Trucker tried to pit maneuver us on i5 near kettleman city
Posted by Catfood20@reddit | Truckers | View on Reddit | 7 comments
We were towing a 25 foot Catering’s trailer and passing a truck slowly up a grade and we got close at one point but still in our lane and he laid on his horn and gestured a ‘’what the hell palms up ‘’. We kept going not sure what was going on. Once over the crest of the hill he came barreling down on us and tail gated within a few feet. We sped up to get away and change to the right lane and he decided to catch up again and began riding his front left bumper on our real right corner of the trailer touching at times . At this point we were doing almost 80 mph. Totally freaked us out and we went even faster but started to bullwhip a little . We slowly gained some distance but he still was trying to catch up. After an 1.5 hours we turned off at Santa Nella for gas and waited for him to pull in. Never saw him again and regretted not getting his plate or trucking co name. All of this was have behind us so it wasn’t possible to get any details. He was also straddling both lanes so we could not slow down and let him pass. It was reminiscent of the old movie duel which scared the shot outta me as a kid. Do truckers still communicate with each other via CB when they’re on the same highway ? Did anyone witness this Scary shit ?
Rotteneverything@reddit
truck drivers hate the dragonfly. dragging up hills, flying down hills. my guess is you got in his way at some point because of the hills. certainly improper and unsafe behavior.
Catfood20@reddit (OP)
Yup agreed
nortyflatz@reddit
Sounds like road rage to me.
How could you have done things differently to avoid angering another driver?
Do that, next time.
When you were doing 80MPH, you wee not in control, the other driver was in control of your actions.
Think about it. Learn from it.
InvstrJester@reddit
Looks like you engaged into his bullshi+. Ignore it next time. After 1.5 hours ?? You pulled into a gas station and waited to see him pull a weapon ? Do better. And nobody talks on the radio about stuff like it’s the 80’s. If you fdidnt see him talking on a CB radio he probably wasn’t on a CB.
Be-It-coin@reddit
You are the idiot driver.
Anxious_Distance_297@reddit
That's absolutely insane behavior from that driver. I had similar road rage incident couple years back when I was driving through Central Valley with my friend - some guy in pickup got mad because we changed lanes and he followed us for like 30 minutes flashing his lights and trying to get next to us. The adrenaline rush is crazy when someone is literally trying to hurt you on highway.
You should definitely report this to CHP if you remember approximate time and mile markers. Even without plate number they might be able to check traffic cameras or find other reports about same truck. Most professional drivers wouldn't do something this dangerous but there's always few bad ones who give everyone else bad reputation.
CB radio communication is still pretty common with truckers especially in certain areas but it's not like the old days when everyone had one. Some drivers use it to warn about speed traps or accidents ahead but obviously this guy wasn't interested in being professional. Really glad you made it through that situation safely because at 80 mph with trailer that could have ended very badly.
Catfood20@reddit (OP)
Yup did a report but should have in real time. We were so freaked out logic went out the window.