I was talking with someone many years ago who had a convincing arguement that EVERYTHING was political. Just for fun we discussed a range of subjects and he was able to make them political. At the time I was conviced. I cannot remember his arguement details to be sure he was right anymore, but still remember the conversation.
btw: I took my wife to Birmingham for work this morning and met a slight difficulty on the way home – FLOOD!
Where I usually go straight ahead at an island, there was a huge traffic jam. Wondering why the unusual traffic, I went to turn right and travel around the jam then saw what was contributing, the road was flooded!
I watched a van take that way – which had been cordoned off – and watched the water not come over his hub-caps. I realised that my engine air intake was above this level and could probably get through if, like him, I went slowly and kept the revs up. That I made it is why I am here now to write this instead of waiting to be towed out!
Just goes to show that with planning, knowledge and care, many of life’s obstacles can be overcome. Like YMs ‘bag of holding’ having everything he needs to deal with unusual situations…
Here (Australia) we are always told not to drive through flood waters. In many cases it starts out only up to your hubcaps but then you quickly find out the road is washed away and it is over the roof racks. People in this situation rarely get to tell their story.
In my case I had observed the van first and knew the crown of the road was higher so kept to that – an unknown road is one I would avoid though!
About 10 years ago I was in a similar predicament – on my way home from Newbury in monsoon-like rainfall that hadn’t let up all day, I had to travel along the Foss Way, an old Roman road. I knew this road VERY well and I came over a rise to see the road in the dip ahead had a flood crossing it, draining from the hills to the side, I considered the terrain. Judging depth from many signs (I could see the top of high grass for example), I took a calculated risk.
I was driving an automatic with a 3L Cosworth Engine so I had plenty of power to push water out of the exhaust when it was submerged. I slowed to a crawl and went through at about 3mph, engine racing and holding the speed with the brakes. I got through with no problem. I loved that car…
On a bicycle I would have gone around as the flow was fierce and either mounted or on foot, I think I would have been in the fields soon enough!
Very good point Zap. I lived in Central Western Qld for many years and saw first hand what can happen. As a SES member (State Emergency Services) I have had to do body retreival on a couple of occasions where people have misjudged water depth and current strength.
Sorry guys us Ausies have hijacked things here…… coasting???? hell yeah. Love the comics
Years ago when I was a newspaper reporter, I drove out to take photos of flooding. I drove across an hubcap deep road, and noticed I was going sideways. I managed to start the car again, and move forward a little, I kept repeating that till I hit high ground and moved across. I knew that if I ended up stranded on the hood of my car, my competitors would love to run that photo on the front page of their papers. I never trust water.
One problem with driving into deep water is that the engine’s fan blades can be pushed into the radiator and do some serious damage to the radiator and toi anything on the same sepentine belt as the fan (if it’s on a belt).
Having seen my share of floods along my section of the Mississippi, I know high water is nothing to be treated lightly, even in cases such as Tencon’s where he had seen a previous vehicle successfully ford a water-covered road.
I have seen roads like this after the water receded, and noted that while the pavement remained more-or-less intact, the water rushing across the road had completely washed away the shoulder, leaving an 8-inch or larger drop, and had started undermining the paved roadway itself. Get yourself a little off-center and drop off the roadway, or hit that undermined section, and you could quickly find yourself in all sorts of problems. And don’t think that if something like that happens you’ll just get out of the car and wade back to dry land; someone tried that around here a couple years ago. They found his body two miles downstream three days later.
Here in Arizona we have a “stupid driver” law. Anyone trapped in a flooded area that is marked in any way (“Do not enter when flooded” etc.) or obviously under deep or moving water (water level on sign posts) is subject to a fine AND the full cost of rescue.
Ah flooding, last Monday morning I rode down the hill into the park I usually ride through to get the train and discovered that the path had become part of the creek so I took the street route. That night the bridge was still under water so I had to detour again. The next day most of it was dry but I still got my feet wet crossing one super-puddle. Between the rain and the drunk dropping his car on the train tracks the last couple of weeks have been exciting.
The trouble with politics is that it’s too polarized, especially in the USA, to have any useful discussion. it’s a team support exercise instead of a discussion about guiding society. Politics ought to be about sifting the useful policies from the rest and figuring out how to promote and bring them to fruition, but instead it’s about whose team you’re on! Nobody stops to think about whether their team is right or wrong or even makes any sense, it seems. They just rally to their “us” against the “they” and stop thinking.
About 35 years ago I was driving through some very flat land in eastern Arkansas on my way to cross the Mississippi River at West Helena. There had been flooding in the area recently. I came to a long stretch (a couple of miles at least) where the water had flooded all the fields. There were tall barbed wire fences separating the fields from the road, and the road itself ran on top of a levee that raised it several feet higher than the surrounding fields. The water was high enough that it covered the road surface by about a foot or so. It was a bright sunny day with no wind, so there was just a flat sheet of water stretching off as far as I could see in all directions. The top couple of strands of the fence wire were above the water, outlining both sides of the road; without that it would have been very difficult to tell where the road was, especially with the glare of the sunlight off the water. Long lines of cars were moving slowly through the water in both directions on the two-lane road. Since they seemed to be having no trouble, I took my place in line and edged carefully through the water. It seemed to take a long time–probably about 20 minutes–because everyone was keeping well apart and moving VERY slowly to avoid churning up waves that would flood out our engines. Amazingly, I never saw anyone have any problem and eventually found myself moving onto dry pavement again. It was a rather surreal experience, creeping along slowly in that long procession under a clear blue sky, across what looked like the calm surface of a lake with only fence posts, strands of wire and the occasional tree to mark our path.
Yehuda raises a good point the phrase “it went downhill” doesn’t make all that much sense from the perspective of our pastime. Well… Unless you have single-pivot rim brakes and it’s raining, or ride a fix gear and live in Seattle.
As to the flooding thing. The Bellefield office park in Bellevue, WA was built on a swamp. And it’s sinking into said swamp (Monty Python anyone?) Riding through there after even a minor rain is hilarious because most of the roads are covered with 6-8″ of standing water. I had a lot of fun blasting through these… er… puddles with my feet resting on the top tube, while watching the cars around me wallow.
Can I take a tailwind with that coast?
i’d like to coast away from any talks of the political nature.
My thoughts exactly.
Brilliant!
I was talking with someone many years ago who had a convincing arguement that EVERYTHING was political. Just for fun we discussed a range of subjects and he was able to make them political. At the time I was conviced. I cannot remember his arguement details to be sure he was right anymore, but still remember the conversation.
the phrase is by Michel Foucault, and it is not like that. It’s in fact this: “Everything is political, OR, BETTER SAYING, POLITICIZABLE”.
I think it is on Microphysics Of The Power.
Another from him, less famous: “It’s a chore to politicize everything – even moody tempers during the morning awakening”.
I couldn’t agree more!
btw: I took my wife to Birmingham for work this morning and met a slight difficulty on the way home – FLOOD!
Where I usually go straight ahead at an island, there was a huge traffic jam. Wondering why the unusual traffic, I went to turn right and travel around the jam then saw what was contributing, the road was flooded!
I watched a van take that way – which had been cordoned off – and watched the water not come over his hub-caps. I realised that my engine air intake was above this level and could probably get through if, like him, I went slowly and kept the revs up. That I made it is why I am here now to write this instead of waiting to be towed out!
Just goes to show that with planning, knowledge and care, many of life’s obstacles can be overcome. Like YMs ‘bag of holding’ having everything he needs to deal with unusual situations…
Here (Australia) we are always told not to drive through flood waters. In many cases it starts out only up to your hubcaps but then you quickly find out the road is washed away and it is over the roof racks. People in this situation rarely get to tell their story.
A good point Zap. Thanks for the warning
In my case I had observed the van first and knew the crown of the road was higher so kept to that – an unknown road is one I would avoid though!
About 10 years ago I was in a similar predicament – on my way home from Newbury in monsoon-like rainfall that hadn’t let up all day, I had to travel along the Foss Way, an old Roman road. I knew this road VERY well and I came over a rise to see the road in the dip ahead had a flood crossing it, draining from the hills to the side, I considered the terrain. Judging depth from many signs (I could see the top of high grass for example), I took a calculated risk.
I was driving an automatic with a 3L Cosworth Engine so I had plenty of power to push water out of the exhaust when it was submerged. I slowed to a crawl and went through at about 3mph, engine racing and holding the speed with the brakes. I got through with no problem. I loved that car…
On a bicycle I would have gone around as the flow was fierce and either mounted or on foot, I think I would have been in the fields soon enough!
Very good point Zap. I lived in Central Western Qld for many years and saw first hand what can happen. As a SES member (State Emergency Services) I have had to do body retreival on a couple of occasions where people have misjudged water depth and current strength.
Sorry guys us Ausies have hijacked things here…… coasting???? hell yeah. Love the comics
Years ago when I was a newspaper reporter, I drove out to take photos of flooding. I drove across an hubcap deep road, and noticed I was going sideways. I managed to start the car again, and move forward a little, I kept repeating that till I hit high ground and moved across. I knew that if I ended up stranded on the hood of my car, my competitors would love to run that photo on the front page of their papers. I never trust water.
One problem with driving into deep water is that the engine’s fan blades can be pushed into the radiator and do some serious damage to the radiator and toi anything on the same sepentine belt as the fan (if it’s on a belt).
Having seen my share of floods along my section of the Mississippi, I know high water is nothing to be treated lightly, even in cases such as Tencon’s where he had seen a previous vehicle successfully ford a water-covered road.
I have seen roads like this after the water receded, and noted that while the pavement remained more-or-less intact, the water rushing across the road had completely washed away the shoulder, leaving an 8-inch or larger drop, and had started undermining the paved roadway itself. Get yourself a little off-center and drop off the roadway, or hit that undermined section, and you could quickly find yourself in all sorts of problems. And don’t think that if something like that happens you’ll just get out of the car and wade back to dry land; someone tried that around here a couple years ago. They found his body two miles downstream three days later.
Frankly, it’s not worth it.
That’s why we let our tea “steep!”
Here in Arizona we have a “stupid driver” law. Anyone trapped in a flooded area that is marked in any way (“Do not enter when flooded” etc.) or obviously under deep or moving water (water level on sign posts) is subject to a fine AND the full cost of rescue.
“Stupid Driver Law” is dead on, but they should also receive the Darwin award as their receipt…
Amen…
Ah flooding, last Monday morning I rode down the hill into the park I usually ride through to get the train and discovered that the path had become part of the creek so I took the street route. That night the bridge was still under water so I had to detour again. The next day most of it was dry but I still got my feet wet crossing one super-puddle. Between the rain and the drunk dropping his car on the train tracks the last couple of weeks have been exciting.
The trouble with politics is that it’s too polarized, especially in the USA, to have any useful discussion. it’s a team support exercise instead of a discussion about guiding society. Politics ought to be about sifting the useful policies from the rest and figuring out how to promote and bring them to fruition, but instead it’s about whose team you’re on! Nobody stops to think about whether their team is right or wrong or even makes any sense, it seems. They just rally to their “us” against the “they” and stop thinking.
About 35 years ago I was driving through some very flat land in eastern Arkansas on my way to cross the Mississippi River at West Helena. There had been flooding in the area recently. I came to a long stretch (a couple of miles at least) where the water had flooded all the fields. There were tall barbed wire fences separating the fields from the road, and the road itself ran on top of a levee that raised it several feet higher than the surrounding fields. The water was high enough that it covered the road surface by about a foot or so. It was a bright sunny day with no wind, so there was just a flat sheet of water stretching off as far as I could see in all directions. The top couple of strands of the fence wire were above the water, outlining both sides of the road; without that it would have been very difficult to tell where the road was, especially with the glare of the sunlight off the water. Long lines of cars were moving slowly through the water in both directions on the two-lane road. Since they seemed to be having no trouble, I took my place in line and edged carefully through the water. It seemed to take a long time–probably about 20 minutes–because everyone was keeping well apart and moving VERY slowly to avoid churning up waves that would flood out our engines. Amazingly, I never saw anyone have any problem and eventually found myself moving onto dry pavement again. It was a rather surreal experience, creeping along slowly in that long procession under a clear blue sky, across what looked like the calm surface of a lake with only fence posts, strands of wire and the occasional tree to mark our path.
man, a whole yehuda moon comment sections about driving, weird day
Yehuda raises a good point the phrase “it went downhill” doesn’t make all that much sense from the perspective of our pastime. Well… Unless you have single-pivot rim brakes and it’s raining, or ride a fix gear and live in Seattle.
As to the flooding thing. The Bellefield office park in Bellevue, WA was built on a swamp. And it’s sinking into said swamp (Monty Python anyone?) Riding through there after even a minor rain is hilarious because most of the roads are covered with 6-8″ of standing water. I had a lot of fun blasting through these… er… puddles with my feet resting on the top tube, while watching the cars around me wallow.