Flat Tires: True Influence is a Lifestyle by Jermie Kubicek
While driving down HWY I85 from Charlotte to Atlanta I experienced something that has rarely happened to me on the highway - a flat tire.
It was a strange sequence. While cruising along right around 70 MPH, I spotted two cars on the far two lanes slow down and swerve dramatically. I didn't think much about it except that I was glad it wasn't me. In no time I noticed the car directly adjacent to me slam briskly on their brakes. By that point it was too late. A swirling object the size of a frisbee collided into my car at a blistering pace.
We believe it was a rotor or something off of a wheel that projected across four lanes. What was amazing was that while the thud was loud I didn't feel anything was wrong, until a few minutes later. I began noticing that my steering was being impaired a bit. That is when it started sounding like a freight train. My back right tire had blown out. I shifted into serious mode and pulled the car from the far left lane across traffic to a screeching stop.
My tire was not just punctured, but was shredded. It looked like one of those semi-trailer blow outs. There was nothing left.
What was amazing was how calm I was. I know I surprised my wife, Kelly. I also surprised myself. My actions resembled what I have done a hundred times before at our farm. I got out the tools and the spare and started to change it. On this day I didn't get mad or begin wondering why or replay it much in my head. This was a good day. Instead, I simply did what needed to be done, one step at a time.
To our good fortune there was a South Carolina department of transportation truck just ahead on the side of the road ahead of us. "What are the chances?" we thought. This man, Tom, backed up and offered some assistance and told us that there was a Goodyear center four miles away. Again, what were the chances of that?
I tried to pay Tom for his help, but he wouldn't take it. He was a great help. We made it four miles to a Goodyear store and ate at a Ruby Tuesday as if it was simply a lunch stop. The total endeavor slowed us down an extra 1 1/2 hours and cost a couple hundred dollars.
Why am I telling you this? Well, other than being proud of the way I handled it, I simply felt like it might be helpful to think how you will handle situations today that you are not expecting.
1. When you are traveling at your normal brisk pace with your eyes looking straight down the road, how will you react when a problem comes from other people and hits you on the side?
2. How will you react to that problem at the moment of impact? How will you react when you look at the damage?
3. Will you slow down enough to get the facts and make a plan with a rational mind? For me, I just started 'doing' and didn't think very well about the hill I was on. I could have positioned the jack in a better spot.
4. When someone comes to help you, how will you treat them? In disgust or in gratefulness? I know it was not your fault, but the people who come to help are truly angels and not part of the problem.
5. When you get back on the road, will you be grateful for being on the road or will you replay the situation in your mind and be spiteful and angry about the situation? Be careful not to let things linger in your mind.
For me it cost $250 and I lost a couple of hours, of which I got to sit in a restaurant and spend time with my wife. I even got to watch the final 10 laps of a NASCAR race I had wanted to watch. I would have missed that. By the way, my favorite driver blew out his back right tire with 5 laps to go. What are the chances?
Take flat tires in stride.
Posted on April 22, 2010
Visit the author on his website: www.giantperspectives.com
It was a strange sequence. While cruising along right around 70 MPH, I spotted two cars on the far two lanes slow down and swerve dramatically. I didn't think much about it except that I was glad it wasn't me. In no time I noticed the car directly adjacent to me slam briskly on their brakes. By that point it was too late. A swirling object the size of a frisbee collided into my car at a blistering pace.
We believe it was a rotor or something off of a wheel that projected across four lanes. What was amazing was that while the thud was loud I didn't feel anything was wrong, until a few minutes later. I began noticing that my steering was being impaired a bit. That is when it started sounding like a freight train. My back right tire had blown out. I shifted into serious mode and pulled the car from the far left lane across traffic to a screeching stop.
My tire was not just punctured, but was shredded. It looked like one of those semi-trailer blow outs. There was nothing left.
What was amazing was how calm I was. I know I surprised my wife, Kelly. I also surprised myself. My actions resembled what I have done a hundred times before at our farm. I got out the tools and the spare and started to change it. On this day I didn't get mad or begin wondering why or replay it much in my head. This was a good day. Instead, I simply did what needed to be done, one step at a time.
To our good fortune there was a South Carolina department of transportation truck just ahead on the side of the road ahead of us. "What are the chances?" we thought. This man, Tom, backed up and offered some assistance and told us that there was a Goodyear center four miles away. Again, what were the chances of that?
I tried to pay Tom for his help, but he wouldn't take it. He was a great help. We made it four miles to a Goodyear store and ate at a Ruby Tuesday as if it was simply a lunch stop. The total endeavor slowed us down an extra 1 1/2 hours and cost a couple hundred dollars.
Why am I telling you this? Well, other than being proud of the way I handled it, I simply felt like it might be helpful to think how you will handle situations today that you are not expecting.
1. When you are traveling at your normal brisk pace with your eyes looking straight down the road, how will you react when a problem comes from other people and hits you on the side?
2. How will you react to that problem at the moment of impact? How will you react when you look at the damage?
3. Will you slow down enough to get the facts and make a plan with a rational mind? For me, I just started 'doing' and didn't think very well about the hill I was on. I could have positioned the jack in a better spot.
4. When someone comes to help you, how will you treat them? In disgust or in gratefulness? I know it was not your fault, but the people who come to help are truly angels and not part of the problem.
5. When you get back on the road, will you be grateful for being on the road or will you replay the situation in your mind and be spiteful and angry about the situation? Be careful not to let things linger in your mind.
For me it cost $250 and I lost a couple of hours, of which I got to sit in a restaurant and spend time with my wife. I even got to watch the final 10 laps of a NASCAR race I had wanted to watch. I would have missed that. By the way, my favorite driver blew out his back right tire with 5 laps to go. What are the chances?
Take flat tires in stride.
Posted on April 22, 2010
Visit the author on his website: www.giantperspectives.com
