Another MD resident here, though farther east. I used to head west down I70 for work all the time, as mentioned it is not a great place to break down. Apparently his son used to dress as Robin and join him on occasion. So, maybe the tradition will continue.
No way in hell I would I ever get out of a vehicle stopped in the left lane of an active highway. Especially in MD, where everyone seems to default to that lane anyways.
Seriously sad news though, sounds like a genuinely good person. If there's any solace to be taken from this, 1) perhaps this brings some awareness to roadside safety in the event of a breakdown, 2) I would guess some charities are likely about to receive a very healthy check from his estate, 3) perhaps he inspires a successor, and 4) for those who may be religiously inclined around here, the guy is basically guaranteed to have his ticket punched. Always trying to look on the bright side...
In reply to Sky_Render:
No, the ones I attended were with an area Mercedes club. I'd love to come out and at least help out with one, but my current work schedule means weekends are occupied.
T.J. wrote: I didn't know there was a batman guy driving around suited up in a Lambo. Sounds like he was a person who was trying to make the world a little better by doing what he could for people who needed a little cheering up. RIP batman impersonator.
He was good people. I think he inspired the gang of super-car guys here to offer drives to and from the hospital's in there cars for children in need.
Wally wrote: In reply to motomoron: Good advice that is almost always forgotten. I had a friend killed on the side of the road and several others injured, but when I broke down earlier this year my first thought was to get out and take a look. Fortuately I checked my mirror first and saw I was about to get hit by a van and stayed seated until I was done sliding.
You mean you.reversed into that van in a disabled car, at high speed, right?/
In reply to mndsm:
The van was apparently mentally impared.
He was absolutely one of the good guys. Gutted.
He died to stupid. Shame. Life lesson, don't pull over on the left. Life lesson 2: sure as E36 M3 don't get out of your car on the left.
At night and if he was in a black batman suit with a black car. The other driver never had a chance to see him.
Sad day all the way around. One of the good ones is gone and another persons life is forever changed.
According to the incompletely detailed article, there was another car parked behind him, with their 4 way flashers also on...Presumably with their headlights illuminating him and his car as well. It sounds like the other driver somehow managed to miss hitting this first cautionary car entirely. A lot like people who manage to object fixate and hit fully light up cop cars and/or the cars they've pulled over. Especially during the summer with the sun setting late into the evening, "night" does not necessarily mean pitch-black either.
Furious_E wrote: 1) perhaps this brings some awareness to roadside safety in the event of a breakdown ...Always trying to look on the bright side...
Don't count on anything bringing awareness to anyone about anything...
In reply to Woody:
Sad but true.
Let this be a lesson to all of us GRM'ers out there driving cars that may or may not be totally reliable. Sure, you can probably fix it, but can you fix it while dealing with the clueless drivers who seem intent on killing you? If it's not far, far off the shoulder, it's probably a job for AAA.
Meanwhile, my black NSX is looking very much like a Batmobile today...
Another MD-er here, heard the story on the news this AM. I've seen him driving the I-70 corridor. The news story was a bit cryptic, they said that he'd died but didn't say it was due to being hit on the road until the end of the story. Anyway, sad to hear. Stupid clueless drivers.
Sounds like he at least tried to get the car off the road best he could but 'at least partially in the fast lane' as the report said obviously wasn't going to be good enough.
He didn't sound like a dummy by any means but people need to smarten the berkeley up. Take nothing for granted.
There was a woman who had a flat on her Grand Prix on the 4 lane bypass about a mile from here. She stopped the car in the right lane and at the merge point of an on ramp to change the tire. Perfect storm there. A UPS tractor w/ double trailer came along at speed and hit her unable to stop in time as she leaned in the trunk getting the spare out... in the berkeleying road. Terrible scene they said. 
On the other hand, I've seen people stay sitting 'safely' in their car that broke down in the lane of traffic during rush hour, with a many miles long backup behind them, rather than pushing it off to the side of the road so that traffic can flow again...Even though everybody around them was all essentially stopped already. The key is that people need to pausing to really think through the appropriate actions for the situation, rather than acting on instinct. Unfortunately I think a lot of people don't fully comprehend all of the factors involved and/or were never taught how to make such an assessment.
In reply to fasted58:
I remember someone posting a story about a year ago on a motorcycle forum that I frequent about a similarly stupid incident. I forget the exact details, but it was something along the lines of a young woman stopping dead in the middle of the left lane of a freeway in the Montreal area to rescue a duck (or maybe a turtle) trying to cross the road. I think there was a motorcyclist who was killed when the car in front of him veered out of the way and he was unable to avoid her car LITERALLY PARKED IN THE berkeleyING LEFT LANE OF AN ACTIVE FREEWAY for no damn reason. IIRC, at the time the story was posted, she was being tried on some sort of criminal charges (and hopefully was convicted.)
Its truly astonishing how absolutely clueless people can be.
EDIT: Here's the link
http://time.com/3640529/emma-czornobaj-ducks-death-canada-driver/
Yes, she stopped in the middle of the left lane for a family of ducks.
A box truck was coming up behind and swerved to miss her.
The father and daughter on the motorcycle behind the box truck were killed because they couldn't get out of the way in time.
The stupid cow that stopped still doesn't understand what she did wrong. She should be forced to have her tubes tied for the good of humanity.
JG Pasterjak wrote:T.J. wrote: I didn't know there was a batman guy driving around suited up in a Lambo. Sounds like he was a person who was trying to make the world a little better by doing what he could for people who needed a little cheering up. RIP batman impersonator.You know, if Batman is someone who sacrifices his own wealth, time and effort so that someone less fortunate can get a fair shake out of the world, then this guy was no impersonator. He was absolutely the damn Batman. The world needs more Batmans and fewer Trumps claiming they're Batman. Sadly this event throws the balance off a little more.
Damn JG's forum posting game is strong right now.
Sad thing is this guy is probably a better batman than Ben affleck.
Furious_E wrote: In reply to fasted58: I remember someone posting a story about a year ago on a motorcycle forum that I frequent about a similarly stupid incident. I forget the exact details, but it was something along the lines of a young woman stopping dead in the middle of the left lane of a freeway in the Montreal area to rescue a duck (or maybe a turtle) trying to cross the road. I think there was a motorcyclist who was killed when the car in front of him veered out of the way and he was unable to avoid her car LITERALLY PARKED IN THE berkeleyING LEFT LANE OF AN ACTIVE FREEWAY for no damn reason. IIRC, at the time the story was posted, she was being tried on some sort of criminal charges (and hopefully was convicted.) Its truly astonishing how absolutely clueless people can be. EDIT: Here's the link http://time.com/3640529/emma-czornobaj-ducks-death-canada-driver/
Emma Czornobaj was the woman. She was convicted. 90 days in jail. While stupid reigned in the realm on that day, it is another case of no good deed will ever go unpunished. She was obviously guilty of having a big heart and a small brain. Not normally a fatal combination.
In my world where drivers are supposed to be looking ahead, traffic should have come to a halt behind the plaintiff's car in an orderly manner no different than if she had suffered a mechanical breakdown that kept her from reaching the shoulder. Or would the court have found her guilty in that case also?
RIP.
RIP
In reply to NOHOME:
If you come to a halt in the left lane you WILL be hit from behind, no matter what made you stop.
Stopping for ducks is very different than a mechanical failure. You generally have no control over when the mechanical failure happens. If you can't tell the difference between those two situations, you shouldn't be driving.
It's even in the driver's manual, if there is small furry things on the highway, hit them, it's safer than swerving and causing an accident.
In reply to NOHOME:
I'm sure whatever traffic was immediately behind her did come to a stop. And then proceeded to drive around her, as any right minded individual would do. It's the people coming upon her minutes later who are in the greatest jeopardy. No one has the reasonable expectation that they are going to encounter a car parked in the left lane and sometimes a potential hazard that's so far out of the norm like that can take a few extra clicks to process, especially if there's a lot of other sensory input going on (i.e. heavy traffic.)
I blame no one but her, bottom line is she unnecessarily caused an extremely hazardous situation that ultimately cost two people their lives. And while she may have had nothing but the best intentions, I would hardly qualify her actions as a "good deed." Failure to consider the consequences of her actions was an act of egregious criminal negligence. She deserves way worse than 90 days in jail (a sentence that has apparently been suspended pending appeal.)
Getting 90 days for criminal negligence WAS the lighter sentence, they were trying for manslaughter.
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