Towing with a motorhome

[JMatt]

Some info about that accident:

Not only am I from Indy, I was in the opposite lanes about 20 minutes after the accident and saw it first hand. I swear to you all - you have NEVER seen a rear end accident this horrific in your life. The family was in an SUV and it was imbedded a full 10 feet into the motorhome. When my wife and I saw it our only thought was "it's rush hour, hopefully a commuter with no one in the back seats."

Not only did this motorhome rearend them, it pushed and pushed and shoved. I know the 72 year old said he hit the wrong pedal, but he must have hit the wrong pedal and held it for 10 seconds not being able to figure out why he wasn't stopping.

It's not about towing. It's about being in the fast lane (3rd of 3 lanes) at rush hour, on the busiest stretch of road within 100 miles. The overlength issue was just another way to give the man a ticket. So many decisions could have been made to avoid this. Instead, I assume the 72 year old's remaining life will suck. And the family - on the way to Disney - is likely psychologically ruined.

Im in my 40's. This was the worst I've seen ever. I think about it multiple times everyday.

[Dan Fletcher]

That is a horrible deal for sure, but I'm afraid the problem is clearly an incompetent driver. Like Alan said, it was obviously made worse by the weight of the vehicle, but come on...the guy hit the gas instead of the brake. I'm pretty sure thats the root cause.

The world is full of people with that are incompetent, or just flat have their head up their ***. I flew home last night from Pomona, and no matter how many times the flight attendants told people to not congregate in the front galley while waiting for the bathroom, I watched them do it for four hours straight, only to be told to step back a few rows. Hello, does anyone pay attention...

Furthermore, I've never understood why one can get their license at 16 and NEVER be required to demonstrate a given level of compentency again. It's a joke.

And as I consult the length chart, apparently the only place I can legally drive in all of North America is Wyoming. I always knew I liked it there...

[X-TECH MAN]

[QUOTE=Dan Fletcher;

The world is full of people with that are incompetent, or just flat have their head up their ***. [/QUOTE]

I couldnt pass this quote up.....Are you talking about NHRA, IHRA, or our current administration in Washington D.C.? Sorry....it was just to much for me to resist.....lol. I didnt mean to make lite of the post about the accident.

[FED 387]

The only thing worse than an incompetent RV driver is a guy that just rented a big U- haul truck and is moving cross country especially if he is towing his car behind it--- He only drives one of those trucks about every 20 years so no clue as to what is happening -----no idea how much room he needs to start/merge/stop etc gets all screwed up at the gas station/pumps and zig zags on down the road totally oblivious to the people trying to get away from him----That Indy accident was absolutely horrible!!!!!! My sincere sympathies go out to that family--- Hopefully lots of people learned a lesson---- Absolutely no excuse for it at all--- The RV driver I hope is grounded for life no fricking brains !!!!!!!!--- I'm all for some kinda testing for competency in handling a RV ----But who knows that guy coulda been driving a pick up truck and done the same thing----as somebody on this website said "you can't fix stupid---Comp387

[7820]

Yup....when I got my license in 1964 I could also buy a car off of the show room floor that had 350+ HP.

[treessavoy]

I live in Florida and you know who else lives here....that's right more people over 70 than any other state plus we have the Snowbirds who leave the North and drive their motor homes south for the winter, so I am more familiar with this situation than most.

But, I'm going to play Devils advocate.
I guarantee 18 wheeler's are involved in more accidents than 72 year old men in motor homes but I hear no outcry about them. One horrible accident should not dictate a change in policy for those drivers. Someday we will all be that age and how many of you want to have to walk because you have no license?
If you look at the stats you will find that teenagers have more accidents that any other age group but I hear no calls to raise the age limit so that they may mature more before driving. I've come closer to being killed or injured by little girls on cell phones than I have but those older than me.

This accident was horrible and my heart goes out to the family.

JimR

[JMatt]

Originally Posted by treessavoy

I guarantee 18 wheeler's are involved in more accidents than 72 year old men in motor homes . . .

I guarantee you, per million miles driven, professional truck drivers are the safest drivers on the road.

[Steves68Nova]

Originally Posted by Indyracer

I guarantee you, per million miles driven, professional truck drivers are the safest drivers on the road.

x2 and by a very large margin.

And there have been outcrys about changing the driving ages.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/...-drivers_N.htm

Steve