Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Mangalore
Puducherry
Tiruchirapalli
Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
‘Speed is not cool’
|
Saubhagyini Singh cautions motorists about the risks of rash driving, after she met with an accident
|
I led a happy-go-lucky life for 18 odd years, since I had a chauffeur-driven vehicle. Then, I got a driver’s licence and on my persistent requests (read tectonic-plate-shaking tantrums) to Daddy dearest, got a brand new scooterette! Oh, how thr
illed I was! Independence at last! I felt liberated, free, a grown-up! I got my scooty on a sunny Friday afternoon, and drove around the colony with elan, ignoring the scorching sun and my mother’s repeated pleas to “Wear a helmet.” In my excitement at finally owning a vehicle, I pretty much forgot about reading the owner’s manual (who does that anyway?), adjusting the rear view mirrors, and, yes, buying a helmet! It was only in the evening that I put my baby to rest in the garage (which I cleaned myself, it was spotless for a change), only taking it out once at night for a midnight drive in the now asleep colony.
By Saturday, I was bored of the colony and was ready to venture out onto the big, bad roads of Chennai. I had driven perfectly in those narrow lanes, the wide roads should be piece of cake, I thought.
I revved out into the busy Saturday-evening traffic. “I’m super good at this,” I patted myself on the back for my smooth-driving skills. I smirked at anyone in an auto, or bus — “I own a vehicle, dude. What have you got?” and grinned at any guy who wasn’t wearing a helmet, not unlike me — “We don’t need them, they mess up our hairdos!”
I picked up more speed, and I could feel the wind in my hair! The weather was perfect. Suddenly, there it was — a pile of concrete on the curve. I screamed my lungs out! I was going too fast to turn and in my panic, pressed the brakes and turned the accelerator! Before I knew it, I was lying on the footpath.
Now, as I lie on this hospital bed with a broken leg and a long vacation from college, I understand it’s not cool to drive rashly, just plain stupid.
P.S. In case you’re wondering, the scooter didn’t suffer a single scratch and I finally did get around to reading that now revered owner’s manual!
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Mangalore
Puducherry
Tiruchirapalli
Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
|
