1chiban
08-20-2008, 07:53 AM
Well, Friday before leaving for Las Vegas (409 miles from where I live) I remember seeing all the wheel posts and there are still a few floating around. I was going to wait a little while before I showed off my new rims and a few other things I was doing to the car, but something happened over the course of the last few days that I thought I would share.
Coming back from Las Vegas I was on the last 100 mile stretch, 12 miles north of Bakersfield on the 99. It was literally right after the "Bakersfield 12" sign that all hell and more had broken loose. A 30+ car accident that I was a part of turned the night upside down. As the memory stands I had been driving very defensively the entire drive home because the amount of insane driving and crazy f'king idiots that you see on the freeway down south are basically infinite. I was going about 90 when I noticed the car about 200 yards in front of me was braking very abnormally. So I gently braked, and while this was happening I saw cars just dispersing left and right, I saw smoke and emergency lights going off right in front of my eyes while people were driving, that was when I braked as hard as I could while letting the people behind me know something serious was going on, without getting hit. Well, that was a bit premature. As soon as my car hit the 55 mph dash on the speedo there's a huge metal object in the middle of the road that is simply unavoidable, I hit it dead on front right, back right trails over it. From the first perceived braking to this point about 5 seconds had passed. I swerve left to avoid a second piece when I strike a third, and before I finally make it over to the median I hit a Semi tire shred. I am in complete shock, what the hell just happened and am I going to be okay. I immediately get out of the car (parked next to the middle divider) to assess damage when 3 cars go roaring by with metal on asphalt screaming down the freeway at 60+ mph. Then another 5 cars, more and more. And at this point there are people pulled over as far as the eye can see. Two cars in front of me had hit the middle divider going over 80 after losing control. It was then I knew I needed to drive up the median as far as I could before I get hit because NO ONE is able to avoid whatever it is in the road, and I basically know if I don't move I'm going to die. I start her up and slowly roll her 100 feet and the cars just pile in behind me. Semis pass to pull over as they lose tire after tire. Finally, it's over, police arrived literally within minutes of me pulling over. There were over 40 cars that got flat tires, body damage, totaled or otherwise.
It wasn't until about 2 hours later (took a little more than that to finally get towed the rest of the 94 miles home) that we found out exactly what happened. The loading ramp of a car hauling semi (You've seen them, 3 piece giant ass SS ramps) had fallen off breaking at the hinges in 3 pieces in the middle of each of the 3 lanes on 99 North. It was unavoidable.
As it stands I lost the front wheel completely, both front tires, and the right rear tire. I need new shocks, control arms, and possible front axle. But I know that driving an 8 is what saved my life, had I been in any other car I would not have been able to keep control of the vehicle and I would have ended up like the cars in front of me that met the middle divider.
This is just a picture of the front right wheel, imagine hitting an 800 lb piece of sharpnel pointed directly at you and well, this is what you get.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v622/Apex911/wheeledit2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v622/Apex911/wheelcloseup.jpg
I just purchased those wheels and tires two weeks ago after 6 months of waiting and putting a set together... only to have it ruined. But if I didn't have great tires with great wheels it may have been a completely different story. So many variables had to play just right for me to end up okay, so many infinite outcomes and the one that includes me living some how superseded my reality.
Coming back from Las Vegas I was on the last 100 mile stretch, 12 miles north of Bakersfield on the 99. It was literally right after the "Bakersfield 12" sign that all hell and more had broken loose. A 30+ car accident that I was a part of turned the night upside down. As the memory stands I had been driving very defensively the entire drive home because the amount of insane driving and crazy f'king idiots that you see on the freeway down south are basically infinite. I was going about 90 when I noticed the car about 200 yards in front of me was braking very abnormally. So I gently braked, and while this was happening I saw cars just dispersing left and right, I saw smoke and emergency lights going off right in front of my eyes while people were driving, that was when I braked as hard as I could while letting the people behind me know something serious was going on, without getting hit. Well, that was a bit premature. As soon as my car hit the 55 mph dash on the speedo there's a huge metal object in the middle of the road that is simply unavoidable, I hit it dead on front right, back right trails over it. From the first perceived braking to this point about 5 seconds had passed. I swerve left to avoid a second piece when I strike a third, and before I finally make it over to the median I hit a Semi tire shred. I am in complete shock, what the hell just happened and am I going to be okay. I immediately get out of the car (parked next to the middle divider) to assess damage when 3 cars go roaring by with metal on asphalt screaming down the freeway at 60+ mph. Then another 5 cars, more and more. And at this point there are people pulled over as far as the eye can see. Two cars in front of me had hit the middle divider going over 80 after losing control. It was then I knew I needed to drive up the median as far as I could before I get hit because NO ONE is able to avoid whatever it is in the road, and I basically know if I don't move I'm going to die. I start her up and slowly roll her 100 feet and the cars just pile in behind me. Semis pass to pull over as they lose tire after tire. Finally, it's over, police arrived literally within minutes of me pulling over. There were over 40 cars that got flat tires, body damage, totaled or otherwise.
It wasn't until about 2 hours later (took a little more than that to finally get towed the rest of the 94 miles home) that we found out exactly what happened. The loading ramp of a car hauling semi (You've seen them, 3 piece giant ass SS ramps) had fallen off breaking at the hinges in 3 pieces in the middle of each of the 3 lanes on 99 North. It was unavoidable.
As it stands I lost the front wheel completely, both front tires, and the right rear tire. I need new shocks, control arms, and possible front axle. But I know that driving an 8 is what saved my life, had I been in any other car I would not have been able to keep control of the vehicle and I would have ended up like the cars in front of me that met the middle divider.
This is just a picture of the front right wheel, imagine hitting an 800 lb piece of sharpnel pointed directly at you and well, this is what you get.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v622/Apex911/wheeledit2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v622/Apex911/wheelcloseup.jpg
I just purchased those wheels and tires two weeks ago after 6 months of waiting and putting a set together... only to have it ruined. But if I didn't have great tires with great wheels it may have been a completely different story. So many variables had to play just right for me to end up okay, so many infinite outcomes and the one that includes me living some how superseded my reality.