A Mind of Their Own
May SEAHA note from the editor
Not too long ago Sarah was having trouble with the starter in her Toyota 4runner. It worked some days, not others. The day I decided to drive it to the shop it wouldn't start. No problem, we'll just push start it. We live in a tortilla-flat section of Arizona so there are no hills to get a good roll going. Throwing a glance at the mules watching over the fence, I recalled Horace's unmulelike fear of having anything hitched up behind him. Why pull with just a couple of horsepower when I have 225 in my F-150 truck? The only problem was my most suitable towline was only 8 feet long. I realized Sarah wouldn't know the complexities of popping the clutch when bump-starting a vehicle, so I told her she would be in the lead driving the Ford, and pulling me in the dead Toyota. Like a lot of couples the warmth of our relationship is often cooled by miscommunications. I carefully told her "to gently, at a steady, slow speed, head down the driveway and onto the street. Don't slow down suddenly or stop until I signal you, the line is very short and I don’t want to rear-end you. There's not much braking space." We both mounted our steeds. Sarah took up the slack in the line and got me going without any inchworming bounces. As we pulled out of our gravel drive and into the paved street I popped the clutch and got the engine going instantly. Somehow in the commotion we came to a stop. I thought it was because Sarah had realized the engine had started but alas, as the Toyota started up, I got my power brakes back and pulled us both to a stop. We weren't going anywhere, yet. Unused to an automatic, and believing she had just lost steam in the tow, she started giving it gas to get us going again. Not yet figuring out she was trying to re-motivate, I instinctively pushed the brake pedal harder as I sensed the Toyota about to roll. Our psychic communication is worse than our verbal, and she hit the gas harder. Suddenly I realized the horrid situation we were in. As soon as I let go of the brake pedal, the Toyota would leap forward faster than a speeding bullet, whereupon it would crash into the back of my F-150. Two wreaked trucks for the price of one. Keeping one foot on the brakes I lowered the window and yelled "whoa". She pulled harder, and my brakes started making popping noises. WHOA… I yelled as I waved my arm out the window! She hit the gas harder until she was spinning out, fishtailing inches in front of my windshield, filling the air with white smoke. "WHOA!!!, hold UP, you're GOING TO KILL US ALL!!! She finally decided to confirm what I wanted and yelled out the window, "Are you saying GO?" NO…WHOA, I mean STOP!! I jumped out and quickly released the ties that bind, and had come close to welding, us together. Now I've heard non-riders say they believe driving motor vehicles are safer than using horses or mules, because you are in control and the former don't have a mind of their own. It all depends...
Not too long ago Sarah was having trouble with the starter in her Toyota 4runner. It worked some days, not others. The day I decided to drive it to the shop it wouldn't start. No problem, we'll just push start it. We live in a tortilla-flat section of Arizona so there are no hills to get a good roll going. Throwing a glance at the mules watching over the fence, I recalled Horace's unmulelike fear of having anything hitched up behind him. Why pull with just a couple of horsepower when I have 225 in my F-150 truck? The only problem was my most suitable towline was only 8 feet long. I realized Sarah wouldn't know the complexities of popping the clutch when bump-starting a vehicle, so I told her she would be in the lead driving the Ford, and pulling me in the dead Toyota. Like a lot of couples the warmth of our relationship is often cooled by miscommunications. I carefully told her "to gently, at a steady, slow speed, head down the driveway and onto the street. Don't slow down suddenly or stop until I signal you, the line is very short and I don’t want to rear-end you. There's not much braking space." We both mounted our steeds. Sarah took up the slack in the line and got me going without any inchworming bounces. As we pulled out of our gravel drive and into the paved street I popped the clutch and got the engine going instantly. Somehow in the commotion we came to a stop. I thought it was because Sarah had realized the engine had started but alas, as the Toyota started up, I got my power brakes back and pulled us both to a stop. We weren't going anywhere, yet. Unused to an automatic, and believing she had just lost steam in the tow, she started giving it gas to get us going again. Not yet figuring out she was trying to re-motivate, I instinctively pushed the brake pedal harder as I sensed the Toyota about to roll. Our psychic communication is worse than our verbal, and she hit the gas harder. Suddenly I realized the horrid situation we were in. As soon as I let go of the brake pedal, the Toyota would leap forward faster than a speeding bullet, whereupon it would crash into the back of my F-150. Two wreaked trucks for the price of one. Keeping one foot on the brakes I lowered the window and yelled "whoa". She pulled harder, and my brakes started making popping noises. WHOA… I yelled as I waved my arm out the window! She hit the gas harder until she was spinning out, fishtailing inches in front of my windshield, filling the air with white smoke. "WHOA!!!, hold UP, you're GOING TO KILL US ALL!!! She finally decided to confirm what I wanted and yelled out the window, "Are you saying GO?" NO…WHOA, I mean STOP!! I jumped out and quickly released the ties that bind, and had come close to welding, us together. Now I've heard non-riders say they believe driving motor vehicles are safer than using horses or mules, because you are in control and the former don't have a mind of their own. It all depends...
posted by Garrett | 4:32 PM
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