Drivers

I routinely use the traffic circle going north and south on Old Frederick Road and have had numerous near misses, mainly from drivers traveling west on Edmondson Avenue. The problem is many drivers drive west on Edmondson Avenue as if they have the right of way, no matter how long someone is at one of the other three positions in the circle. This is especially true during evening rush hour traffic. A consistent observation is that a line of cars will try to continue through the circle without letting drivers on Old Frederick proceed.

Some of my colleagues will tell you I'm not much of a driver, at least in the speed department. Those who have shared the Harford County community newspaper business with me for any number of years will especially smile thinking about those of us who left the office together late at night for the trek to our various homes. Inevitably, they would blow past whatever vehicle I was navigating toward my Havre de Grace home, not slowing down a bit as they zoomed by. My driving tends to be more akin to Morgan Freeman's "Driving Miss Daisy" than to any driver who has had even a fleeting thought of racing.

WASHINGTON -- Lorelia Smith is 70 and spends a lot of time in her car -- driving to church, club meetings and the grocery store.She is not intimidated by this city's traffic, but suddenly she feels threatened by something else.If the proposed High Risk Driver's Act of 1993 becomes law, Ms. Smith fears she and other drivers over 65 will lose their freedom to drive.The bill, which focuses on teens, elderly and so-called "problem drivers" -- those with a history of causing accidents -- would restrict the driving privileges of senior citizens who do not meet tighter licensing requirements.

You see them on the road all summer, but what's really going on inside that RV? Here are some common mistakes RV drivers make -- by their own admission: pulling away with the steps extended (14 percent), backing into something (8 percent), misjudging overhead or side clearance space (7 percent), improperly connecting taillights (5 percent) and running out of gas (3 percent). That's what 1,000 RV drivers told an informal online survey conducted by Progressive Group of Insurance Cos. of Mayfield Village, Ohio.

Two seasons before the first snowflake is expected to fall in Carroll County, snowplows whirred to life yesterday. On a football field-sized parking lot dotted with orange cones, the big yellow machines rumbled through the annual regional competition that pitted drivers from Carroll, Frederick and Howard counties on an obstacle course designed to simulate hazardous road conditions. Instead of weaving around parked cars and scooping up snow while bundled in winter gear, drivers dressed in T-shirts and shorts maneuvered between orange cones and tennis balls while onlookers in nearby bleachers ate barbecue under a baking sun. "It's not about winning.

The Mason-Dixon Dragway team, led in part by several Carroll drivers, finished second among 18 competitors at the Firestone-TNN E.T. Tournament over the weekend at Maple Grove Speedway near Reading, Pa.The event included drivers from tracks in the northeast region of thecountry.Jackie Wachter of Keymar, who, with husband Wayne owns the Hagerstown, Washington County, track, said Ed and Jamie Talbert and George Hoff were among the county drivers who helped Mason-Dixon finish justbehind Beaver Springs, Pa. The Maryland International Dragway in Charles County was third.

Nextel Cup driver Jeff Burton was watching the Super Bowl halftime show -- as was his 8-year-old daughter -- when singer Janet Jackson's breast was exposed. It doesn't surprise him that repercussions have been piling up, that the Federal Communications Commission is cracking down and that even stock car drivers are being affected by the aftermath. "When it comes to television and radio and you know you're in the public eye, then I believe NASCAR -- and not just the FCC -- has to crack down," said Burton, who spoke by cell phone while driving to Darlington, S.C., earlier this week for today's Carolina Dodge Dealers' 400. "It has to happen just because of our image and because people shouldn't have to hear morons saying stupid, off-the-wall things.

Accidents are caused by *INCOMPETENT DRIVERS* ! Those with the skill to drive [more than] 100 mph aren't INCOMPETENT." The preceding statement was posted on an Internet group site as part of a discussion of the merits of speed cameras. Such profound reasoning is more common than you might think. Judging by my e-mail, there is a substantial minority of "skilled" drivers on the road who chafe at such archaic notions as speed limits. It has been an interesting experience to gain an insight into the world view of the "Right to Speed" lobby.

THE STATISTICS are sobering: Not only are teen drivers more likely to be charged with speeding and reckless driving violations than other drivers are, but they account for more than their share of deaths related to motor vehicles. Driver inexperience is one major cause, a fact not lost on Barbie Schluth of Ellicott City, parent of a 16-year-old on the verge of receiving her driver's license. "Because of her inexperience, I fear she won't react quickly enough to other drivers' actions," Schluth says.

This has been a tough season for Jason Ludwig. He has been on the sidelines most of the year with mechanical problems, but that hasn't kept him away from the track. Instead of sitting home, he has been at the track helping other drivers with their cars."It would be hard just sitting and trying to watch and not racing," said Ludwig. "Being in the pits with everyone is still fun, but it's not as much fun as racing. Helping the other drivers takes your mind off the fact you don't have a car, but I'd still rather be out there."