this post was submitted on 15 Aug 2024
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Eh, I didn't have too much trouble with stop and go traffic, I just left it in first with my foot on the clutch. The worst part is parking on hills, I learned to drive a stick in the Seattle area, and I had to parallel park on a ton of hills. Inevitably, some jerk would park really close behind me and I'd nearly hyperventilate pulling out w/o rolling back into them.
But honestly, stop and go sucks regardless of the transmission, so I just try to avoid it. I go to work early and cut out a bit early to miss rush hour, which works most of the time unless there's an accident or something. That's not feasible for everyone, but I have that flexibility, so it's nice, and I only need to go in 2x/week as well (I'm pretty spoiled).
I wish I could bike to work, but it would take nearly 2 hours each way due to the distance. Maybe I'll throw on a Bafang and see if I can get that down to an hour :).
I relied on my handbrake a lot when I was driving a manual in hilly cities.
I did at first, but eventually got tired of it and learned to rev the engine just right to not slide backward. I definitely use it for parking though.
Yup, waiting at a stoplight on a hill in the pouring rain was not fun... Never had an accident though.
Yeah, my dad was pretty great (he's been driving a Miata for as long as I remember). I also lived on a hill, and the second and third cars I had were manuals (first car died within a year of getting my license).
Honestly, Seattle drivers when I lived there were some of my favorite. Yeah, they drive closer to the speed limit, but they're generally really nice. If I put my signal to merge, they make space. If I come up behind them in the passing lane, they move over. I'm now in Utah, and the opposite is true. If I signal, they close the gap to prevent me from merging. If I come up behind them, they slow down. If I move around to pass them, they speed up. If I honk because they're sleeping at a light, there's a non-zero chance they'll get out of their car and confront me. I've gotten used to it by now though.
That said, I'm not a big fan of California drivers, but they do get one thing right: they keep the speed up in rush hour. They absolutely cannot handle a little rain on the road (I remember something like 5 accidents when there was a bit of rain when I visited), and I'm guessing icy roads are much worse (we blame a lot of winter accidents here on Cali transplants, not sure how true that is). Cali drivers are super impatient, and they're liberal with their use of the horn. But at least they can keep the speed up in traffic, I'll give them that.
Eh, if you flash your lights, they'll usually move over. But honestly, I prefer friendly over getting to my destination 10% faster.
Hmm, things must have changed in the last 10 years or so... :)
E. Washington seems to have more considerate drivers these days though. Almost everyone stays right except to pass, and there's not nearly as much traffic anyway, so I can usually cruise at whatever speed I think I can get away with.
I try to avoid driving whenever I go visit, so I guess I don't notice the self-righteous drivers as much and just chalk it up to a bad egg here and there. But every time I go back, I seem to see more of those bad eggs, so maybe the bad traffic is finally annoying enough people to change the driving culture. Or maybe it's a post-COVID thing, idk, I know drivers here in Utah got a lot worse since the pandemic (apparently shootings on the highway are now a thing??; chill people!).
We have those self-righteous people here as well, and I honestly wish the police would go out and ticket them for obstructing the flow of traffic instead of going after speeders. I think that would do a lot to help curb road rage.
Yup, it's like where I live, but without the national parks. I've considered moving out just east of the mountains to be closer to family without sacrificing the sun I love so much.