CAUTION! PROCEED WITH CARE!!
Radio - Jul 23, 2010

We just returned from a 3,000-mile motorcycle trip from Colorado, East via Kansas, Missouri, Illinois, and Ohio. 

As I occupy the back seat of our bike and scenery is scarce traveling the interstate highways through the mentioned states, I spent much of our travel time observing the drivers of other vehicles…cagers...and I have a question: WHO’S DRIVING??

It appears that driving a vehicle (cars, trucks, and semis) is a secondary activity, supplemented by a myriad of other activities that are of greater importance to the person behind the wheel of the vehicle. 

To me, traveling in a vehicle at over 75 mph seems like an important responsibility; one requiring all the driver’s concentration and learned defensive driving skills. And yet, rarely did I observe that. 

• Drivers on the phone, especially truckers, with the phone to their left ear, elbow against the window, laughing and talking. In this position, and focusing on the call, a driver cannot see what/who is in their blind spot or someone passing them. 
  

• Take the above one-step further. Many of the drivers above were also eating food or drink and on the phone. Yes, that means neither hand was on the steering wheel.  I watched one trucker carefully peel a banana and eat it.
  

• Many drivers, I’m sure you have seen them, drive with one wrist on the top of the steering wheel.  How do you perform a defensive maneuver with your wrist?
• Several guys had their left leg up…maybe on the seat??? Their knees were clearly visible in the window and their left arm on the window edge or their knee. First off, I didn’t know guys were that flexible, but did they learn that in driver’s training?
  

• One little blond thing was talking on the phone (right ear) and twirling her long blond hair with the other hand. Her body language said she was talking with a guy. She would pass us and slow down and then pass us again. Even when I tried to get her attention when we passed her, she didn’t notice us.
• There were also drivers texting, many who thought if they held the phone up high, above the steering wheel, they could drive better. They could not.
• Mothers reaching in the back seat trying to take care of children and picking things up from the other side of the car. Yikes! You have kids in your car.
• There were drivers shaving, drivers putting on makeup, and one guy brushing his teeth. Good grief. Get ready at home.    
  

• My favorite though was the trucker holding a small black and white kitten curled up in his left arm…high enough the kitten could see out the window, and I could see the whole kitten…and petting it with his right hand; long full body strokes. You know, the kind cats like. Sadly, when he saw me watching him, he smiled, and kept petting the cat!  How many tons does a semi weigh flying down the road…some are doubles…or triples?

I realize there is a debate by cagers and bikers regarding who is at fault for the accidents that happen. And the truth is that both sides could use improvement. 

Vehicle drivers need to focus on driving or hand the wheel over to someone who will. If they need to eat…stop and eat. If you need to talk on the phone…stop and talk. If you need to pet your cat…well, you get the idea. Serious and deadly accidents happen every day because of driver distractions. Are those distractions more important than someone’s life??? Your life?

Just one last comment to add to the cager/biker controversy. 

Say what you want about biker’s driving, but when was the last time you saw a biker driving while texting, or talking on the phone, or driving with his knees, shaving or putting on makeup, or holding a cat and petting it?  

Motorcycle riders focus on driving and watching the road. They have to. There are cagers out there!