Utah Drivers + Snow = Frustration

Since moving to Utah in 2004, I have been amazed at the complete lack of attention that drivers in this state pay to anything other than their own car. They will drive at precisely the same speed as the cars on both sides while traveling on I-15, and thus rather effectively block anyone wishing to go faster than 60 mph on that 65mph road. And then just to have a little fun with those of us that are already frustrated, they will spontaneously offer acts of kindness to others. i.e. letting someone into traffic that has been sitting on the side of the road trying to get in for more than 15 seconds. They will of course pay no attention to the 30 or so other cars that suddenly have to brake to allow for this kindness that would have been completely unnecessary in another 45 seconds. It's wonderful that people here are so kind, and I do not want to discourage kindness in general, but making 30 people behind you wait so you can feel fuzzy inside for a couple minutes is not kindness. It's the worst kind of rudeness.

Then there are the Utah drivers that feel it is their duty to keep all the rest of us in line. I have heard them discuss this. I am not making this up: They get into the far left passing lane (the one intended to allow for passing other cars) and then go no more than 65 or at the most 70mph. This is because, and I quote a conversation I overheard recently, "No one needs to go more than 70mph anyway." They deliberately prevent people from passing them while going no more than 5mph over the speed limit on the only major freeway in the state! Thank you, but if I want to drive fast, it is my choice to do so. It is NOT your right to allow or not allow such things unless you wear a badge and drive a squad car. If I get a ticket for doing so, that is a natural consequence. One I'm willing to risk in certain situations. And it is my right to make that choice.

But my absolute favorite are the drivers that pay so little attention to anything but themselves that they will pull out into traffic from a side street and expect everyone to brake and stop for them!!! How egotistical are you?? You getting where you need to go is more important than everyone else around you? What amazes me is that usually when this happens, there is a break in the traffic three cars back that if they had waited another 5 seconds to pull out, would have allowed them to enter traffic and not piss anyone off. But that wouldn't be any fun.

And now, to add even more fun to the mix, Utah has a climate that in the winter is anything but mild. Snow is a frequent reality here. There is a reason that the 2002 winter olympics were held here. So now, take what I've said already about the driving abilities of the state and throw in snow. It's incredible.

What is truly astonishing is that these people should be used to the snow!! You go to Denver in the winter and while it's not fun, at least people can get where they're going because they deal with it every winter! Here in Salt Lake, these people seem to forget between April and October what the other half of the year ought to have taught them. And when the snow flies, they completely freak out.

This morning I got into my car amid the gently falling snow, smiling to myself in my naivete as I looked at how pretty the fresh snow was. I then got behind the wheel and pulled out of my complex and onto the road. There was maybe a half inch of snow on the road. The tire tracks of the cars was enough to clear the road of what was there. And yet, the drivers in front of my were barely moving. It took me 45 minutes this morning to drive what usually takes 10. And there was no accident anywhere to give a reason for this slow crawl. They all just felt the need for tortoise speed. And let me tell you, if the hare had raced a tortoise from Utah - even with his naps - the hare would have won that race.