the way.....I opened window to hear what was being said....she turned around and said oh I didnt see you.....to which she got "ur a f**king gobs**t then because me and that other car have been beeping you for a minute!!!" ......I just drove on

Then next roundabout was again backed up but I could drive right around and take the right turn off......anyway was going around and there was a micra in front of me......went to pull into the inside lane of the roundabout and next thing huge swerve out in front of me....lucky I had noticed....bloke just came down and straight onto roundabout in front of him nearly causing a crash.,..then bloke that was in wrong starts beeping and roaring out window....I just slipped past and into work....mate I was giving a lift to was in fits of laughter at the state of road when raining...every morning when raingin his says as we hop into car......."Let the madness begin!!!!"

anyway just another day in Dublin in a car!!

5500

I used to always pull over and ask the person if they needed a hand untill about 5months ago i seen a guy trying to push start his car.I got out and said here you get in the car and ill push...........no sign of it starting so i said pop the bonnet ill have a look,as i was looking inside the car i saw that it was hotwired,missing half its interior and most definitly robbed!

I said to your man whats goin on with this and he ran off,he didnt even look bogey or like your steriotypical car thief!

IMO you shouldnt be driving a car if you cant change your own wheel or know how to jump start it.There simple things that will happen you at some stage and there's really no excuse for saying you dont know what to do

Big Nelly

eireal wrote:

IMO you shouldnt be driving a car if you cant change your own wheel or know how to jump start it.There simple things that will happen you at some stage and there's really no excuse for saying you dont know what to do

If this was the case AA would have went out of business years ago!!! there is plenty of people that havent a clue about the engine or anything......drive around till a light comes on in front of them and then bring to garage....I know a bit from bring brought up on a farm where I was always helping out fix engines and so on!! no mechanic but can find my way around an engine and can usually spot something dodgy on them....ask the girlfriend and she can fill the water for wind screen wipers and after that if it goes it goes!!

shabbyroad

kluivert wrote:

Just a warning to people that i noticed yesterday driving down to Dublin in the rain. Please be carefull and give distance between you and the car infront of you especially in heavy rain. People tail gating in conditions like that on the motorway - crazy.

couldn't agree with you more. what would be even better would be if other drivers (including motorcyclists) didn't see the safe-space between my car and the car in front as an opportunity to cut into traffic. GRRRR.

I have stopped for people - did it one night in the Phoenix Park because it was dark and she was on her own. She said the AA were coming. I suggested she'd be safer inside the car :rolleyes:

Woman on the hard shoulder this morning on the M50. L-plate on the car and she's standing outside in the pissings of rain talking on her 'phone. Stupid and dangerous.

Seth Brundle

eireal wrote:

IMO you shouldnt be driving a car if you cant change your own wheel or know how to jump start it.There simple things that will happen you at some stage and there's really no excuse for saying you dont know what to do

Whilst I agree in principal, many people can have difficulty freeing up the wheel nuts after Kwik Fit et al get their air gun on them.
This is why i got my wife a bottle of that puncture aerosol stuff. At least with that she can DIY and get herself home safely.

HelterSkelter

Rodney Trotter wrote:

What a load of toss, pure rubbish. You really are taking the pi55 here. It would be better if you just didn't bother contributing to a thread if this is all you can come up with.

And that's the extent of your contribution?

Borzoi

Rodney Trotter wrote:

What a load of toss, pure rubbish. You really are taking the pi55 here. It would be better if you just didn't bother contributing to a thread if this is all you can come up with.

You'd already been warned, no need for that sort of attitude. Take a week off.

saobh_ie

I always stop if I know there’s a problem, a couple of times I wasn't sure and went back for another pass.

Somebody posted about people being rude when approached with an offer of help, I got that once but I think it was just a late at night, scruffy smelly biker type stopping to help young wan fear type thing.

I've been forced to drive on twice because there wasn't a safe place to stop in the car and once on the bike because it was a poxy place to park the bike and a lethal place to change a tire, with me wearing dark colours in the dark lane.

I very fairly good at changing tires and pushing because my old lad used to stop for everybody when I was growing up, so I was kind of in the habit. And after my bike broke down the start of the summer and... I can't remember the exact number, 16 or 18, people on bikes stopped for me in half an hour I kind of owe it.

Only have to stop for 12 or 14 people now and then I'm even on the Karmic scale for that again.

An interesting observation is that as a motorcyclist stopped in a strange place, pretty much everybody who comes by on a bike needs to be given the thumbs up and waved on. =D I narrowly avoided a red light runner who belted across a dual carriageway in front of me once and had to park up to steady my nerves and phone the buy and sell to offload the bike when all these people started pulling in to help me with my woes. Decided to keep the bike.

peasant

since 99.9% of cars parked anywhere with their hazards on these days seem to be there just because somebody absolutely needed a natter on their mobile, I've decided to oil down the shining armour and tuck it away

no point in stopping anymore, you just get weird looks.

clear and apparent signs of difficulty are a different matter of course

Squirrel

kbannon wrote:

Whilst I agree in principal, many people can have difficulty freeing up the wheel nuts after Kwik Fit et al get their air gun on them.
This is why i got my wife a bottle of that puncture aerosol stuff. At least with that she can DIY and get herself home safely.

That's why they should use a torque wrench.

If I'm walking along I'll always lend a hand, something I always have done. I get a good few weird looks, last year, when I was in 4th year I stopped to help a woman whose engine had literally blown up right in front of me, I arrived at school an hour and a half late because she didn't trust the AA, yet she did trust some random 15 year old. I got her running enough to get to a garage, I hope. In the end I made 100 quid, and a detention for my troubles

stratos

Whatever about us macho men, Your wifes/gf's/life partner thingy.
Should have in their car.
Extended wheel brace ( telescopic type if space is a problem ).
A can of instant tyre sealer/filler.
A torch.
A rain jacket.
Portable tyre pump, foot/battery operated.
A can of petrol in approved container.
Jump leads.
a container of coolant.
Engine oil.
Sounds ridiculous doesn't it.
She used all of them, at least once.
All these items fit in a kind of kitchen tray bought in woodies, which you can stick in the boot.
Personaly I would not pass by a women broken down on the side of the road, and have stopped on a number of occasions.

TJM

stratos wrote:

[Everyone] should have in their car.
Extended wheel brace ( telescopic type if space is a problem ).
A can of instant tyre sealer/filler.
A torch.
A rain jacket.
Portable tyre pump, foot/battery operated.
A can of petrol in approved container.
Jump leads.
a container of coolant.
Engine oil.

Absolutely right and I'm a bit ashamed to admit I don't have some of these. I'd add two things - warning triangle and reflective jacket - especially if you're driving on country roads a lot. A bit OT but also useful is a cheap disposable camera in case you're in an accident.

Lord Nikon

Funny story for ye,

I twas on my way into work one morning about 7:45, and was about 10 minutes from "the job". I was driving on the long straight from Barberstown Castle and Maynooth. Cars are easily going about 60mph down it, and i overtake an Audi A4 estate pulled in, with the hazards on, the woman inside looked somewhat worried.

I went back anyway, pulled in in front of her and put on my hazards, grand. She had a flat and i changed it for her, she actually knew me from school from ages ago, and she's really pretty too, I didn't know who she was until i read she work name tag.

Anyway, I got the tyre changed in about 10 minutes, due to clearing all her work stuff from the boot to get to the spare, and she was gone. Grand, 5 minutes to get to work. I get in my car, turn the key and nothin', the damn battery was flat from leaving the hazards on. You could imagine my reaction. :mad:

I happened to wave down a few guys in a van, a quick push, and my car was running again. Got into work late too, ah well.


I don't mind pulling in to lend a hand, whatever the problem. Two heads are better than one anyway. You can usually spot the tell-tale signs too.

Big Nelly

neuromancer wrote:

Funny story for ye,

I twas on my way into work one morning about 7:45, and was about 10 minutes from "the job". I was driving on the long straight from Barberstown Castle and Maynooth. Cars are easily going about 60mph down it, and i overtake an Audi A4 estate pulled in, with the hazards on, the woman inside looked somewhat worried.

I went back anyway, pulled in in front of her and put on my hazards, grand. She had a flat and i changed it for her, she actually knew me from school from ages ago, and she's really pretty too, I didn't know who she was until i read she work name tag.

Anyway, I got the tyre changed in about 10 minutes, due to clearing all her work stuff from the boot to get to the spare, and she was gone. Grand, 5 minutes to get to work. I get in my car, turn the key and nothin', the damn battery was flat from leaving the hazards on. You could imagine my reaction. :mad:

I happened to wave down a few guys in a van, a quick push, and my car was running again. Got into work late too, ah well.


I don't mind pulling in to lend a hand, whatever the problem. Two heads are better than one anyway. You can usually spot the tell-tale signs too.

And you didnt even pull the young one????? slipping up man!!

Silvera

shabbyroad wrote:

Woman on the hard shoulder this morning on the M50. L-plate on the car and she's standing outside in the pissings of rain talking on her 'phone. Stupid and dangerous.

If she was standing behind or in front of the car then yes, that was crazy.

However, if you every watch the UK police documentaries, they always warn people NOT to stay in your car if broken down on the motorway - get out of the car and stand behind the armco barrier while waiting for help.
(Only enter the vehicle if you feel under threat).

Borderfox

You would be lucky to find any armco barrier on Irish roads even on motorways!! you would end up standing in the grass !!

ifah

one other thing to keep in your car boot - a mini wire snips to cut the cable ties that are on 90% of cars with hub caps now. has anyone ever tried to break those ties ? tough mothers !