Safe Driving with Driverthink

The “Nose Out” is one of those little driving annoyances that we all have to deal with.  The most aggravating thing about the “Nose Out” is that almost all of us can be guilty of being one.

What's a “Nose Out”?  We’ve all seen them.  It’s the puppy sitting on a side street or perhaps coming out of a parking lot, waiting to move in to your lane of moving traffic. The volume of moving traffic on your road has forced the driver to sit and wait for his “go” opportunity.

The problem with the Nose Out is that, while she’s sitting there waiting, her right foot can get a little itchy.  She inches ever closer to the moving traffic, as she waits for the opportunity to “launch”.  She may also be getting “psychologically” pushed by the twelve cars lined up behind her.

So when is the driver going to “lose it” and just go, cutting you off and forcing you to a panic stop?  You really don’t know — so being the good little Driverthink driver that you are, you recognize the road hazard and slow down yourself to at least lessen the potential impact.  This of course, forces the Nose Out to wait yet even longer.

It seems like a “No Win.”

It gets worse.  As you slow down and begin muttering to yourself, you suddenly realize you might very well be muttering those unkind words about yourself!  How many times have you been sitting there on that launch pad – doing the same thing?  Hmmm.

There are basically three kinds of Nose Outs.

The first guy comes screaming up to the intersection and then at the last moment, brakes hard, to avoid getting annihilated.  You have no idea whether he’s going to actually make the stop or not, so your right foot has to be, at the least, hovering over the brake pedal.

Then there’s the Inch Out.  This one keeps inching out into traffic and again, sets up that uncertainty in your mind.  It forces you to gauge a near miss, or “close encounter”.

Finally, there’s the Push Out.  This guy has now inched out to the point where his nose is actually in the lane of moving traffic.  He’s not going yet, but he’s forcing the traffic to either stop and let him in, or swerve into another lane to avoid crunch and bump.

The trick to dealing with the Nose Out is to first decide which side of the equation you’re on.
If you’re the driver waiting to enter the traffic, some thoughts come to mind.

• Do – come smoothly to a stop and wait for the opportunity you’re comfortable with.
• Do – face the oncoming traffic.  Look at the drivers.  If they see that you see them, they will be much more comfortable and will likely continue their pace.
• Do – learn to size up the speed and distance of the oncoming cars.  Do you have enough space to safely enter traffic?
• Do – take a quick look before you go, to make sure you still have an opening where you intend to be — in about five nanoseconds.
• Do – watch both lanes of oncoming traffic.  Is someone in the far lane going to swerve into yours, just as you leap out?
• Do – wait for your move, and then make it.  Once you have decided you can go —“go”. 

• Don’t – inch out further onto the road.  This will slow the other driver down and you’ll simply be waiting longer.
• Don’t – let the drivers lined up behind you, determine if or when you should move out.
• Don’t – be looking at everything but — the oncoming traffic.  It’ll slow down the oncoming driver.
• Don’t – Pull out and then just sit there.  Entering a quickly moving lane of traffic is not the right time to practice zero to sixty in, let’s say a half an hour or so.

If you’re the driver in the traffic, the Nose Out conundrum gets trickier, but there are steps you can take to minimize the quandary.

• Do – view the Nose Out as a Road Hazard.  We know she’s not a Road Emergency yet, but she could quickly become one.
• Do – watch the driver.  Is he looking at you?  That be good.
• Do – Forward Look.  The sooner you see the problem, the more time you’ll have to analyze it.

• Don’t – slow down unless you really have to.  The driver behind you may not be expecting it.
• Don’t – panic and swerve out of your lane unless absolutely necessary.  It is better to slow down than swerve.

The Nose Out.  To deal with it, put yourself on the other side of it.  How would you want that other driver to treat you?