Motoconcho harassing Gringo Cars

i heard this story many times but personally i never had a problem. i have a mean face and my car is pretty shi**y in comparison to vehicles of other gringos. and when i occasionally drive much better and larger car of miesposo i have a distinct i-will-run-you-over-twice look on my face so no one dares to get close

having said that, i have witnessed some gringo crash attempt with miesposo behind the wheel (he is very white and with me by his side he looks positively gringoish). motos would slow down, look around and then place themselves so that they'd fall off the motos if we brush them even slightly. i could see it in their faces how they calculate distance and think about pulling that trick, making us slow down to cut their potential injury. miesposo, however, is a cold blooded bastard who has seen all sorts of crap in his fifteen years of driving all over the country. instead of slowing down he puts the pedal to the metal. motos run very fast indeed at the roar of the engine

once we got hit in the back wheel area (moto tore off this plastic over the wheel) by a moto trying to squeeze in on our left between us and a jeep coming very fast nearly on the middle of the road (we actually had to run into bushes on the right to avoid the crash). stupid motoconchista was bleeding from his leg but he still shouted "pagame, pagame!". miesposo went out of the car, grabbed damaged car part and started screaming "que? tu me pagas, bruto!". dude run away.

Another gringo paranoia

Thanks for sharing that Olly and DV8. This site has surely helped accelerate the learning curve for me.

Moto hit me in Sabaneta and actually fessed up and said he was sorry. I still had to pay someone RD3000 to fix the scratch and dent on rear quarter.

The Man of Law

A Las Terrenas laywer backed out of a tyre workshop and hit our parked car.
He refuses to pay the damage (only about 3,000 RD$).


donP

A friend of mine had the same thing happen to her. Only thing, motoconcho didn't exactly measure his speed and distance quite right and ended up plastered to her rear window with a broken jaw, a few broken teeth and a fractured vertabrae (of course his helmet was hanging on his arm). Lucky for her, there was a Politur officer just 25 yards away who saw exactly what happened and helped her out so she had pretty much no problems getting out of that mess other than time spent doing the police report and placing the claim with her insurance company. Can't say for sure how the genius came out of it though I'm guessing he probably learned his lesson...

Tough Luck

KateP said:

Can't say for sure how the genius came out of it though I'm guessing he probably learned his lesson...

Click to expand...

... another Dominican paranoia. :classic:

donP

This happen daily to anybody, Dominican or Foreigners. it happen to me 3 times in last 2 years. motoconcho or delivery drives crazy, they have hit lot of friends also (all Dominicans). They are not targeting gringos, please leave this paranoia at home.

Of course real accidents happen everyday to anyone who happens to be in the way of those crazy motos. However, it is not the real accidents that this thread is about. It is the "manufactured" accidents that are being discussed here.

I know at least 4 friends who have been intentionally hit by motos, and at least 4 more who were accosted with false accusations. These are the types of incidents where gringos are targeted, and for good reason. Gringos don't stand a chance in these instances, and Dominicans don't even give such occurrences a second thought. They either laugh it off, call their friend the general, or pull out their guns. No problem.

So yes, these things (accidents, real and imagined) do happen here, and gringos are targeted, particularly for the imaginary type.

catcherintherye said:

Of course real accidents happen everyday to anyone who happens to be in the way of those crazy motos. However, it is not the real accidents that this thread is about. It is the "manufactured" accidents that are being discussed here.

I know at least 4 friends who have been intentionally hit by motos, and at least 4 more who were accosted with false accusations. These are the types of incidents where gringos are targeted, and for good reason. Gringos don't stand a chance in these instances, and Dominicans don't even give such occurrences a second thought. They either laugh it off, call their friend the general, or pull out their guns. No problem.

So yes, these things (accidents, real and imagined) do happen here, and gringos are targeted, particularly for the imaginary type.

Click to expand...

Having visited the DR, being enchanted by the many good things there, th stunning weather, fauna and landscapes etc I pondered on my way home ''wow could I make it work there and live there'' Live the tropical dream etc.. If I really Wanted to Im sure I could make it happen with some work.

However, i will always be a gringo and when I read these posts like this, the murders, seing all expats in villas living in gated communites or villas with bars on the windows. hearing some scary stories from expats there is no way I could take the risk. The cons outweigh the pro's!!

Montago said:

Having visited the DR, being enchanted by the many good things there, th stunning weather, fauna and landscapes etc I pondered on my way home ''wow could I make it work there and live there'' Live the tropical dream etc.. If I really Wanted to Im sure I could make it happen with some work.

However, i will always be a gringo and when I read these posts like this, the murders, seing all expats in villas living in gated communites or villas with bars on the windows. hearing some scary stories from expats there is no way I could take the risk. The cons outweigh the pro's!!

Click to expand...

I think many of us review and weigh the 'pros and cons' on a daily basis. For me, at this point in time, the pros outweigh the cons, but who knows what the future will bring.

That is one reason why it is extremely important for everyone to stay informed regarding the current happenings in the DR. The more one knows and understands the more one is prepared to make that daily review a productive enterprise.

Tis the season to be aware and beware, but just don't stop noticing the many pros that also exist.

I read these posts regularly..... its all about "Location, Location, Location".

Or for our more literary friends..."Where to be ... or not to be? That is the question."

william webster said:

I read these posts regularly..... its all about "Location, Location, Location".

Or for our more literary friends..."Where to be ... or not to be? That is the question."

Click to expand...

I agree that with many issues it's all about "location, location, location", but with regards to the issue of kamikaze konchos I believe they are fairly ubiquitous. I have heard equally horrifying stories from all corners of this country, with no region being safe from their malevolent behaviors.

I can honestly say I've never heard of or seen anything like this in Santo Domingo... too many people, kind of hard to target gringas no?

kimbjorkland said:

I can honestly say I've never heard of or seen anything like this in Santo Domingo... too many people, kind of hard to target gringas no?

Click to expand...

It happens in Santo Domingo.

It happened to Mr C in Santo Domingo. He was mistaken for a gringo.

kimbjorkland said:

I can honestly say I've never heard of or seen anything like this in Santo Domingo... too many people, kind of hard to target gringas no?

Click to expand...

No!

Sometimes the anonymity of complexity and confusion proves to be the perfect cover. Santo Domingo is a wonderful place for many things, but an escape from criminality it is not. The moto cartel is just as bad in SD as it is in any other place on the island, perhaps worse and even more sophisticated.

(Sorry Celt202, I didn't read your post before posting this. Your answer was sufficient.)

Santiago

Santiago: I have loss count at how many times my car has been hit while parked or stopped.

Everyone of them have been my fault according to the arse holes that hit me.

One of the last "hits" was when I was stopped in the LEFT TURN ONLY lane waiting for traffic to clear, and as I got clearance and started to turn a jerk on his bike ran into my drivers door.

Of course blaming me.

There was barely room between my car and the concrete lane barrier for his bike to get in.

And later that same day when I came out to my car parked on the street, the drivers mirror had been bent back by someone else passing my car.

WayToGo, Barry was with me, and remarked about why he does not have a car.


Don