#382 Catching up to the car that just passed you at the next red light

Wind whips through the windows, trees sway slowly outside, and music beats through the car stereo as we cruise calmly down empty streets on a long drive home.

Then suddenly blurs flash in our mirrors and zoom past us in an engine-roaring rush, disappearing into tiny red dots over distant hills.

But then suddenly we catch up a couple minutes later at the red light.

And it’s just like hello old friend. Good to see you again.


Photo from: here

40 thoughts on “#382 Catching up to the car that just passed you at the next red light

  1. This is great! Feels like some kind of road karma or something. Ha ha, Mr. Speedy Pants … we meet again.

    1. LOL, “Mr. Speedy Pants”. What, are they on FIRE or something?

      This is especially satisfying to me when Mr. or Ms. Speedy Pants has shot me a dirty look / gesture as he or she blasted by my slow, old clunker.

      1. jdurley – seriously? On FIRE? It’s like you’ve never read Freddo’s Guide To Pant Conditions..

        Let me refer you to Chapter IV, Item iii, paragraph b:

        The only situation under which one’s pants will be “on fire”, is when said individual is exposed to be a “liar”. Following this period of flames, the extinguised pant remains may, at times, be hung from a telephone wire, to warn other inviduals what fate may meet them if they too, chose to become liars.

        1. Ahh, paragraph b, you are correct. I originally thought it was paragraph c, but I was mistaken. Glad you got here before I did.


  2. People that are in such a hurry and then get stuck at the next light….all I gotta do is laugh.
    I pretty much have the patterns of the lights memorized so when someone passes me like this I can already laugh at them cuz I know I will see them again real soon.

  3. Even better – as you approach the light he is stuck at, it turns green so you can pass him again without even slowing down.

    Gotta love it.

    1. Agreed. Awesome x 2. Even more bonus points when you do it and make eye contact as you cruise by…

  4. Even awesomer in the rural area where I live: They pass you, then you catch up as they wait at a railroad crossing. The longer the train, the better!

  5. I put this right up with passing a guy waiting in his car for the close parking spot to open up, parking further down the line, and then walking past him as he is still waiting for the guy to pull out. Awesome.

  6. This is awesome–except for the time that I was the recipient of “the bird” for catching up to the speeding vehicle at a red-light. I guess he thought I made the light turn red just to catch up to him.

  7. The “on-steroid” version of this happened to me this weekend.. I was waiting in a long line of cars Sunday morning (to go to the SD Charger game, natch).. when all of a sudden I saw a big pick-up truck come flying past me in the right hand turn lane, even though the light ahead was red.

    He was clearly a speedy jerk, and he was going to fly through the light with a quick right-hand turn without even slowing down.

    Well, his timing was off, because not only was he about to cut off some left-turning traffic, but the first car he was going to cut off was a cop. The pick-up truck guy (speedy jerk) slams on his breaks, but not before the cop puts his lights on and pulled him over.. IT WAS AWESOME!!

    That moment made my morning!

  8. This is almost as awesome as when you are running a long race and you pass the person who goes out really fast. Bonus points if it is at the finish line.

  9. I look ahead and time my approach to traffic signals, so I coast through a lot of greens. Not to mention past plenty of other cars that thought they had left me behind.

  10. Ah, this is my favorite!!! When someone speeds past me and I manage to catch up with him/her, even if it’s 3 lights down the road, I always get a smug feeling of satisfaction!

  11. lol. Neil’s reaction was so sweet, nothing like what I normally think.


    But next time, I’ll think, “Hello old friend. Good to see you again.”

    Thank you Neil, for making me a better person.

  12. One time I was driving down a 4 lane road at 2am when a car whipped past me way over the speed limit. I saw the light ahead of us turn red and thought “Ah hah! The great equalizer!” No dice – I watched him run the light and then disappear into the night.

  13. I thought back to this post as soon as this happened:

    Just a few days ago, my wife and I were driving home and came upon a police car waiting on a red light. Just as we came to a stop, the driver apparently got impatient, turned on his lights, and drove through the next opening. A minute later, we saw the flashing lights go on up ahead at another signal.

    Two minutes after that, we reached another red light, and there was the same officer drumming his fingers on the steering wheel as he stared testily at the busy crosstraffic.

  14. AHH! I always feel like a douche when I pass someone trying to be a speed demon, and they catch up to me. Ah friend, we meet again! At least I can laugh at myself.

  15. Just discovered your site and had to comment on this one. It is such a great feeling when, after someone revs their engine and swerves into the oncoming traffic lane to dash around you, you catch up to them on your bike. Extra points if they aren’t even stopped at the light, just slowed down by regular car traffic. Even better when you continue in the shoulder or bike lane and pass the next ten cars.

  16. Oh what a feeling this epiphany~”In the beginning”, cruised calmly, held true, followed essence; sped past and surpassed…infinately…fate~”Lovely to see you again my friend!”

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