Just for your amusement, I have decided to recount my latest adventure driving stick shift. Before you get the idea that I completely suck, I to give myself some props, I have been driving all around Montpellier for the last week or so with relatively no problems. My little car (needs a name, any suggestions?) and I are getting along very well, and I am actually quite fond of it.
Sadly, I guess I am not the complete pro I thought I was!
I was coming out of the mall parking lot yesterday (think underground parking structure) when I got stuck, and my perfect little world of driving stick shift came crashing down around me.
It went something like this: I put my ticket into the machine, the gate lifts up, and I pull out toward the sunlight. Sadly, I had to stop halfway up the ramp because the stoplight at the top of the ramp had turned red, and the two cars ahead of me stopped. So there I was, at a dead stop in the middle of a steep ramp.
I figured I would have to gun the engine a little bit when it was time to go, but I did NOT think I would continue to roll backward as this happened. And there were 4 cars behind me honking their horns. I stalled out twice, missed two lights, and still went nowhere besides back down the ramp. I wanted to cry, but instead settled for panicking and screaming obscenities.
Finally the guy got out of the car behind me and started yelling in French. I panicked more and was like "I don't know what to do" in French. He took pity on me when he heard how bad my French was and realized I was foreign. Then he came over, put his hand on my shoulder and said "OK, tu calme, tu calme" (calm down). Then he asked me for the keys, tried to explain how to work the car in French, and I pretended I understood while I hoped he would just move my car up for me. And he did.
So, with 15 cars now backed up behind me annoyed as hell, Mr. French Guy in the Green Peugeot pulled my car all the way up the ramp until the ground was flat again and I was safe. Yay! I made it! Thanks to the kindness of a stranger.
The important lesson I learned here is that I will NEVER ever stop on a hill ever again, because I still can't figure out how to get my car to go forward instead of backwards on a steep incline. I hope this doesn't mean I have to avoid the mall though, because it is pretty nice.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
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3 comments:
Hey Jen...LOL...I gotta laugh my ass off because something similiar happened to me in Germany and I practically scared my brother and sister to death. Luckily for us, there were no cars behind me after I slid 5 feet down the hill. But I did learn a handy trick for those steep hills: Put your emergency brake on, gun your engines and work your clutch until you feel it catch, then let your emergency brakes off slowly. The brakes will keep you from sliding and panicking while you figure out your clutch/brake point. Hope this helps! :)
hi lady love! stickshifts are crazy, scary beasts. i once stalled all the way through a light, but i was in north wilkesboro, north carolina, and not a single person even honked at me. because rural people are cool like that. i've been driving stickshift for 5 years and i STILL don't stop on hills if i can help it. good luck! missing you lots - hope you're doing well! xoxo woo
Hahaha- thanks for the tips!! I have to admit, now I just wait until I know I can go all the way up the hill in one go! But I am definitely going to start working on the emergency brake technique.
You guys are fabulous, thanks for the stories, it makes me feel slightly less incompetant!
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