Speed, safety and things

[r.v.boxall]

Hi, all,

I sat on the side and read Bill's original email, and all the subsequent slagging off that he got over the speed/safety issue. Come on, everyone is entitled to have an opinion, without having to tolerate vitriolic rebuttals. Freedom of speech, and all that?

So, I composed a long "reply", but when I sent it, the system had timed out, so I hope that this paraphrased version actually gets onto the forum!

These are my "humble" opinions on the subject:

There is nothing inherently wrong or unsafe with speed. On the right road, under the right weather and traffic conditions, it is quite safe to do 170 kph on some NZ roads. I'm sure that Bill wasn't hareing round blind bends at that speed, and I'm also sure that he drove at less than 120 kph in most places.

There are some roads in both the North and South Islands that are straight enough, and surfaced well enough so that it's quite safe to do 170 kph, even including some of our joke motorways. The biggest hazards here are the towns, where the limit is 50 k's, and drivers are distracted by kids, shopping, pedestrians, radios, mobile phones, and 1,001 other things. Someone messaging on a mobile at town speeds is 100 times more dangerous than Bill driving a prep's MX at 170 k's on a straight, empty SI road.

I think that the "Don't worry, be happy" safety advert is much more representative of the hazards in NZ than the "He's prepared to kill.." one. Although I must admit I wouldn't be going to fast in the conditions at the end of that one!

I'd be prepared to bet that the casualty rate per head of population in Germany is no worse than that here, and 220 kph is quite normal there. Here, the danger from speed comes from chimpy in his clapped 1975 ute pulling out neither using his mirror, nor with any concept of speed differentials, into an overtaking lane at 70 k's, to pass some other tosser who can only do 40!

All of the nannying and safetying we get here has become a sort of Thought Control. PC is grossly out of hand. Kiwis used to be the most risk-accepting people in the western world, but they've been driven into such a cringe that they've become about the most risk-averse. What happened to the "I can do that" spirit? We don't have to completely emulate the poms! Can it be true that the only adventurous Kiwis have all gone elsewhere, like the British ones did a century ago?

Don't slag off someone whose ideas you don't agree with! He/she's entitled to them just as much as you are to yours. Bill, please don't go into a huff, keep writing to the forum, you've been an interesting contributor for the few months since I bought the MX, and started listening in. Sorry I couldn't help on Saturday, and I trust that you were accommodated at the motel you pulled into. I phoned them the next morning, but they seemed very vague about "Bill"!

Cheers all,

Green "MYATA" aka Ron Boxall

[Bill Rehm]

Thanks Ron. Obviously Eric west does not embrace your perspective (see
my other email sent a few moments ago)


Regards
Bill