The Real Need For Speed

and if I was there would be no blog.

I had to drive to Madison today and since I have some friends in the Philippians who have never seen snow I thought I would put my GoPro Hero3+ Silver on the dash and record the trip in the snow storm.  Just for fun.  Boring drive but I seriously said to my self, "you never know". 

So I set the camera up and am driving along and the snow goes into flurry mode and all is well.  Then as I get about halfway between Columbus and Sun Prairie the snow starts harder and BAM it's practically white out.  Then stops again and I drive along.

Cars are passing me and even though I have an all wheel drive Subaru I'm not stupid and am still going about 60 with no problems.

BAM, another snow squall and I slow to 50ish and then it's a white out and I sort of get more alert.

All of a sudden out of nowhere I see a black shape in my lane and tap the break a little, BUT WAIT, whatever it is I'm going way to fast and apply the break hard but nothing really happens.  SHIT, it's a truck with cars behind it and going to plow right into the back, I gotta go evasive (I think I might have actually thought that because everything all of a sudden went into slow motion, in a very fast way).

I try to get into the left lane still going too fast with no traction, I'm not slowing OR moving left as fast Ias I want too.  Then as the car straddles the center line, CRAP, that lane is blocked also and I'm not slowing as I was hoping so I ease (now going 40??) onto the snow covered gravel trying to get some traction.  At least I now have steering control but a car in the left lane is now trying to get out of the mess by going off road IN FRONT OF ME!!   

I go "all in" to the ditch passing the group and am clear ahead and I glance right as I get pass the STOPPED semi truck.

I will almost guarantee I was the last car to make it.  I get my phone and call 911 at 10:51am and tell them there is about to be a horrific accident as at least 6 cars were STOPPED  and blocking both lanes on the road and its white out conditions.

I give them the wrong mile marker (I was a few off, not sure why, I think I was freaking).

I get to Brew and Grow and I an so disappointed.  My GoPro was on the wrong freaking setting.  I am so so disappointed. This would have been a viral video  . . almost! My best driving EVER!

So I set the GoPro up again with a 2 second time lapse and drive back to Columbus.  Pass the mile marker I THOUGHT was the right one and somehow am disappointed but then feel guilty right away and drive on.

Then I see something coming up.

  
We slow down and I count about 18 cars, most in the ditch and most are completely totaled. A number of cars look like they are inside out, no shell at all.

 
That was not the truck  I passed while I was in the medium. The 911 guy asked if I could describe the truck but I could not, I told him I was having my own issues and did not get a good look but I'm sure there was some blue or something.

I called Jenny as I saw the Columbus Fire Department and she said they were calling for more extraction equipment. She was stuck in traffic going southbound.

Here is the odd thing.

I consider myself a very very good driver as I have played literally tens of thousands of hours (maybe a thousand) in racing video games in my youth.  And this last weekend Elwood and I were playing Need for Speed (first racing game in 20 years?) and honestly, I had gone through that very same scenario 20 or 30 times this past weekend . . . except in those my car is pretty indestructible.    

I also learned 2 second time lapse is too long for driving (and I know what the time lapse setting is now).

I need a beer!

Rod