njc110381 Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 (edited) Well as strange as it sounds, today I was saved from very serious injury... by a wood burner! The chap I work for has recently bought himself a new house. All being done on a budget, so when he found a nice wood burner in the paper he was keen to go and look. We arrived at the cottage - an end of terrace in a nice little village down a narrow single track road. After a few minutes of grunting we managed to get the thing out of the cottage and onto the narrow pavement outside. I was talking to the woman who was stood in her doorway when all of a sudden her face dropped. I looked up and an old woman in a VW Golf had mounted the pavement and was coming straight for me. Being a narrow road with the line of houses along it's side I was quite literally between a rock and a hard place - nowhere to go! The car hit the wood burner and slammed it into the wall. Luckily it was a good solid chunk of metal and deflected the car back onto the road, missing me by inches. I was just getting ready to brace myself for some pain and jump head first onto the bonnet. I couldn't think of a better option at the time but figured that getting my torso above the crush line would at least keep my vital organs safe. The car stopped about twenty yards up the road and the woman I was talking to ran over to talk with the driver. Her first words - "don't worry, I'm ok". Well good for you love, you could have easily killed me! Luckily a police van passed moments later ad took statements. They did an eyesight test and noticed that she was wearing two pairs of glasses, one on top of the other! Needless to say they have put a note in to the DVLA to have her license revoked as she's unfit to drive. She didn't even see me and only stopped because a bolt on the wood burner burst her front tyre! She was waffling on about needing to call the AA! Moral of the story... If you want a good solid wood burner buy a Jotul. Apart from a good covering of VW silver paint it's absolutely fine, even after deflecting a ton and a bit of car travelling at 15mph! I've treated myself to a curry tonight - decided life's too short for salad! Edited June 25, 2013 by njc110381 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Churchill Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 Treat yourself to a cold beer as well. That was a close call. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njc110381 Posted June 25, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 It was a bloody lucky event. A few doors down there was a young woman with two little kids walking on the pavement - she had just come out of her cottage and was walking away up the road. She wouldn't even have noticed the car coming if it had mounted the pavement even a few feet further on. The more I think about it the worse it could have been. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pegleg31 Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 And people bang on about young drivers, I've said for years it's the older drivers that are more of a danger. Glad you're ok Russ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WGD Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 Glad it wasn't a nastier end pal, enjoy your curry!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgguinness Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 Wow, close shave. Glad your ok. I have just joined enjoyed a ruby too. Father has a Jotul in his workshop, cracking bit of kit, quite a lump too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TIGHTCHOKE Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 Good old Jotul! Glad you survived!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
100milesaway Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 Two weeks ago i went for a delightful walk from Muker up to Keld and back through the meadows, on returning to my truck i noticed it had been chunted down the road 10 feet and had some severe rear end damage.. Apparently an 88 year old Cambridge lady on her holiday had tried to PARK her car behind mine, got it wrong and if my car had not stopped her nearly ended up in the river Swale..Thankfully she did leave her name and phone number. I have just got my repaired car back and the garage said it's about £3000 worth of repair work, and she wrote her car off.If she does that kind of damage just parking i personnely think she must be a bit of a liability to everyone else on the road.At least no one was hurt. from Auntie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albertan_J Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 One of the most dangerous things I see older dtivers do is trying to get on the motorway at 30-40mph its suicidal! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ben0850 Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 Two weeks ago i went for a delightful walk from Muker up to Keld and back through the meadows, on returning to my truck i noticed it had been chunted down the road 10 feet and had some severe rear end damage.. Apparently an 88 year old Cambridge lady on her holiday had tried to PARK her car behind mine, got it wrong and if my car had not stopped her nearly ended up in the river Swale..Thankfully she did leave her name and phone number. I have just got my repaired car back and the garage said it's about £3000 worth of repair work, and she wrote her car off.If she does that kind of damage just parking i personnely think she must be a bit of a liability to everyone else on the road.At least no one was hurt. from Auntie. Chuffin heck, I'm amazed she got up here from Cambridge let alone through Gunnerside and over the bridge!! Close shave NJC, enjoy a beer or two tonight! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gordon R Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 Glad you are okay. Could have been very nasty - putting it mildly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beardo Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 blimey, glad you came out of it safely Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goodo123 Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 Its about time they made older people 're take their tests, their body's and minds are sometimes incapable of driving as has been proven here. The amount of times I have seen older people mis judge situations when driving is staggering. Pulling out really slowly, not understanding who's right of way, swerving on the road, going excessively slow, wrongful indicating. And thats just a few. Younger drivers tend to go to fast but are more aware of their surroundings and understand when their in the wrong. Older people tend to have no idea. On a side note i had my tyres let down by a old bloke. They caught him on cctv, his excuse was "the parking space outside my house is mine"... Even tho it was the road, and his house had a drive enough to fit 3 cars easily. Their was also a old woman who lived opposite who used to have a campervan. She revved the balls off it all the time and used it as her daily drive. The amount of times she had clipped other parked cars and run up the kerb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ack-ack Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 I bet your flue needed a brush out after that neil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
novice cushie shooter Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 Glad your a ok. Scary propect not one i would wish on people...a few anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDAV Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 One of the most dangerous things I see older dtivers do is trying to get on the motorway at 30-40mph its suicidal! I see them driving along at 40............................................. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the pigeon man Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 People should have a retest at 65-70 then every 5-10 years after that the amount of old people crashing and bumping into things on way to shops is stupid !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mad68 Posted June 25, 2013 Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 Get some lottery tickets bought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njc110381 Posted June 26, 2013 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2013 I think the reason that insurance isn't so bad for them is the speed thing. Granted it was down to luck that she didn't crush me or the mother and kids, but because the impact was so slow there was very little damage to anything. No damage = no claim and that in turn = lower premiums. I'm glad it happened and nobody was hurt. At least it's brought her inability to drive safely to light and now the authorities can remove her from the road. I can only wonder why she continued to drive? I'd be scared to for my own welfare as well as others if my vision was that poor?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brown Sauce Posted June 26, 2013 Report Share Posted June 26, 2013 If you're that lucky, it's time to buy a few lottery tickets!! Joking aside, glad to hear you're still in one piece. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted June 26, 2013 Report Share Posted June 26, 2013 Its about time they made older people 're take their tests, their body's and minds are sometimes incapable of driving as has been proven here. The amount of times I have seen older people mis judge situations when driving is staggering. Pulling out really slowly, not understanding who's right of way, swerving on the road, going excessively slow, wrongful indicating. And thats just a few. Younger drivers tend to go to fast but are more aware of their surroundings and understand when their in the wrong. Older people tend to have no idea. On a side note i had my tyres let down by a old bloke. They caught him on cctv, his excuse was "the parking space outside my house is mine"... Even tho it was the road, and his house had a drive enough to fit 3 cars easily. Their was also a old woman who lived opposite who used to have a campervan. She revved the balls off it all the time and used it as her daily drive. The amount of times she had clipped other parked cars and run up the kerb. I can only guess, but in about 40 years time this will come back and bite you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al4x Posted June 26, 2013 Report Share Posted June 26, 2013 Indeed though old people tend to start having low speed accidents they are actually a low risk insurance wise compared to new drivers. This case is nasty and its good that you came out of it unscathed NJ but its a case of how you find the people that really shouldn't be driving from among the thousands of old people who are very careful, ok usually a bit slow but really why not they are driving at the pace they are happy is safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
secretagentmole Posted June 26, 2013 Report Share Posted June 26, 2013 (edited) And people bang on about young drivers, I've said for years it's the older drivers that are more of a danger. Glad you're ok Russ The other half just had her Saab 9-3 turbo diesel estate written off by some mad old moo in a Toyota Starlet. The old moo was in the wrong lane, in fact if she had been paying attention and not listening to her sat nav she would not even have been on the roundabout, she would have taken the fly over. Old moo goes from inside lane, across 1 lane before hitting my wife's car in the third lane. Her excuse, "I was indicating and following the sat nav", unfortunately there was a 4x4 she went screaming in front of who did an emergency stop to avoid her which prevented my wife seeing her indicators. Saab totalled! Edited June 26, 2013 by secretagentmole Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
overandunder2012 Posted June 26, 2013 Report Share Posted June 26, 2013 a brown pants job i think, you were lucky mate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killer_pigeon Posted June 26, 2013 Report Share Posted June 26, 2013 you got to be careful breaking up with older women buddy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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