Near Death Experience
Driving 70 mph, at mile 86 southbound on I-95, my right front tire blew out.
Giant tractor-trailer rigs had been blowing by me at 90 mph for hours. Crazy guys in souped up Acuras and Beemers were weaving in and out of the traffic that had — finally — been liberated after the hour-long Delaware toll plaza slog (unbelievable, really). It was just about midnight.
The wheel suddenly became unresponsive and there was a godawful grinding noise. I knew I was going to die. I had a vision of twisted wreckage, a fiery explosion, a charred and unidentifiable corpse.
Obviously, since I'm writing this, that didn't happen. I managed to wrestle the wheel enough to cross two lanes of traffic to the shoulder. I brought the car to a halt and hyperventilated for a few minutes while I waited for the adrenaline surge to subside and the shaking to die down a bit.
The rest was a long saga of inconvenience, expense, and exhaustion, featuring my crappy and unreliable cell phone, a polite but not particularly warm and fuzzy state trouper, and a kind and helpful tow truck guy nicknamed "Shrek."
My thanks to Lynn for being so good to me when I called her in a panic, feeling horribly lonely, vulnerable, and scared while waiting in the dark for the tow truck to arrive. I now realize that not only did I wake her up, which was bad enough, but it was on the night before she was heading out to a marathon week of NAMI's annual conference.
My thanks to VW for providing a full-size spare tire.
My thanks to God for providing another reason to remember that if you're alive, you're already ahead of the game.
Note to self and others: when stranded on the side of the road at night, if your car is not damaged, leave it running while you keep your hazards and/or headlights on. Otherwise you wlll run down the battery and add substantially to your inconvenience. Trust me on this.
Other note to self: run, do not walk, to get an iPhone the moment they are available. You must get a cell phone that actually works reliably in an emergency.
Giant tractor-trailer rigs had been blowing by me at 90 mph for hours. Crazy guys in souped up Acuras and Beemers were weaving in and out of the traffic that had — finally — been liberated after the hour-long Delaware toll plaza slog (unbelievable, really). It was just about midnight.
The wheel suddenly became unresponsive and there was a godawful grinding noise. I knew I was going to die. I had a vision of twisted wreckage, a fiery explosion, a charred and unidentifiable corpse.
Obviously, since I'm writing this, that didn't happen. I managed to wrestle the wheel enough to cross two lanes of traffic to the shoulder. I brought the car to a halt and hyperventilated for a few minutes while I waited for the adrenaline surge to subside and the shaking to die down a bit.
The rest was a long saga of inconvenience, expense, and exhaustion, featuring my crappy and unreliable cell phone, a polite but not particularly warm and fuzzy state trouper, and a kind and helpful tow truck guy nicknamed "Shrek."
My thanks to Lynn for being so good to me when I called her in a panic, feeling horribly lonely, vulnerable, and scared while waiting in the dark for the tow truck to arrive. I now realize that not only did I wake her up, which was bad enough, but it was on the night before she was heading out to a marathon week of NAMI's annual conference.
My thanks to VW for providing a full-size spare tire.
My thanks to God for providing another reason to remember that if you're alive, you're already ahead of the game.
Note to self and others: when stranded on the side of the road at night, if your car is not damaged, leave it running while you keep your hazards and/or headlights on. Otherwise you wlll run down the battery and add substantially to your inconvenience. Trust me on this.
Other note to self: run, do not walk, to get an iPhone the moment they are available. You must get a cell phone that actually works reliably in an emergency.
Labels: travel
3 Comments:
Oh my word, that's terrible! I'm so glad you were okay!!
Yipes, I can't imagine how terrifying that must've been. I'm glad you made it home in one piece!
Yikes! (and can I see your iPhone when you get it? :)
Post a Comment
<< Home