Stopped to help a truck along the road

[Gary Fowler]

I once towed a stalled boat in to shore and he didn't even thank me. I had a pretty powerful boat and he had a little 15 foot ski boat. After hooking on a 100 feet of anchor line, I gave my motor the juice and we planed out on the water and pulled that guy about 35 MPH all the way home while he was riding in my wake like a person on an inner tube. I guess he may have been a little frightened as I turned at the dock and just let him coast in gently.
Do you suppose he wanted me to just idle along with him in tow for about 5 miles?

I had done the same thing with a buddies boat on a river that was a good 10 miles from the launch. He spent the whole time trying to turn his steering wheel when we were going around twist and turns in the rather narrow river. There is no way for a boat being towed to move out of the wake area directly behind the tow boat so it is quite safe to do if you have the power to plane out both boats.

 

[wmonroe]

Thanks for the kind words everyone. The guy did feel very bad once he realized he was out of fuel but we all make mistakes so....

The area where I live is pretty safe so stopping to help someone along the road isn't too much of a worry. I'm lucky to live in a rural area where most people still treat each other like human beings or better.

I've been stuck along the road twice with a trailer, once because a trailer tire blew out on the side facing traffic on a road with a berm just slightly wider than the truck/trailer, and the second time was when a wheel bearing decided it was done. Both were bad days and I have a soft spot for people along the road with a trailer, it just makes the recovery that much harder for them.

 

[Garandman]

A couple from Minneapolis wrote the Boston Globe a while back. They'd heard Boston drivers were aggressive and rude, locals unfriendly, etc.

After getting their rental car they stopped on the side of the road to figure out where to go. Logan Airport is in Boston, but East Boston, separated from the rest of the city by the harbor and requiring the use of one of two tunnels or a bridge.

Seven cars stopped to see if they needed help. The last one led them to where they were going downtown, waved and drove off.

....But don't count on it.:laughing:

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Was out of gas so after work I decided to run to the gas station and fill a couple five gallon cans. On my way back home I have to go up a 2.5 mile 7% grade and about 1/3 of the way up there is a dually truck with a cattle trailer sitting half on the berm and half in the right lane.

Sounds like Rt40 out of Uniontown. But in SW PA, many places fit that description.