It Is Always The Gringo's Fault

[Peterj]

I don't see the problem... :devious:

 

[Peterj]

I HAD THIS HAPPEN TO ME HERE IN SD TWICE.
THE GUY DID IT ON PURPOSE.
I just pulled away with him in hot persuit yelling for me to stop.
I stopped at the first policeman I saw, gave him 500 pesos and said there is a crazy man following me, please make him STOP!!!!
He got his "CUT" on the spot, and I kept going!!!!

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That's one of the reasons you always need to have at least RD$ 500 in your car :nervous:

 

[ramesses]

Things like this are exactly why the DR will never be a first world country. It is part of the systemic corruption that plagues the country. People can talk until they are blue in the face about things getting better and changing....it's only the veneer that is changing.

Imagine leaving the scene of an accident in Canada or the US......

 

[CristoRey]

Barbacoa, Las Terrenas, Saman?

Although this happened in Saman?, I am posting it here, because I know it could have happened anywhere in this 'paradise'. :tired:

A European 'gringo' was driving his SUV when he was rear-ended by a young Dominican on a scooter.
The Dominican wanted the 'gringo' to pay for the damages on his scooter.

The 2 vehicles were taken 'preso' at the local police station (in LT), where the 'gringo' was threatened by the police and the 'fiscal' to pay up, otherwise his vehicle would be held.

?Y el gringo paga! - InfosDiario.com - Las Terrenas

donP

and the gringo paid. End of story

 

[Auryn]

I don't see the problem... :devious:

And a sort of Mad Max mentality sure can help too.

 

[malko]

The one I have makes the one in the photo look like a toy.

Same here..... when i first saw my SUV ( it was the wifeys before ), I was horrified. I remember thinking that if i hit a pedriatian, bike or motorbike, he would have 0.5% of survival chance !!
Now I am just grateful for the steel bars extra protection

 

[Celt202]

Which is why I drive a shytbox. I have a 16 year old vehicle. My last one died at 19. One time while driving my previous car in a rough part of town in Santo Domingo someone did a double take and started laughing when they saw a gringo driving such a beat up car.

Think ahead. Life is a game of chess. Co?o. :laugh:

 

[rubio_higuey]

The idiot gringo didn't have the insurance? When he was impounded at PN, the first thing he should have done was call the insurance company/broker who would have sent a lawyer immediately ...

 

[acmike]

I like your car Celt. It's better than the last one. But anything is better than the last one.

Which is why I drive a shytbox. I have a 16 year old vehicle. My last one died at 19. One time while driving my previous car in a rough part of town in Santo Domingo someone did a double take and started laughing when they saw a gringo driving such a beat up car.

Think ahead. Life is a game of chess. Co?o. :laugh:

 

[ltsnyder]

When you consider that logic thinking it might work.....

A decal with a .357 picture on your rear window goes a long way to keeping these idiots from thinking about hitting you...just a thought.

When you consider that logic knowing it might work.....

It might be time to consider high tailing it out of "Paradise".

Or avoid driving....

 

[zoomzx11]

glad to see some of us agree on something. Never stop unless you have a small Dom in your car and can switch drivers in an instant. Hint. Tint those windows dark. They constantly run into the back of cars. They dont look. They speed. They are drunk. Some are nuts. If you have not been rear ended by a moto you have done very little driving here. Two kinds of riders. Those that have crashed and those that will crash. They all crash.

 

[jd426]

One little tip if I may to people new to driving in the DR.
I guess most of us who have driven in crazy cities like El Bronx or whereever will already know this..
ALWAYS be checking your rear view mirror... and if the dude behind you is not looking directly straight ahead ( Ie making eye contact) as you are about to hit the brakes for a routine stop.. maybe tap the horn and dont brake so hard. Sometimes I even touch the brakes a little early , release and then brake again to make my stop..
Many times I have checked my rear view, making a routine stop and 2 moto guys are having a conversation or who knows what, totally not paying attention to what is in front of them.. and 7-10 feet from my rear bumper.. if you SLAM the Brake, NO way he has enough time to react.. they do NOT give themselves enough space, it is what it is..
I have always compared DR Driving to Moto Cross. If you rode a dirtbike as a Kid, driving in the DR is almost FUN.. Only problem is these fools are on POS motos, and wearing NO Helmets .
They really dont seem to have a clue about how vulnerable they are.

 

[Luperon]

Aways tap the brakes when anyone is getting too close. That's what brake lights are for. In a perfect world people would leave enough room to stop.

 

[AlterEgo]

One little tip if I may to people new to driving in the DR.
I guess most of us who have driven in crazy cities like El Bronx or whereever will already know this..
ALWAYS be checking your rear view mirror... and if the dude behind you is not looking directly straight ahead ( Ie making eye contact) as you are about to hit the brakes for a routine stop.. maybe tap the horn and dont brake so hard. Sometimes I even touch the brakes a little early , release and then brake again to make my stop..
Many times I have checked my rear view, making a routine stop and 2 moto guys are having a conversation or who knows what, totally not paying attention to what is in front of them.. and 7-10 feet from my rear bumper.. if you SLAM the Brake, NO way he has enough time to react.. they do NOT give themselves enough space, it is what it is..
I have always compared DR Driving to Moto Cross. If you rode a dirtbike as a Kid, driving in the DR is almost FUN.. Only problem is these fools are on POS motos, and wearing NO Helmets .
They really dont seem to have a clue about how vulnerable they are.

Good tips, it's how I learned to drive in NYC, but people from "normal" places may not be aware.

I've noticed that one of Mr. AE's brothers uses his flashers a lot - every time he's going to slow or stop he hits the button. I've also seen some Dominicans switch on their headlights [which also turns on their back lights] when someone is too close behind them.

 

[SKY]

In the daytime just flash your lights on and off. This will look the same as the brake lights.

 

[Shackmack]

The Euros problem was he STOPPED......
God Forgive me, but if i ever get into a small accident, and Im SURE the guy is OK ..and not seriously hurt.. I will DRIVE AWAY like it never happened...
If you feel guilty about it.. have someone bring him some Money... but do NOT stop, unless there is no way out.
But i guess its harder for a Local to do that. but Eye witnesses, I could care less.. Unless they block the road in front of me, im driving the f out of there..

God forgive me too but ESPECIALLY do not stop if the guy is hurt...you will be paying him and his family for the rest of your life

 

[InsanelyOne]

I had a very different experience here in Bavaro in front of the Barcelo Dominican Beach resort (where the double set of speed bumps are). Guy on a pasola went over the speed bump a little too fast (only because it had been raining). I honestly don't think he was being careless, he just hit the bump a little faster than he expected because the road was slick. Once over the speed bump he lost control and ended up in a slide back-first right into the front of my car. He was on his side so when I hit him it looked like he was all the way under the car. I thought for sure he was injured. Next thing I know his head pops up and he's okay. He was definitely shaken up and embarrassed more than anything. Bystanders helped him over to the sidewalk and dragged the pasola out of the way. There was no indication he was going to try to somehow extort us for money but I insisted to my fianc? that we remain in the car and drove off as soon as the way was clear.

I've been driving in the DR for 6 years and that's the only incident I've had. Haven't really been bothered by the police much in Bavaro. Santo Domingo is a different story. Especially for my fianc?. He's dark-skinned and generally mistaken for a Haitian. The police pull him over almost every time he's behind the wheel. He was pulled over two Saturday's in a row in the exact same place on Winston Churchill in SD. By the same cops! Both times they tried to claim he ran a red light (which of course they didn't). Thankfully my very white senior citizen father was in the car with him and they quickly let him go.

 

[donP]

No Gringo at the Wheel

Once over the speed bump he lost control and ended up in a slide back-first right into the front of my car. He was on his side so when I hit him it looked like he was all the way under the car. I thought for sure he was injured. Next thing I know his head pops up and he's okay. He was definitely shaken up and embarrassed more than anything. Bystanders helped him over to the sidewalk and dragged the pasola out of the way. There was no indication he was going to try to somehow extort us for money but I insisted to my fianc? that we remain in the car and drove off as soon as the way was clear.
... my fianc?. He's dark-skinned and generally mistaken for a Haitian.

I can explain that.
Once he saw the black face behind the wheel, he knew that there was no money to be made...or even get shot. :laugh:


donP