The American Spectator

br> — John O’Grady br> Knotts Island, North Carolina /p> p> Left lane hogs are indeed swine and should be targeted. I would like to note that we in Central California have an additional problem, the right lane speed racer. Highway 99, which connects Bakersfield to Sacramento and bisects Fresno, is mostly two lanes that were poured in the '60s. It’s overwhelmed with traffic. Typically, a line of cars (sometimes more than 20) in the left lane will be spaced and paced perfectly, doing 70-75 mph with a line of trucks in the right lane doing 60-65 mph. But every time there is a space between lines of trucks, some jerk comes flying up the right lane, reaches the trucks and dives into the left lane. This causes everyone in line to have to hit their brakes. I’ve driven Barstow to Vegas on a Friday evening with bumper-to-bumper traffic doing 85 mph and it’s not nearly as scary. br> — Earl Wright br> Clovis, California /p>

As a reader of your online magazine predisposed to agree with much of what is written within, I am compelled to write and express an opinion that disagrees with your views in the abovementioned article. While I agree that Left Lane Hogs (LLHs) are a nuisance and, possibly, even a hazard. This issue is not black and white.

When driving the highways of our country, I am frequently frustrated by these LLHs as well. However, I believe there are two types of drivers that are categorized in your article as LLH, but must be distinguished from one another. The first is a true LLH who plants themselves in the left-most lane as it is most convenient for them. Or, worse, it is some sort of vigilante move to slow all traffic to the posted speed limit. These drivers are characterized by the fact that their speed is often exceeded by the drivers to the right of them. In fact, they are moving slower than nearly all drivers on the road.

The other type, of which I am one, is merely passing drivers in the right lane at a pace slower than some who occupy the left lane would care to tolerate. In other words, my driving slows some faster drivers because the rate at which I am passing others is too slow for their taste. Nearly always, I am exceeding the posted speed limit. Even more often, I am aware that I am slowing others to do so. However, I do not believe it is my rate of speed which is hazardous, but that of a few others which is the problem.

For example, let’s say that the posted limit is 65 MPH. Also, assume I would like to travel at 75 MPH, but the trucks (who may be limited to 55 MPH) and other right lane denizens (assuming for a moment this is a four lane highway, with two lanes traveling in either direction) are traveling around 60 to 65 MPH. If I pull out and accelerate to 80 MPH, this maneuver may require several seconds to accomplish, i.e. to pass the slower drivers and merge back ahead of them in the right lane. As often happens, someone going 80+ MPH will quickly accelerate to cut me off, and having anticipated this, I will reach the lane before this person is able to do so. The person directly behind me will often take up a position within a foot or two of my back bumper, wildly gesturing and flashing their brights and or other rude behavior. The key here is the rude behavior.

Don’t I, having been slowed by the right lane occupiers I am trying to pass, have just as much right to vent my frustration at them, thereby hastening the level of hostility of all drivers? Or, should I merely pass them without comment and merge back ahead of them as soon as possible? It is much better if all drivers show courtesy and patience for others, acknowledging that some may wish to operate within the law. Or, perhaps these slower drivers may not possess the skills or wherewithal to pace themselves to my liking due to any number of factors (driving in an unknown area, chauffeuring a child or elderly person, be of advanced age, carrying cargo that may be upset with more advanced speed or tactics, etc.).

p>In short, I think that operating your vehicle with some caution and courtesy towards others is the way to go. Rather than assuming all drivers who aren’t facilitating your immediate desires are poor drivers or merely “refusing to allow other motorists to get by” as you state in your article.