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+<h1>Drive Like You Drive Blue</h1>
+
+<p>
+Amy drives a 2012 Jeep Patriot. As it has aged I have fixed a myriad of electrical issues on it, mostly a result of corrosion which it picked up in the first half of its life in Ohio. This morning Amy called me indicating the "4x4, ABS, and car-rolling-over" lights all came on at once.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Well, crap.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+The all wheel drive system, ABS, and traction control. I've fixed this issue twice before, once by replacing a wheel speed sensor and the other time by replacing both rear wheel hubs. Those wheel hubs have little metal clips which hold the wheel speed sensor on and they basically disintegrate into rust particles before 100k miles.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Amy's next question, like always is, "what should I do, come home?" I tell her she should be fine, just be careful and don't assume the ABS is going to work. She replies, "so drive like I'm driving Blue?"
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Drive like you're driving Blue. Old Blue is my 1953 Hudson Hornet. Old Blue has rear-wheel-drive only. No traction control. No anti-lock brake system. No shoulder belts or air bags or crumple zones. When Amy or I drive Blue we leave lots of extra room ahead of us. We don't weave in and out of traffic or cut people off. We don't take evasive action with the wheel. When it rains, we slow down. We always signal and we always come to a complete stop. We take wide, careful turns. As good as my boosted disc brakes are, we change our driving habits to compensate, knowing full well that we could lock up those wheels and have to pump the brakes to stop. "Yeah hon, drive like you're driving Blue."
+</p>
+
+<p>
+I hang up the phone and now my only question is, "why don't we always drive like we're driving Blue? Why doesn't everyone?"
+</p>
+
+<p>
+This past weekend Amy and I went up to Richmond for a couple of days. On the way there we were stuck in traffic for thirty minutes. The reason? A multi-car pileup. On the way home we saw the same thing: five or so cars all rear-ended. It looked like all the drivers were standing. Everyone had been saved by their automobiles, but I couldn't help but wonder how they could have avoided disaster. They were driving what looked like brand new Fords, Hondas, and Subarus. Some of the safest cars on the road, all equipped with the latest safety features. All equipped with anti-lock brakes, traction control and most of them all-wheel drive. The weather was cloudy but not wet. So why were they all piled up?
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Every day on I-64 I see a myriad of folks pushing the limits of their cars. It's incredible to me how much trust we place in modern machinery. I think many folks assume nowadays that everyone will walk away from a rolled over car, or a massive t-bone. That wasn't always the case, and I'm not sure many people appreciate that. The safety their cars provide them transforms into confidence. An assurance that whatever they do, they're shielded from danger.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But what if everyone drove their brand new cars like they were driving 1953 Hudson Hornets? What if they all drove like they were one hard stop away from sliding into the car in front of them. Without any crash protection. Wouldn't we all leave just a little more space? A little more time to react, to save ourselves rather than accept the impact and let the car deal with those consequences? If everyone assumed that they couldn't swerve onto the shoulder to avoid rear-ending someone, wouldn't they set their cruise control and just hang out at the speed limit at a safe distance?
+</p>
+
+<p>
+We've come a long way in preventing driver deaths by engineering systems to absorb and redirect impacts away from passengers. But have our habits improved too? My phone sits in my pocket while I drive. Or even in the glove box. My eyes are constantly moving across the road. Checking to see what pedestrians are going to do. Watching other drivers speed up, slow down, or loll from lane to lane. Whether they're distracted or inebriated I can't tell, it looks the same. And others still are darting from lane to lane, tailgating, or rushing to get to the next red light one car length ahead of others. Life would be a lot shorter if they drove Blue.
+</p>