[Tommy]

It's been my experience that when two people are arguing a point and one or both descend into personal insults and name calling, it means they have given up on winning the original argument. In the argumentative part of this thread I believe there are two points to debate. The first is whether or not it is a good idea for anyone (regardless of how they rate their own driving skills) to engage in what some state laws define as "exhibition driving" on public roadways. The second point is whether it is a good idea to share stories about exhibition driving on this particular forum. In my opinion the answer to both questions is no.

My reason is the same for both points. Whether a driver is highly skilled or just lucky at that moment, exhibition driving or stories about it tend to persuade people who likely don't have skills to try it too. In an earlier post I mentioned a young pilot who died trying a maneuver he was not yet ready to try. He did it because he had heard other more experienced pilots talking about ignoring the rules because it was fun and they could handle it. He couldn't, but his ego got the best of him.

I look at it this way. If Lewis Hamilton is out in his Ferrari and a stranger in his McLaren pulls along side and wants to race, Lewis can handle it. But he has no idea how skilled the other driver is. Putting that other driver's life at risk for the sake of his own ego seems foolish to me. A mature man would not do that IMHO.

So, getting back to this thread I have one more point to make. If someone criticizes my ACTIONS it is not the same as criticizing me. If I believe my actions were justified, I'll either explain why or ignore them as poorly informed critics. If their criticism makes me rethink either my actions or my choice of words in describing them, I will respond accordingly. I believe there are many areas where reasonable people can respectfully disagree. Allowing the other person to disagree with me doesn't mean I agree with them. It simply means we each get to make up our own mind.