Today, when I read Fi's posting today on on Four Paws and Whiskers I was reminded all too starkly of the incident in February last year when the 4x4 I was driving lost power, including steering, when I was in Northland. Although the roads in Northland are now vastly improved over their state a few years ago there are still some metalled (gravel) roads with exceptionally steep gradients and very long tight bends and very steep drops with no barriers. If the car had lost power on one of those bends I would have been unable to steer her and we may well have ended up going over the edge. Had it happened in the very far north there would have been no cell-phone coverage. Had it happened on a steep bend we could have been a severe hazard blocking the road (passing places are scarce). Had it happened at night everything could have been so much worse. Had it happened on Sunday or Monday we could have been caught in torrential rainstorms. Sometimes when I think about it my blood still runs cold.
So today I am reminded of how thankful I am that it happened on a straight section of road with an (almost) convenient place to pull off without having to steer the car significantly, on a clear, sunny (but not too hot) late afternoon in a place with cellphone coverage only just over an hour from the nearest town.
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Yeeesh! Sounds harrowing! Be careful driving there, GB. Yesterday a 26 year old kid was killed right in front of my workplace. He must have been texting or otherwise distracted. He crossed the center line into oncoming traffic at 9:00am in fair, sunny conditions. It just goes to show that it can happen anywhere at anytime to anyone.
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