Span 180 degrees today
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I will give you the basic details and then go further into it as and when questiosare asked. It is such a short simple story that it shouldn't take long.
Today me and my wife were down in Dorset and driving back from a funeral to the wake to Corfe Mullen and eventually to Swanage. (We drove down this morning and returned this evening). Needless to say, it has been pi$$ing it down all day, and I managed to achieve my best MPG ever today on my way down as the spray and conditions were so bad. (I am hoping this coupled with where we were going builds an idea of how I "wasn't" driving
).
Anyway, at a roundabout whereby I take the 2nd exit, positioned at 2 o'clock (worth noting a regular route for us), I had scrubbed off a load of speed having reached the roundabout from a NSL DC. It was particularly wet and know the RAB has an ever so slightly degenerated surface at points around it. But in general it is your normal, concrete RAB in god condition.
Anyway, I remember slowing right down and coming off the brakes as I entered the RAB, taking a 2nd and literally start to walk it around the RAB. (Red arrows portray my intended direction). We were going in the region of 15mph, certainly no more than 20mph and it is fair to say although my memory is partial, that I may have slightly straightened the line (Blue large dots). Thats about it. There was nothing special about the circumstances at all. Start to turn in, reach the required angle and balance the car around the bend at a constant speed. Almost at the point I stop turning the wheel to the right, (green cross) the back lets go (small blue dots ). In the following 1 second these were my thought processes:
Oh, bit slippy here...
Shit, really slippy...
Into a rear wheel skid now...
Erm... still turning round.
Shit, this is a big one...
Oh dear....
And there I was facing the car that was behind me on the RAB, who laughed at me, then drove off. It was all very slow, nothing at all was hit and I was aware there was only one car far enough behind me to to worry, so all in all we werent that bothered. But I just couldnt believe it had happened.
I was in complete shock. The main reason being, I just could not fathom how this happened at all. The wife actually laughed as well, much to my amazement, as she usually can't deal with involuntary car movements. She said she felt very safe and how bizarre it was considering how slow we were going. I still to this moment don't get it at all, and made a mental note there and then that on our way back we were visiting that RAB again and inspecting it. FWIW the second my arse went light I turned in the opposite direction, and followed the usual rules.
We returned later and drove round it. It was still wet and my wife said she saw a bit of petrol on the road. I didn't see any however so I am inclined not to think that was the cause. What we did both see and feel however is alot of mud / possible horse excrament on the outer half of the point we span. It was not highly visible but you could see the surface grimed and slightly brown. The point felt slippy as I drive around it but not as slippy as oil / petrol / ice etc, more like surface debris slip.
So I am left with 2 possible reasons that I can think of:
They are:
1) Debris caused the rear wheels to break traction during the turn in / bend and prevented the rear wheels from gaining grip during the correction procedure.
OR
2) Having initiated the rear wheel skid and start to turn in, I was late or sudden on releasing the throttle during correction which "could" have inadvertently contributed the spin by way of lift off oversteer, feeding it etc.
Today me and my wife were down in Dorset and driving back from a funeral to the wake to Corfe Mullen and eventually to Swanage. (We drove down this morning and returned this evening). Needless to say, it has been pi$$ing it down all day, and I managed to achieve my best MPG ever today on my way down as the spray and conditions were so bad. (I am hoping this coupled with where we were going builds an idea of how I "wasn't" driving
![Wink ;-)](./images/smilies/icon_wink.gif)
![Image](http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f155/jamesdennis556/Temporary%20Files/Diag.jpg)
Anyway, at a roundabout whereby I take the 2nd exit, positioned at 2 o'clock (worth noting a regular route for us), I had scrubbed off a load of speed having reached the roundabout from a NSL DC. It was particularly wet and know the RAB has an ever so slightly degenerated surface at points around it. But in general it is your normal, concrete RAB in god condition.
Anyway, I remember slowing right down and coming off the brakes as I entered the RAB, taking a 2nd and literally start to walk it around the RAB. (Red arrows portray my intended direction). We were going in the region of 15mph, certainly no more than 20mph and it is fair to say although my memory is partial, that I may have slightly straightened the line (Blue large dots). Thats about it. There was nothing special about the circumstances at all. Start to turn in, reach the required angle and balance the car around the bend at a constant speed. Almost at the point I stop turning the wheel to the right, (green cross) the back lets go (small blue dots ). In the following 1 second these were my thought processes:
Oh, bit slippy here...
Shit, really slippy...
Into a rear wheel skid now...
Erm... still turning round.
Shit, this is a big one...
Oh dear....
And there I was facing the car that was behind me on the RAB, who laughed at me, then drove off. It was all very slow, nothing at all was hit and I was aware there was only one car far enough behind me to to worry, so all in all we werent that bothered. But I just couldnt believe it had happened.
I was in complete shock. The main reason being, I just could not fathom how this happened at all. The wife actually laughed as well, much to my amazement, as she usually can't deal with involuntary car movements. She said she felt very safe and how bizarre it was considering how slow we were going. I still to this moment don't get it at all, and made a mental note there and then that on our way back we were visiting that RAB again and inspecting it. FWIW the second my arse went light I turned in the opposite direction, and followed the usual rules.
We returned later and drove round it. It was still wet and my wife said she saw a bit of petrol on the road. I didn't see any however so I am inclined not to think that was the cause. What we did both see and feel however is alot of mud / possible horse excrament on the outer half of the point we span. It was not highly visible but you could see the surface grimed and slightly brown. The point felt slippy as I drive around it but not as slippy as oil / petrol / ice etc, more like surface debris slip.
So I am left with 2 possible reasons that I can think of:
They are:
1) Debris caused the rear wheels to break traction during the turn in / bend and prevented the rear wheels from gaining grip during the correction procedure.
OR
2) Having initiated the rear wheel skid and start to turn in, I was late or sudden on releasing the throttle during correction which "could" have inadvertently contributed the spin by way of lift off oversteer, feeding it etc.