Date:         Thu, 27 Dec 2007 16:36:59 -0600
Reply-To:     John Rodgers <inua@CHARTER.NET>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         John Rodgers <inua@CHARTER.NET>
Subject:      Steep Grades
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I have been reading the thread on the Overheating Hypothesis - and just
had to tell this tale.

North of Birmingham, AL is a town called Guntersville. At one end of
town the highway ends after a long steep grade. I had the occasion to
drive that steep grade one day on the way into Guntersville, and as I
topped the hill to begin descent on the grade into town, the highway
widened to the right to provide a truckers lane. Signs were up that said
so. Halfway down the mountain (they call them that here - tho in other
parts of the country they would be considered low hills) - the shoulder
of the highway widened out to highway width and a sign was up that said
" Emergency Truck Stopping Lane".  That widened area went the rest of
the way down the mountain right along side the pavement. And it was not
pavement, but loose, deep sand and gravel mix. As I rolled on down the
mountain and approached the bottom of the grade, there was a stop light
and a street that went to the right. Right at the end of the Emergency
Truck Stopping Lane was a big concrete barrier. What was really funny to
me was - planted in the ground right at the end of the Emergency Truck
Stopping Lane - in front of the concrete barrier - was a sign post with
a sign on it - obviously intended for the drivers of those trucks making
emergency stops - saying -  "NO RIGHT TURN".

I took one look at that sign and simply couldn't contain myself. It just
struck me so funny I laughed my buns off.

John Rodgers
88 GL Driver