Crossfire Vs GTO

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ColJessip
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Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by ColJessip »

While I was doing some rural driving to the ranch/lake house which is about 265 miles away from me, I ran into none other than my favorite car in the whole damn world. A LS2 GTO 2006 BOM not to sure about the transmission though, I think it was a stick though. And It just so happened to be at one of the only intersections of the area.

So I took the opportunity just to see what the difference between a not to slow car and a damn fast car was. So I revved my engine like a ricer and smiled the GTO dude just smiled at me and pointed at the open road in front of us. I smiled and nodded. We waited for the light to turn green and were off. I BEAT HIM BY 5 CAR LENGTHS!!!. Just kidding. I got my ass handed to me. badly. I ran up to about 95 and let off, by then the goat was a good few lengths ahead of me and I just rolled down my window and listened to the sweet V8 noise.
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by wannabe »

street racing is bade, mkay?

btw, why'd u race in the first place, when you KNOW you'll be beat?
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by ColJessip »

wannabe wrote:street racing is bade, mkay?

btw, why'd u race in the first place, when you KNOW you'll be beat?
Because I want to see how much faster the GTO is. I only would crashed into some dirt though soo... :cry:
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by padauk_dust »

Nice story.
I don't see any outstanding danger to what he did wannabe. I accelerate like hell on a straightaway occasionally, and ultimately that is what happened here. Simply because there was a car next to him (Ok, near him :wink: ) people like to call it "racing" and would deem it dangerous without considering the circumstances.

Aside from dangers that inherently come with driving (rural area means possible animal crossings, tractors, trucks etc), there wasn't any extra change of an accident. No twists in the road, no slick surfaces, good visibility etc - create an ideal situation in which to drive with minimal chance of an incident. Both cars are quite capable at 95mph, and the chance of a human input error is just as likely racing as driving, albeit at heightened consequences. That is one of the many risks you take when driving, at any speed.

I see it as a simple educational experiment! :) Not something I'd recommend to anyone, anywhere, at any time, but with the given information it sounded okay to me.
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by wannabe »

all i was saying is that its bad, nothing else.

not trying to be mean or anything, sorry if it seemed that way
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by Prodigal Son »

padauk_dust wrote: there wasn't any extra change of an accident.
Yes there was. What people don't seem to be able to get through their heads about street racing is that there are two huge factors that make it more dangerous than just driving fast down the same road.

First, it changes your intention. The intention become to win the race, and that intention affects your decision making. You will react differently to emerging situations because you will see them in terms of your ability to win the race. Even the decision to abandon the race or not when something happens takes time away from reacting to the situation itself. If you drive with the primary intention of arriving safely at your destination, that intention will profoundly affect all you driving decisions and make you drive more safely. If you drive with the intention of winning a race, that will profoundly affect all your driving decisions and make you drive much more dangerously.

Second, it changes your focus. A safe driver drives defensively and maintains 360 degree awareness at all times. Racing narrows your focus. Chances are that during the entire race you will be in a state of tunnel vision, seeing nothing but the car you are racing and oblivious to everything else happening on and around the road. This is incredibly dangerous.

The same factors affect the driver of the other car as well, meaning that his accident is likely to be your accident as well.

So no, racing down a strip of road with another car beside you is not just the same as driving down it yourself at the same speed. It is much much more dangerous, both for the parties involved and for the innocent bystanders that the racers will almost certainly never see before they hit them.

Street racing is a callously selfish activity. Trying to excuse it or to pretend it is not dangerous is being willfully stupid.

If you want to race, take it to the drag strip.
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by ColJessip »

Prodigal Son wrote: If you drive with the intention of winning a race, that will profoundly affect all your driving decisions and make you drive much more dangerously.
I respect where you are coming from and all, but I actually knew I had no chance of winning. So none of these factors really effected me. But the driver of the GTO I have no idea about. But seeing as he let of at 90-95 I don't think he thought I was serious. I might also add that the speed limit of the particular highway was 80 MPH once you passed the intersection. And well I think everyone has gone 15 over.

Now i'm not trying to start a fight or anything I'm just trying to clear a point.
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by Prodigal Son »

ColJessip wrote:So none of these factors really effected me.
This, alas, is what people tell themselves. The very fact that you can recount the incident in such detail means that you focussed a great deal of your attention on the race, even if you did not expect to win. If your attention had been in the right place, you would not be able to tell the story in such detail. So yes, these factors did apply to you. It was dangerous and you should not have done it.
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by ColJessip »

Sorry but I think our definitions of detail are different. Please elaborate.
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by Prodigal Son »

ColJessip wrote:Sorry but I think our definitions of detail are different. Please elaborate.
The speed you reached, the number of lengths, the sound of the engine. For those few seconds your world was reduced to you and the GTO. But like I say, you can't tell people. People are simply not aware of the fact that they were oblivious to the world around them. In those moment they feel focussed, they feel like their senses are heightened and their experience more alive. You feel like you saw everything because your focus was so intent. In fact, you saw almost nothing because your focus was so narrow.
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by ColJessip »

Yep you probably are right and I probably made the wrong decision.

Its just that, if your dream car pulled up next to you and you had miles of open freeway ahead with the highest speed limit in the country and no traffic, I think most would do the same.
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by Bawked »

ofcourse i'd take my dream car on! :D

I saw a Porsche Carrera gt today pulled a perfect 5->2 dcht following it, if there was a double lane at lights I would of revved at it and raced it :?
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by wannabe »

ur fourbanger won't keep up. you suck :P j/k

they have porcshe's in nz? odd
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by Bawked »

^ Says the person with a slush spirit.....

Maybe if I had a mr2 turbo I would be able to keep up to more expensive cars.
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Re: Crossfire Vs GTO

Post by wannabe »

whats wrong w/ a slush spirit other than the slush?

its fast (when it has tires)...its good in curves, and straights...

why should i have to prove my car to you anyways. its a good car, reliable, doesn't break often, and i could put a turbo in it if i wanted, cuz yes, they did come turbo.

and it won't be slush for another year. i'm betting it'll have a stick in it by january :P
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