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I accidentally joined a convoy the other day.

cscmc1

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Central IL
Thanks. I certainly did not mean to stir anything up by telling you guys about this. Living 45 miles from an army base awards me the opportunity to see military vehicles quite often. There are always tractor trailers carrying MV's of all sorts on the highways. I get to see badass helicopters flying from time to time, and every once in a while, there is a convoy on the road. By mentioning my run in with a convoy, I did not mean to start any arguments about proper conduct around military vehicles on the road. I'm a civilian, and I use the road same as every one else. When I got stuck running with those trucks, I would have been just like every other Honda Accord or Dodge Ram that was also using the same exit. I just happened to be driving an ex military 1984 M1009. It was oddly out of place, and in place at the same time.
I wouldn't sweat it one bit. I am sure convoy drivers have seen it all... there are far more dangerous scenarios on the road than a car slipping temporarily into an open column convoy (which is the only convoy formation I've seen on the interstate). I certainly didn't mean to suggest that you were doing anything illegal in any of my posts... just joining the conversation.
 

cscmc1

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Regardless of whether State laws require giving the right of way to a military convoy, it only makes sense to go out of one's way to accommodate the convoy by falling in behind if possible, realizing that sometimes this is not possible. Common courtesy and common sense should prevail at all times.
^^ What he said ^^

...and I think Stranger75 handled things just fine.
 

wallew

Active member
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I think you are the one that doesn't understand. It is obvious that you have not been in the military. No one is picking on Stranger75. People are simply expressing opinions.

There are severl things to consider here. Many military vehicles are quite large and difficult to maneuver quickly. Stopping distances can be very long compared to civilian vehicles. Many MVs also have very poor visibility while driving, especially the up-armored MVs and large tactical MVs. If you have ever been in one of these it is very difficult to see other vehicles, especially to the sides. Regardless of whether State laws require giving the right of way to a military convoy, it only makes sense to go out of one's way to accommodate the convoy by falling in behind if possible, realizing that sometimes this is not possible. Safety is the main concern and common courtesy and common sense should prevail at all times.
As all we are doing is expressing our opinions - you don't know diddly about me.

I was in ROTC in High School for a while.

Vietnam was my war. In 1971, I went to talk to ALL the service branches. They ALL told me 'go take your test and physical when you are scheduled and then we can talk'.

My dad IS a WWII veteran - Battle of the Bulge, Remagen Bridge. Like so many kids whose dads served, I really was interested in joining up. He told all the stories of brotherhood and taking care of each other in combat. HE DID give the standard warning of 'war is h@ll' type of speech.

So I followed their advice and took the test they give EVERYBODY who wants to join or who is considered being drafted. I was in the top 1% of the written test. Then I took the physical. I FAILED IT. My vision at that point in time was 20/1000. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS? It means what YOU can see at 1000 feet, I can (barely) see at 20 feet. I WAS 4F.

I went back and talked to ALL OF THEM. EVEN THE COAST GUARD. They all basically said two things would happen.

1) Because of my test scores, once I finished BASIC, I would immediately be put into OCS.

2) Because of my VISION, I would NEVER SEE ANY COMBAT. They wouldn't even consider letting me go to Germany or any of the other bases that were not on US soil. The way it was explained to me was that IF I LOST MY GLASSES, they would have to assign TWO SOLDIERS to take me to safety. SO I would be assigned a desk job (many said in the Pentagon) where I would shuffle papers and move up the ranks. BUT I WOULD NEVER SEE COMBAT.

Get the picture.

Yes, I know a LOT about MV's. It's MY HOBBY as well as your job (or was your job, whatever). I do TEN TIMES more research than any three guys you will meet. I LOVE HISTORY. ALL KINDS OF HISTORY. I used to read text books on history for fun.

But this is a HOBBY. And I know a thing or two about 'hobbies'.

THE MAIN ONE IS, if you are rude to people who express an interest in YOUR HOBBY, chances are they won't want to be around you or your hobby very much or very long.

And you've got one of our newest members APOLOGIZING FOR POSTING ON OUR FORUM.

Thanks. I certainly did not mean to stir anything up by telling you guys about this. Living 45 miles from an army base awards me the opportunity to see military vehicles quite often.

See the thing is, I get where you're coming from. But playing 'whack a mole' on new members is NOT how we grow this hobby. You probably know that, but for some reason just couldn't resist taking a swipe at one of our newest additions to our forum and our hobby.

Stranger75, we all make mistakes. WE ALL HOPEFULLY LEARN FROM THEM.

Again, welcome to Steel Soldiers.
 

quickfarms

Well-known member
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Location
Orange Junction, CA
If a civilian vehicle "accidently merged" within the convoy, the lead vehicle would slow down to 35 - 40 mph.... coordinated through the radio so we didn't cause a pile up.


This policy sounds downright unsafe. Wait until the convoy is involved in an accident and we will see who gets it. It is illegal to go less than 15 under the posted speed limit unless you fall into one of the special circumstances, a convoy is not listed, it has to due with weather or trucks climbing
 

MDSA

Member
705
12
18
Location
Valdese, NC
We passed them heading west about 12:30 about 40 miles east of Nashville. It was pouring and we passed one Humvee with the driver using a rag to "defrost" his windshield. Cool to see that many vehicles.
 

stranger75

Member
91
0
6
Location
Nashville, TN
That must have been the same one, MDSA. I was traveling on I40 west bound from Mt Juliet, TN, to my home, just outside of downtown Nashville. I ran into them around the airport in the early afternoon, I don't recall the time. It was very interesting to me to see the many different variations that hmmwv's come in. There were a couple set up like pickup trucks, several that had been up-armored, some with large boxes on top (shelters? communications?), etc. I wish I had taken some pictures or video, but my phone doesn't do either of those actions very well, and as it was raining, I had both hands on the wheel. I think there were a couple Osh Kosh trucks too. (Those are the ones with the cab hanging over the front wheels right?) It was very cool to see all those vehicles.
 

Blueduce

Member
425
1
18
Location
Dallas, Tx
Dang fellas' it was just a fun story about his drive home. Let's try not to :deadhorse:here. You know as well as I do that there is a learning curve here especially for non-military personnel. Maybe we should think of a solution here as apposed to jumping at the opportunity to bust out the proverbial soap box. Maybe we should think about putting together a forum where FNG's can go to get the "rules of the road". Especially for the full time civilians among us. 2cents
 

stranger75

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Location
Nashville, TN
I don't feel that anyone here has been treating me unfairly. I posted about an occurrence on the road that I'm sure many others have dealt with before. It wasn't a big deal, it was just kind of cool to me. I did nothing illegal and did not interfere with the operations of active military vehicles on the road.

I signed up on this site a couple of years ago. Anyone who looks under my avatar can see the date I joined. I may not have posted much in that time, but I read a helluva lot about cucv's. I wanted to make an informed purchase, and took my time finding a truck that fit my expectations and budget. Now that I have a cucv of my own, I plan to post regularly, as I know this is a very knowledgeable and welcoming community.

While perusing the forums and posts on this website I have not noticed much of a rift between current or former military personnel and civilians. As far as I'm concerned, steelsoldiers.com is a valuable source of collective knowledge concerning military vehicle maintenance, restoration, and appreciation as a hobby, and is open to ANYONE that is interested. If I have missed anything that "FNG's" need to accomplish before posting and interacting on this site, kindly point me in the right direction and I will do my due diligence. That being said, I appreciate this website for all of its strengths, and continue to look forward to learning more about my truck by reading, asking questions, and sharing stories. Thanks.
 

CycleJay

New member
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Location
Marietta, Ga
Hello Stranger,

Welcome to Steel Soldiers even though you have been here awhile.

I too own an M1009, mine is a 1985...

(Feel free to ignore this paragraph if you wish.
And just to let everyone know, that does not already.
I am a civilian, always have been, always will be... But...
After I turned 18, I went to my local recruiter to join the Navy, since thru my dad
I was very familiar with it, the the discipline of military life.
So my recruiter took me to the induction center, I did well on the ASVAB,
but failed the physical do to some hereditary conditions. I too was declared 4F
and sent home very disappointed.)

Anyway, I am not going to bust on you Stranger, the way I see it, and the way
you described it, you were minding your own business and they joined you.
Besides, as you said, you did nothing illegal, and did nothing to disturb them.

Cool Story, Thank you for sharing... Feel free to post more MV related stories
as you get them.

If you ever pass thru Marietta, Ga. along the I-75, free free to contact me,
if you ever need any assistance, I would be glad to do what I can to help,
or if you just want to stop by say Hello and talk MV, that is cool too.

Good night and God bless you.....
 

wallew

Active member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
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Location
San Angelo, Tx USA Planet Earth
When I bought my M1028A2, I had to drive it from Scranton, PA back to Denver.

I was on the fourth day and I had entered into Kansas. I had stopped at a gas station to get fuel and there was a convoy that was about to get under way again. I fueled up and then went over and shook the hands of every one of them.

They mounted up, four HMMWV's, five or six HEMMT's and one or two FMLV's. We left at the gas station at the same time, but THEY BOOKED at about 75 mph. I could NEVER, ever have kept up. They were going to Ft Riley and they were in a hurry.

Military convoys are kewl to watch as they go by. I generally try and take pix, but these days, it's rare that I have a camera OR my cell phone with me.

Just gettin old I guess. Plus I have a 'love/hate' relationship with cell phones. I love mine, but I don't seem to carry it much.

And my 1984 M1009 (far left in my avatar) CAME FROM FT. RILEY.
 
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Hasdrubal

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Location
Vancouver BC
Working in the movie industry with military vehicles we would always drive in a convoy to the set and try to keep it tight as many of the guys didn't know the town well and would get lost. Apparently having a map and knowing how to navigate is a a rare skill. Going down the highway with 6 dueces and a couple of humvees someone would always try to slot in between us, even though there would be the bare minimum of space. It always irked me to no end, always looking in the mirror and trying to see that everyone made a light or an important turn. Allways had to stop at the side of the road and wait to collect everyone into a group.
 

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wayne pick

New member
658
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Location
Valley Cottage NY
I live ten miles south of Camp Smith which is in Peekskill NY, there is always MVs on RT9 and 9-A. They run about 50 mph so I just pass em. The kids look at my truck and think nothing of it. The older guys will give a wave or thumbs up in recognition, should be the other way around. Other than that, I give em a wide berth, humping those things down the road in the summer months has gotta suck.
 
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