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Original poster

To think people who overtake are idiots?

677 replies

sallyhansen32 · 15/07/2018 08:36

So this morning I was out early.
I was on a road with a 30 mph limit..there's a speed camera next to a school.
I'm new to driving so didn't want to go crazy so I dropped down to 25mph till I passed through it.
A van overtook me and stuck his fingers up.
Was I going to slow?
If I was then fair enough ..but it's not like I was going through under 20.

OP posts:
Thread gallery
6
Pengggwn · 15/07/2018 16:45

The 'speed limit is a limit not a target' thing applies to adapting to conditions, e.g. Don't zoom around corners at 50 even if the limit is 50, slow down if it's very rainy/foggy etc. Not just driving slowly because you want to.

Of course I can drive a bit more slowly if I want to. Providing I am not actually causing queues or a hazard, what is the problem with not being up at the LIMIT? I capitalise the word because it has a clear meaning that you're ignoring.

PipeDown1 · 15/07/2018 16:54

I think even in a 1L car you can safely get up a slight bank doing 25mph Hmm

IllHaveALargeGlassOfRed · 15/07/2018 16:56

And you'll also have to stop getting pissed off at other drivers or you'll be in a perpetually pissed off mood when driving! There are a lot of idiots out there, drivers who don't signal etc. Folk who give you the veezers for no reason etc.

The most I mutter to myself these days is aimed at tailgaters who are up my arse when I'm overtaking on duals or motorways and already at over slightly over the speed limit "I'm sorry, am I not going fast enough for you? Dick."

Hoopaloop · 15/07/2018 17:03

Some complete nobs on here. She's only been driving a few days so give her a chance ffs.

Lethaldrizzle · 15/07/2018 17:05

Yes agree and how can people get so annoyed about things like having 15 minutes added onto their journey because of a slow driver? It's just 15 minutes! Just turn the radio on and chill out

GunpowderGelatine · 15/07/2018 17:09

YWBU for purposefully driving at 25mph.

It's fine to overtake if it's die safely and legally

GunpowderGelatine · 15/07/2018 17:09

But the van driver was a total bell end to swear at you

applesisapple5 · 15/07/2018 17:12

Part of being a new driver is channelling Elsa 'let it go'!
If an arsehole overtakes you, that's one less arsehole behind you! You'll never know why so it doesn't matter.
Learn from it and move on, as you build up more driving hours this will be easier, and next time you'll know the warning signs of a van driver who is about to overtake you on a 30mph road.

Typhers · 15/07/2018 17:18

Oh get a grip overtaking is perfectly fine and accepted by most normal people and in the Highway Code. It is however subjective... I live in a rural location and drive a modestly quick car, and a much quicker bike... overtaking where I am is perfectly reasonable. Travelling round the midfke of London however, not so much 😄

Also the van was wrong for swearing, but not for overtaking.

adaline · 15/07/2018 17:31

I was frustrated because I think it's really selfish and inconsiderate to drive 35mph under the speed limit and in such a fashion that it's impossible for people to pass you.

I live in a tourist area and it's like people think it's fine to dawdle along the roads when locals actually still have jobs to get to and can't afford to have their journey times doubled because some people are too ignorant to pull over!

Flatearthersphere · 15/07/2018 17:39

You don't know how much pressure to put on the pedal? Sounds like you fluked your test. If you are still getting used to your car drive round an empty car park....
For what it's worth, no, people who overtake are not idiots. I am sick of being behind people doing at 20 or 25mph, so I overtake,safely.

Hamiltoes · 15/07/2018 17:40

Pengggwn you can drive slower than the limit if you feel like it, anyone can, but it's not good driving and you'd fail a drivers test for doing so repeatedly. I know because I got minors for doing 25mph in a 30 zone on a test!

Also your point about not being concerned with whats going on behind you is rubbish (imo!). Mirrors, signal, manoeuvre. You're not checking your mirrors for the sheer joy of it you're doing it to assess what's behind you. Before every junction I was taught to check my rear view mirror and then check for pedestrians approaching the lights. If there was a car close behind and it looked like the lights might change, break more gradually than you would if the road was clear behind you before the lights change. It's just common sense.

The driver upthread who stopped abruptly to pull into a parking space without signalling when there was a car behind was in the wrong, and the driver was correct to beep. Almost as bad as the drivers who pull out in front of you and then immediately slow down because they're doing a right turn, when you're expecting them to speed up into the flow of traffic. They somehow think because there is a big enough gap it's OK but it's not, as they're then making you break unexpectedly. It's all just poor driving and as the op is by her own admission inexperienced it's right that people are saying it MAY be legal to drive at 25mph on a 30 but IT IS poor driving if conditions are good.

Original poster
sallyhansen32 · 15/07/2018 17:42

Like I've said numerous times it's a new car that I'm not used to driving ..which I've drove 3 times for 5 mins each time ..so yes i am getting used to how it drives ..obviously all of you were never slightly nervous or hesitant soon as you passed your test ..silly me.
Maybe a career in driving tuition seen as though you seem to know everything there is to know regarding driving etc

OP posts:
TooTrueToBeGood · 15/07/2018 17:42

Some complete nobs on here. She's only been driving a few days so give her a chance ffs

Maybe she'd have got a less hostile reception if she had chosen a different title for her thread. She started the nobishness so any harsh posts back is really just reaping what she sowed.

Hamiltoes · 15/07/2018 17:46

@sally honestly don't beat yourself up about it! The best thing i ever did when i passed was got myself onto NSL country roads and 70mph dual carriageways. I remember thinking how fast 40mph felt but once you get used to driving at 60 or 70, 30mph really doesn't seem so fast and you'll feel much more at ease. I do still remember feeling like my car was the size of a bus and shitting myself when a lorry came towards me on a NSL country lane. In a years time you will look back and think WTF Sally Grin just keep doing as your doing the confidence will come in time.

Original poster
sallyhansen32 · 15/07/2018 17:47

If you bothered to read a few posts after my initial post I actually said I worded it wrong as I was upset about being swore at and didn't mean everyone who overtakes ..
Clearly love a argument for nothing on here

OP posts:
TooTrueToBeGood · 15/07/2018 17:51

Maybe a career in driving tuition seen as though you seem to know everything there is to know regarding driving etc

And maybe you could do with a bit of humility appropriate to a new driver struggling to get used to a new car. Blanket labelling any and every driver who overtakes as idiots is hardly going to help you win friends and influence people. You've been just as guilty in this thread of insisting you know best, the difference is we all know you're not qualified to do so. You're akin to a first year med student proclaiming that all consultant surgeons who do xyz are idiots.

Original poster
sallyhansen32 · 15/07/2018 17:53

Tootrue - are you not reading what I've said upteen times? Clearly not

OP posts:
NotSoRandom · 15/07/2018 17:55

30 is the limit, so dropping to 25, especially near a school and speed camera is perfectly acceptable/sensible. The other driver is an idiot.

cuppaandcake · 15/07/2018 17:58

@sallyhansen32 why did u need to slow down for the camera when you weren't doing 30 to start with ??

TorviBrightspear · 15/07/2018 18:07

Driving over the speed limit is against the law, driving under it isn't but it is generally the rule that if you drive a certain amount under the limit, generally 15-20 mph, you must make use of your hazard lights.

No, it's not the rule. According to the Highway code, you MUST NOT use hazard warning lights while driving or being towed unless you are on a motorway or unrestricted dual carriageway and you need to warn drivers behind you of a hazard or obstruction ahead.

When the code quotes MUST NOT, it generally means it's not legal to do so.

queenMab99 · 15/07/2018 18:10

Everyone overtakes me when I am going through a certain multi-speed camera stretch on a regular journey. I don't care, I have been caught so many times there, over the years, going just above the limit, just before it increases to 40, so let them be impatient, do rude gestures all they want, I absolutely refuse to pay another £100!

PoisonousSmurf · 15/07/2018 18:12

Maybe take extra lessons with the IAM? You need to learn how to drive in a way that makes 'progress' and doesn't wind up others around you.
Going slow when not necessary makes anyone see red!

PoisonousSmurf · 15/07/2018 18:13

www.iamroadsmart.com/

BitOutOfPractice · 15/07/2018 18:13

People who overtake inappropriately or dangerously are idiots yes. Not all overtaking is inappropriate or dangerous though so yabu

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