So there was this situation where, a hundred miles from civilization, a guy comes across someone who managed to lose control of his vehicle and fly a couple hundred yards offroad -- into a designated wilderness area. Said vehicle is still on all four wheels and steerable but the radiator ended up in a rock and the engine won't start.
So, what do you do?
- Drive to near his back bumper, hook your tow strap to your d-ring and to his back bumper, pull him out to the dirt road, then go around and hook your tow strap to his front bumper and to your rear d-ring to tow him back to pavement so he can get help?
- Say "Well, I could get sued if I helped him", and call 911?
- Say "Well, I could get ticketed for violating a wilderness area if I helped him", and call 911?
- Say "It's not a problem of mine" and drive on?
-- Badtux the "When did Americans become utter pussies?" Penguin
I'm right there with you. Every time I help someone in a jam the look of surprise on their face always amazes me. As does the expressions of the faces of the people around me who could have helped but are way too self-involved to realize that one day they will probably need that help also.
ReplyDeleteWhat's really interesting is that when a person in trouble has a choice of asking someone in the immediate vicinity for help, I'm always the first choice. It's like they know I will say yes.
Fuck that dude, yank 'em out. Done it before, I'd do it again in a heartbeat.I could give a rats ass about a fucking ticket.
ReplyDeleteYep, like I said, it shouldn't even be a question. Dude is 50 miles away from pavement and in for a world of hurt if someone doesn't haul his ass out to where AAA can pick him up (AAA won't go off pavement). At the very least, the Park Service would impound his car for fees, and probably auction it off because you can be damned sure that their car removal contractor will charge at least $3K just to drive out there to look at the car, much less drop hook and actually get it back to civilization.
ReplyDelete- Badtux the "It's called MANNING UP" Penguin
I guess doing the right thing means having the right equipment. I don't think my 4 cyl CVT caliber could pull another vehicle on flat pavement, let alone over rocky terrain, even if there were a place to hook onto.
ReplyDeleteThen, there's always this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3ZCRiH_340
Cheers!
JzB
I doubt very many people worry about tickets. It's more of a "not my problem, dude," attitude.
ReplyDeleteYeah, yah tow 'im out. But, hell, most of the kids today wouldn't have a clue how to hook a tow strap to a back bumper.
ReplyDeleteThat "not my problem" attitude wasn't around when I used to live in the snow-bound Upper Peninsula of Michigan in the mid-80s. It was common courtesy to drag people out of ditches when they skidded into snowbanks. I've been on both sides of that trade, although more often on the "dragee" end. Been a while since I was up there, but I'd bet the "help your neighbour" ethos still prevails because everybody knows it could be them someday. I think there's more willingness to assist when it's an area in which you live, rather than one in which you play.
ReplyDelete