Encounter with a road rager

[4X4]

So this guy cuts me off pretty brutally on 14th today, right by the hospital. I change lanes and wave my hand as I pass in the WTF sort of way. He flips me the bird & I (being a very mature 26 year old) retaliate with a one fingered salute right back at him.
Traffic is flowing nicely, and I make it past 90th avenue, when dude gets in front of me & slows right down to a stop. (Reminder: 14th street between 90th & Southland on a saturday afternoon)

Dude actually gets out of his car & comes to my window to berate me for using the middle finger with his kids in the car. I did a double take. He flipped me off first...
So I sat there for about 30 seconds & listened to a screaming, grey haired man as cars wizz past at 60 kph. Finally, I drove around him & got up to the light at Southland.

Unfortunately, he's not finished telling me off and sticks the nose of his car in front of mine so that I can't take off when the light turns. He proceeds to get out of the car again & keep yelling. The light turns green and traffic is not moving because he's blocking both lanes and is out of the car yelling.

Finally I snapped. I started screaming like a madman telling him to get the fata back in his car. He's not at all intimidated by a a guy half his age & at least 40 pounds heavier. He starts making his way toward his car and then he does it. He pounded his fist on the hood of my new truck & dented it.

Anger level rising...

I got out of my truck & started waving my arms (the "wanna go?" arm wave) and I'm asking if he wants to hit me instead. The bugger starts yelling right in my face (and ewww, he's spitting) telling me that I'm a bad example for his kids. CAN YOU fataing BELIEVE THIS? I'M A BAD EXAMPLE FOR HIS KIDS!!!

So the guy bumps chests with me, I shove him back and tell him that he'd better get his shinguardpile Ford Escort the fata out of my way, or I'll drive over it. (Yeah, I'm losing it at this point). His boys get out of the car and are crying & pleading with their dad to get in the car. I'm stupid enough to point out that the kids are the ones with the sense & that he's the one setting a bad example.

Finally, I just drove around his car (frickin barely squeaked through) and drove up to the Lights at Anderson. The light was green, so I turned left & started driving down anderson. Dude is behind me waving me down, so I stopped in the shoulder. I jumped out of the car with my hand outstretched and apologized for flipping him the bird. I told him that we were acting like idiots, and that we'd be lucky if no one we knew saw the ridiculous show we put on at the lights.

Do you think this guy would say, "You know, you're right. We're a couple of idiots. fata. See ya later. Let's both learn from this"? Nope.

"You fataing *******. You are setting a bad example for my kids. You better apologize to them too. You are a fataing *******. fata you *******."

Then he pulls out a pen and starts writing down my plate number all the while screaming that I'm an *******.

This was too much for me. I was laughing at the guy. This enraged him even more. So much so, that his dentures flew out of his mouth (he caught them).

Finally, I told him that he need anger management calsses, then I turned around on the big grassy median, drove behind his car & got his plate number, then I drove away & hawked a loogie on his window for good measure.


I know. I'm an *******.

[AC]

Did you mention he flipped you off first? If so, what was his reaction?

[Resolute 14]

I would have been with you right up about the time he slammed your hood with his fist and dented it.

At that point, I would have smiled, pulled out a pen and some paper, wrote down his vechile's information, his description and everything I can remember about the situation. Tell him he can expect to hear from the police about him vandalizing my car, then let him chew on that.

[4X4]

Originally posted by Snakeeye@Aug 6 2005, 02:59 PM
I would have been with you right up about the time he slammed your hood with his fist and dented it.

At that point, I would have smiled, pulled out a pen and some paper, wrote down his vechile's information, his description and everything I can remember about the situation. Tell him he can expect to hear from the police about him vandalizing my car, then let him chew on that.

God I wish I did that.



As for pointing out that he flipped me off first, I did tell him that. He said (or screamed) that his kids couldn't see it because they were in the back seat. When I flipped him off, the kids could see it.

Thats some great logic, eh?



So what do you guys think. Can I get an assault charge now? Who are the cops going to sympathize with? The silver haired 150 pound man with kids, or the shaved head 200 pound young guy with no witnesses in the truck?

[CaramonLS]

I've never been in a situation like that, mostly because I don't look like a very friendly figure to come over and harrass.

My dad is actually "One of those types" and there are times me and my mom + sisters have had to scream at him to try to get some sense into his head. Of course most of the time you can't really do anything because those types are pretty damned stubborn.

I'm honestly shocked he didn't try to attack you or do something more rash. It takes a real special person to take road rage to that next level.

[4X4]

Yeah, I called them. They want me to wait here for them to come take a statement. They won't let me go there (I don't know why), so here I wait.



Now that I think about it, it kind of p*sses me off that I got so mad. After he punched my hood, I got out and cursed a blue streak. Hot afternoon, windows open, busy intersection... Alot of people saw me get pretty mad & say some things I wouldn't say to my tv after the goal in game 6 got waved off. I feel like a moron.

fata would I have loved to plant my knuckles in that guy's mug. Glad I didn't.

[4X4]

Originally posted by CaramonLS@Aug 6 2005, 03:15 PM


I'm honestly shocked he didn't try to attack you or do something more rash. It takes a real special person to take road rage to that next level.

Well, he was quite a bit smaller than I am. Plus he's way older. I'm kinda like you in the "not a very approachable person when p*ssed off" way.

The thing that made this worse, is that my truck is in a strange state of affairs right now. I broke the lock that keeps the transmission in drive. This is a little scary (hate to accidentally knock it into R while driving). Until I can get my hands on a new shifter, I've completely removed my center console, shifter and all, and am operating my transmission by pulling the cable in & out to switch gears. It takes two (calm) hands, and I have to lean right over to do it. This is why I didn't just back up & go around him. I didn't want to take my eyes off him in case he tries to cheap shot me. Besides, you never know who is a 4th degree black belt these days. Seems like everyone with small man syndrome is going out & learning some kind of martial art skill. I don't need to get a shot to the head when I'm looking down, pulling my wire.

[metallicat]

Own up to what happened, tell the truth. The police are going to be able to tell if you are lying, and it just isn't worth it. Tell them what went down, and go from there. I wish you hadn't have lose it on the guy, but you did what you did. Good luck.

[Pagal4321]

THAT WAS YOU?!















Sorry, I had to. Sucks to hear that, guess the hot weather is to blame for flipping the finger with your kids in the back seat, blind to that fact.
I love people's logic sometimes. Anyways I'd go to the cops and just tell em the situation, I'm suure they will go with you on this one.

[Winsor_Pilates]

I can't believe that sort of thing actually happens. Some people have no sense of reality and don't realize they could get beat or even killed for acting that way. he's very lucky you were so peaceful because someone else could have really hurt him. Hope he doesn't end up learning the hard way.

[Eastern Girl]

Sadly, I can believe that sort of thing happens. People are crazy, simply crazy.

[icarus]

From the way you tell it, it definitely sounds like you did what any reasonable person might have done. Tell the cops what you just told us and they wouldn't be upset with you. If the other guy talks to the cops you'll be fine because swearing and flipping the bird is not a crime. Nuisance and causing a public disturbance could be charged against the other guy, and maybe vandalism if there is damage, but my guess is that nothing will happen. In any case, he is far more blameworthy than you.

EDIT: As an aside, I love it when something crazy happens to you and you think to yourself, "wait until the guys on Calgarypuck hear about this!" Just goes to show what a great OT board we have!

[Mike__]

It's a good thing you kept your cool when he dented your truck. It's one thing to give him the finger with the kids in the back, but no kid wants to see thier dad in a fight.

Atleast you tried to apologize and wanted to handle it like an adult. Hope everything works out for you.

Good story, I would've been on the ground laughing my ass off if I seen the guy lose his dentures.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

That dent could be pricey to fix. I strongly suspect this is going to end up in small claims court. I'd recommend reporting to the police ASAP if you ever intend on getting restutution for that debt, as it's that police report is going to be the 1st step (at least I think that's the way to go). It'll turn into a he/said they said thing pretty quick, and his kids aren't going to be great witnesses. Best get your side of the story out 1st.

[Eddie Bronze]

4x4, don't be ashamed that you lost control for a bit. I know you want to think you'd be in complete control in a sitauation like that, but that's pretty much the extreme when it comes to this sort of thing next to physical contact or dare I say, homicide. You had the good sense not to punch him square in the face, which many of us couldn't do. I know I wouldn't be able to and I'd likely be up on assault charges right now if that were I. The only thing I can hope is that I never encounter a lunatic such as you did today.

*edit
And I also wanted to add one thing about his comments about you giving him the finger in front of his kids. The hypocrisy in that statement is so far beyond ignorance, it would seriously make me question his education level. It's not your job to be a role model or set a good example for his kids, that's his job and if someone does something he doesn't like in front of them, any normal individual would just explain it to their children. If you were to try and give him parenting advice, he'd tell you to go f yourself. But then you have to set the example? Get out of our town.

[FlamesAddiction]

I hate it when people think that having kids makes them special or gives them a ticket to act out in ways that are inappropriate. Obviously this guy took it for granted that *most* people would not hit a man in front of his kids, so he felt he could be beligerent without any repurcussions. Just hearing this story makes me angry, and reminds me of a similar situation I was in before. I haven't had a car in over a year, and honestly, I don't miss it because there are way too many ******* and bad drivers out there.

[Rubber Ducky]

I'm curious - a few posters have said it's a good thing that 4X4 didn't hit the guy. I can see the logic in this, but...

didn't the guy chest-bump you first? Couldn't you have given him a two-handed shove and knocked him on his ass to think about things for a bit?

I probably would've done the same as you, but it seems this guy had it coming to him.

[FireFly]

Originally posted by Rubber Ducky@Aug 7 2005, 08:42 AM
I'm curious - a few posters have said it's a good thing that 4X4 didn't hit the guy. I can see the logic in this, but...

didn't the guy chest-bump you first? Couldn't you have given him a two-handed shove and knocked him on his ass to think about things for a bit?

I probably would've done the same as you, but it seems this guy had it coming to him.

It's good because with no witnesses around, the old guy coulda charged 4x with assault.

[Eddie Bronze]

Originally posted by FireFly+Aug 7 2005, 09:37 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (FireFly @ Aug 7 2005, 09:37 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-Rubber Ducky@Aug 7 2005, 08:42 AM
I'm curious - a few posters have said it's a good thing that 4X4 didn't hit the guy. I can see the logic in this, but...

didn't the guy chest-bump you first? Couldn't you have given him a two-handed shove and knocked him on his ass to think about things for a bit?

I probably would've done the same as you, but it seems this guy had it coming to him.

It's good because with no witnesses around, the old guy coulda charged 4x with assault. [/b][/quote]
Not to mention the risk you take when resorting to physical violence. Forget aggravated assault. How many cases have we heard about where a guy gets punched, falls the wrong way and the next thing you know, the guy that hit him is up on homicide charges. I'd like to hope that is the first thing that pops into my mind if someone attacked me, but you'd like to think if self-defence were necessary, the result of any injuries to the instigator would be overlooked. Somehow I doubt it though.

[I-Hate-Hulse]

Originally posted by 4X4@Aug 6 2005, 03:49 PM
This was too much for me. I was laughing at the guy. This enraged him even more. So much so, that his dentures flew out of his mouth (he caught them).

Good for you, I think this is the best thing to do in these situations. Taunt em, make em madder without working yourself up. It's far more enjoyable and doesn't put you offside. A buddy of mine licks his lips, winks, and laughs anytime someone flips him one. Drives the other guy insane, or at least stuns em.