Road Rage In Thailand

[richard_smith237]

In another instance, I was at a stop light, and when the light turned green, I was having difficulty shifting my bike into first gear. Being detained for over 10 seconds drove the driver crazy behind me--this time in a big pickup also. He blasted his horn, edged his pickup up to the back of my motorbike, and began aggressively pushing me forward, nearly breaking my ankle under the bike carriage on the opposite side of my starter. It was a surreal situation, especially when happening on a university campus. I was the teacher and there was a 90% chance the driver (behind black-shaded windows, of course) was a student.

Wow.... I have difficulty understanding how anyone could not react in kind to that sort of behavior.... Helmet buried into his windscreen perhaps...

I say you did extremely well keeping your cool... I for one would've lost it and possibly ended up shot, beaten up or beating the crap out of the driver, either way its far more trouble than I ever want.

That said, no one really knows how they'll react in certain situations until faced with them. I am shocked at reading the experience above.

These issues cement my reasoning for driving a large 4x4... 'MOST' of the time there is a subconscious amongst the other road users that don't see or pay attention to the vehicle smaller than them.

[crazygreg44]

It's amazing and ridiculous to watch human beings tempted to start road rages and tit-for-tat games among each other.

I have found out on zillion occasions, that the driver tailgating me, passing on the last chance, speeding like a madman on Yaba, most often wears a big omelette, sorry, amulette, and I always meet them at a fueling station 100 km further, parked off, sipping on a Tom Mama and shaking their adrenaline off in there toilets.

They don 't gain a millimeter, so why would YOU be tempted to copy them, just go in your own pace and peace, ignore 'em maniacs and make sure you don't greet them with a finger but a hefty teeth showing, and Life will award you with low heartbeat, longer life, lasting smiles and the last grin will be upon you !

It's called "defensive" driving, and it has gotten me a long way without hassles - toi,toi,toi on wood - so why would I be embarassed by people who are obviously idiots. I rather most often pity them !

[Fookhaht]

These issues cement my reasoning for driving a large 4x4... 'MOST' of the time there is a subconscious amongst the other road users that don't see or pay attention to the vehicle smaller than them.

Exactly. Remember your statement the next time an oncoming bus or dump truck, flashing his lights, decides to pass someone---in your lane.

[StreetCowboy]

I had a road rage myself the other day. I rode my motorcycle to another city last week about 150 kilometers away. The way there was fine. On the way back I got tired of on coming pickups and cars pulling out to pass and forcing me just about off the road, or have a head on collision.

Finally I had 3 trucks do one right after the otherwithin about 3 minutes. The last one I lost it and opened the throttle and aimed my bike right at the drivers side. If he didnot get out of my way I was going through the windshield and meeting him face to face head on. We got close but he managed to just pull in behind another vehicle and I just kept on going.

I hope in the future to handle these situatons better. Could be hazardous to my health.

You should save this on your hard drive so you can put it on your grave stone, hopefully many years from now, with a footnote saying "I told you he'd chicken out" - or not, as appropriate.

SC

[JohnnyFeelIt]

Where did this happen, Rama 9 by any chance?

[scorecard]

Were there any kids in the van?

[StreetCowboy]

Not long after arriving here, I was driving up north to the factory. I was overtaking in the third lane, and a fellow came up behind me close. After I was a safe distance past the car I was overtaking, I signalled to pull over. I noticed in my mirror that the fellow close behind me was wandering into the left lane; not to worry, I'd signalled, I was getting out his way to the left, so I carried on as signalled. He got baitey at me [pulling over in front of him , and instead of passing on the right and proceeding at his planned breakneck speed, pulled in front and slowed down. Right down,. I pulled over to the left lane, but he just drove slower, and pulled across to block whenever I went to pass. So I pulled on to the hard shoulder and waited for him to come over. After half a minute, I went over to enquire if there was a problem. He didn;t seem to want to talk. So I went to drive on; again he pulled out in front of me. I tried to get past, to the great inconvenience of a lorry coming from behind, and I realised that there was nothing I could safely do but proceed at his speed to my turn-off.

It made me realise that there are far bigger idiots on the road than me, and the best we can do is let them drive into someone else, making the best allowances we can for their incompetence, immaturity and insecurity.

Luckily, I'd allowed plenty of time for the trip - it might have been my first trip drivning up to the factory myself...

SC

EDIT: And made me realise that there are people who are more worried about how small their willie is (or whatever) than whether they will be late for their next appointment. If he'd had nothing better to do than cruise around looking for a fight he'd have stepped out for a square go when I offered.

Edited November 23, 2011 by StreetCowboy

[JohnnyFeelIt]

Were there any kids in the van?

This must have been the incident I saw @ 9.45am, School Mini Bus VS Pickup Road Rage incidents can't happen more than once in a day.

I'd guess due to the time, the kids had been dropped off.

To the driver of the pickup, you were maybe concentrating on the road so didn't notice, but he feigned to ram you into the central reservation 3x, must have only missed u by a few inches on one occasion. That was before he shot past and blocked you in against the central reservation till you were both and a standstill, then he got out. What happened then?

I nearly pulled over to watch, but was more interested in getting to Mc Donalds for a breakfast..

[Dave9000]

Perhaps the people we should be raging at, are the police. They seem to have no interest in enforcing the traffic code and this allows idiots to do as they wish without fear of being caught. Only since coming to Thailand have I realised the value of traffic cops, speed guns,red light cameras and all the other enforcement regimes which I used to complain about in Oz.

Recently, my street was changed from a dual carriageway to one way....It seems to have made no difference to anyone except perhaps for the signwriter who made a dollar from painting the signs...even the police regularly travel the wrong way along the street.

As for the lunatics who drive the racing line wherever they can....no sense in raging....you would be permanently angry and maybe permanently dead.

And another thing.....saving face!...What a load of bullsh-1-t. No one likes to be caught out...but if it happens, man-up Thailand, grow a set and accept the situation without blubbing and throwing your teddy out of the cot!

[hehehoho]

i give him the finger by putting it up against the glass on the drivers side

Lovely.

[StreetCowboy]

Perhaps the people we should be raging at, are the police. They seem to have no interest in enforcing the traffic code and this allows idiots to do as they wish without fear of being caught. Only since coming to Thailand have I realised the value of traffic cops, speed guns,red light cameras and all the other enforcement regimes which I used to complain about in Oz.

Recently, my street was changed from a dual carriageway to one way....It seems to have made no difference to anyone except perhaps for the signwriter who made a dollar from painting the signs...even the police regularly travel the wrong way along the street.

As for the lunatics who drive the racing line wherever they can....no sense in raging....you would be permanently angry and maybe permanently dead.

And another thing.....saving face!...What a load of bullsh-1-t. No one likes to be caught out...but if it happens, man-up Thailand, grow a set and accept the situation without blubbing and throwing your teddy out of the cot!

The trouble is that it is not cathartic unless something actually gets broken when you throw your toys out the pram.

SC

[travelmann]

It's amazing and ridiculous to watch human beings tempted to start road rages and tit-for-tat games among each other.

I have found out on zillion occasions, that the driver tailgating me, passing on the last chance, speeding like a madman on Yaba, most often wears a big omelette, sorry, amulette, and I always meet them at a fueling station 100 km further, parked off, sipping on a Tom Mama and shaking their adrenaline off in there toilets.

They don 't gain a millimeter, so why would YOU be tempted to copy them, just go in your own pace and peace, ignore 'em maniacs and make sure you don't greet them with a finger but a hefty teeth showing, and Life will award you with low heartbeat, longer life, lasting smiles and the last grin will be upon you !

It's called "defensive" driving, and it has gotten me a long way without hassles - toi,toi,toi on wood - so why would I be embarassed by people who are obviously idiots. I rather most often pity them !

Do you pity them when they kill your 5 year old son or daughter?

[StreetCowboy]

It's amazing and ridiculous to watch human beings tempted to start road rages and tit-for-tat games among each other.

I have found out on zillion occasions, that the driver tailgating me, passing on the last chance, speeding like a madman on Yaba, most often wears a big omelette, sorry, amulette, and I always meet them at a fueling station 100 km further, parked off, sipping on a Tom Mama and shaking their adrenaline off in there toilets.

They don 't gain a millimeter, so why would YOU be tempted to copy them, just go in your own pace and peace, ignore 'em maniacs and make sure you don't greet them with a finger but a hefty teeth showing, and Life will award you with low heartbeat, longer life, lasting smiles and the last grin will be upon you !

It's called "defensive" driving, and it has gotten me a long way without hassles - toi,toi,toi on wood - so why would I be embarassed by people who are obviously idiots. I rather most often pity them !

Do you pity them when they kill your 5 year old son or daughter?

It's not happened to me so far. I try to set an example of courteous and polite driving. Are you suggesting that I should turn the roads into a battlefield between cautious drivers (like you and me) and belligerent loonies (like you and someone else)? I'm not sure I would know where to draw the lines.

SC

[KeyserSoze01]

I do. Especially when people try to get in the elevator/subway/skytrain before I have managed to get out. I just elbow the fuc_kers in the face these days.

Good man.

To the OP, I remember a case of road rage a few years ago in northern Thailand where a farang on a motorbike was cut up by a Thai driving a car. The farang gave the Thai man the bird and rode off. At the next stoplight, the Thai man caught up to the bike, got out and shot the farang dead on the spot. Perhaps you should get darker tint on your windows.

[chiangmaibruce]

to make matters worse, i live in a small town so its very likely our paths will cross again. hope he forgets. deep breaths...deep breaths

Well then it looks like you have two choices: Fight or Flight

[theblether]

Risky, too risky....and the OP admitted that he should have known better.

[Chonburiram]

1322037838[/url]' post='4866693']

I've had to drive in lots of places and one of the worst is the Middle East as anyone that has lived there will tell you...in the west there is no excuse for inconsiderate driving and the question of 'deliberate disrespect' comes into play and the associated 'road rage'...

as a westerner who is used to courtesy from other drivers one of the hardest things to get used to in the third world are the local driving habits which do not incorporate western expectations; people simply are bad drivers, wandering all over the road, not signalling, squeezing in if there is a space (sometimes when there is not)...basic dumbshits...but, one must realise that they do not intend to be deliberately disrespectful or unsafe: they simply don't know any better...

on the other hand, there is no question about disrespect when someone gives you the finger...lucky not to get shot...

They simply don't know any better... and you can't teach them, because they are basic dumbshits ... ; but then, getting in a road rage situation with nothing more than a bare finger puts you on the same level...

[tutsiwarrior]

I've had to drive in lots of places and one of the worst is the Middle East as anyone that has lived there will tell you...in the west there is no excuse for inconsiderate driving and the question of 'deliberate disrespect' comes into play and the associated 'road rage'...

as a westerner who is used to courtesy from other drivers one of the hardest things to get used to in the third world are the local driving habits which do not incorporate western expectations; people simply are bad drivers, wandering all over the road, not signalling, squeezing in if there is a space (sometimes when there is not)...basic dumbshits...but, one must realise that they do not intend to be deliberately disrespectful or unsafe: they simply don't know any better...

on the other hand, there is no question about disrespect when someone gives you the finger...lucky not to get shot...

They simply don't know any better... and you can't teach them, because they are basic dumbshits ... ; but then, getting in a road rage situation with nothing more than a bare finger puts you on the same level...

well, you've missed my point completely but, I don't drive in Thailand so that I can freely 'give the bird' to anyone that I want from the back of our 1997 Nissan Urvan...with impunity

Edited November 23, 2011 by tutsiwarrior

[jackr]

Behind every smile is an angry Thai.

I think if more folk realised the smiles are default and that they'd rather you dead than lose any sort of face (how Buddhist ), no-one would be flicking the bird... the songthaew had to have it last month though, what a f*cking big baby! Driving can really bring out the worst in Thais.

[baboon]

Behind every smile is an angry Thai.

Good one.

Look, we all know there are a lot of idiots on the roads here, not all of them Thai. We all know that sooner or later we will be in a potentially life threatening situation because of one of these idiots.

It is not going to change. Accept the risks or let someone else do the driving. Me, I`ll stick to my bicycle. Do not try to ram me if you see me or you`ll be sorry.....

[McGarty]

You hear of many drivers here of mini-buses and trucks taking drugs to keep them going. Maybe this driver was one of them. It sure sounds like it.

I have lost it on a couple of occasions and given a 2 finger salute to some real pain in the ass drivers. It is a heat of the moment reaction to getting all the sh*t some Thai drivers give you with their driving techniques. Luckily nothing has come of it so far.

[pop3]

So it was all because you gave him the bird, but then you go on to say "i have tinted windows so how could he have know that i wasnt thai and maybe a soldier or cop on his way home. he didnt seem to care either way."

How could he see one without the other?

Same thought I had

Its obvious. as often on the forum were not getting the whole story.

[GarryP]

You hear of many drivers here of mini-buses and trucks taking drugs to keep them going. Maybe this driver was one of them. It sure sounds like it.

I have lost it on a couple of occasions and given a 2 finger salute to some real pain in the ass drivers. It is a heat of the moment reaction to getting all the sh*t some Thai drivers give you with their driving techniques. Luckily nothing has come of it so far.

Probably because they have no idea what the two finger salute means. Now if you give them the middle finger, you are almost certain to get a response.

[chiang mai]

So it was all because you gave him the bird, but then you go on to say "i have tinted windows so how could he have know that i wasnt thai and maybe a soldier or cop on his way home. he didnt seem to care either way."

How could he see one without the other?

Same thought I had

Its obvious. as often on the forum were not getting the whole story.

But it's created a herd mentality for Thai bashers.

[Banzai99]

You hear of many drivers here of mini-buses and trucks taking drugs to keep them going. Maybe this driver was one of them. It sure sounds like it.

I have lost it on a couple of occasions and given a 2 finger salute to some real pain in the ass drivers. It is a heat of the moment reaction to getting all the sh*t some Thai drivers give you with their driving techniques. Luckily nothing has come of it so far.

Probably because they have no idea what the two finger salute means. Now if you give them the middle finger, you are almost certain to get a response.

Most Thais wouldn't give a toss about what a Farang does or does not do, they know that most Farangs are absolutely terrified of Thai guys.

After all, they're all out to get us, right ?

[thequietman]

So it was all because you gave him the bird, but then you go on to say "i have tinted windows so how could he have know that i wasnt thai and maybe a soldier or cop on his way home. he didnt seem to care either way."

How could he see one without the other?

Same thought I had

Its obvious. as often on the forum were not getting the whole story.

But it's created a herd mentality for Thai bashers.

you Are getting the full story. he was tail gating me and as he pulled alongside i gave him the finger by putting it right up to the glass. however as i said before maybe he didnt see it and was just reacting. i had to break to get in out of his way, which made him break as he was no more than 3 feet from the back of me. i continued on my way at 80 km/hr and he still pulled the bus horizontally across the 2 lanes to get me to stop. does this sound rational to you ? get off your high horse, an asshol_e is an asshol_e (thai or foreigner) if he behaves like this. there is no excuse.

[Berkshire]

I was driving down a two-lane road, in the passing-lane, and an older farang guy was on my right on a motorcycle, about to make a u-turn. I go to pass him, but with the car on my left lane somewhat close to me, I had to pass the guy on the bike a tad close. Pretty standard, nothing dangerous, no harm, no foul. Anyways, I'm driving away and look back on my rearview mirror, and I can see the old buzzard is yelling and flipping me off! For a moment, I seriously felt like making a u-turn, tracking this guy down, and beating the crap out of him. I was literally that annoyed. I didn't feel like I did anything wrong (and certainly not intentional)...and this a-hole is giving me the finger??!! But my self-control got the best of me and I left it at that.

Moral of the story: You should refrain from giving anyone the finger. You may just run into someone who doesn't have the self-control of yours truly.

[robblok]

I was driving down a two-lane road, in the passing-lane, and an older farang guy was on my right on a motorcycle, about to make a u-turn. I go to pass him, but with the car on my left lane somewhat close to me, I had to pass the guy on the bike a tad close. Pretty standard, nothing dangerous, no harm, no foul. Anyways, I'm driving away and look back on my rearview mirror, and I can see the old buzzard is yelling and flipping me off! For a moment, I seriously felt like making a u-turn, tracking this guy down, and beating the crap out of him. I was literally that annoyed. I didn't feel like I did anything wrong (and certainly not intentional)...and this a-hole is giving me the finger??!! But my self-control got the best of me and I left it at that.

Moral of the story: You should refrain from giving anyone the finger. You may just run into someone who doesn't have the self-control of yours truly.

Shall we try that Berkshire you cut me off.. I flip the finger and you confront me. My bad flipping the finger, and your bad confronting me. But your initial action triggered it. You already admitted it was closer then you normally do so he probably felt the same.

[Berkshire]

I was driving down a two-lane road, in the passing-lane, and an older farang guy was on my right on a motorcycle, about to make a u-turn. I go to pass him, but with the car on my left lane somewhat close to me, I had to pass the guy on the bike a tad close. Pretty standard, nothing dangerous, no harm, no foul. Anyways, I'm driving away and look back on my rearview mirror, and I can see the old buzzard is yelling and flipping me off! For a moment, I seriously felt like making a u-turn, tracking this guy down, and beating the crap out of him. I was literally that annoyed. I didn't feel like I did anything wrong (and certainly not intentional)...and this a-hole is giving me the finger??!! But my self-control got the best of me and I left it at that.

Moral of the story: You should refrain from giving anyone the finger. You may just run into someone who doesn't have the self-control of yours truly.

Shall we try that Berkshire you cut me off.. I flip the finger and you confront me. My bad flipping the finger, and your bad confronting me. But your initial action triggered it. You already admitted it was closer then you normally do so he probably felt the same.

Now wait a minute, what did I do wrong, exactly? Should I have side-swiped the car to avoid being, what, too close to the bike? I avoided both. The point being that you don't really know the other guy's intention. But if you think that giving the finger to other drivers is appropriate (deservedly or not), have at it. Do it all day long. I'm with you!

[chiang mai]

Braked perhaps.