
Posted:
Thu Jun 26, 2014 10:43 pm
by Splitpin
Good post CP ... Cheers.
I have experienced the Asian culture just resigning themselves to fate first hand .... not at your level , but scary non the less.
A few years ago i did a stint as a tour driver (sorry this wont take long) I had a group from Japan , 50 in all. We were heading to Queenstown .
The tour leader asked me if they could go up to coronet peak before going to the hotel , it was springtime , and no snow to speak of , so i said yes .... so up we went , slowly with 50 bod's and 60 odd bags.
Anyway , time to come down .... the coach was an import from Singapore , it had an electronic gear shift , exhaust brake , and a retarder (like an elecrtic brake on a train)
I started the decent , and found it was too slow in 2nd gear (over rev warning was sounding) so i slowed right down and tried to select 3rd and engaged the retarder .... the gearbox wouldnt engage ..... and we were picking up speed ... foot hard on the brake , after a few meters i knew the retarder wasnt working .... my foot even harder on the brake now... and to fast to engage any gear.
I could tell we weren't going any faster , but it wasn't slowing down either ( decending at about 25 -30k) Thank God the road was clear ... i had to use every bit of road.(even at that speed) I advised the tour leader there was a problem , and i may have to put the coach into the hillside to stop it .... no reaction ! so down we go .... almost at the bottom , i told him " we are going to cross the main road , tell them to brace in case we hit something" ..... nothing !! by now the smell of overheated brakes and the smoke is obvious .... anyway God was onboard that day .... we rolled off the bottom of that hill and no traffic either side , and came to smoky stop a few yards down the road.
My hands were still locked on the wheel ... both my feet were welded to the centre pedal ... and that tour leader asked me if we would be at the hotel in time for dinner !
I called the company that night and was told the retarder had been disabled while they waited for parts .... would have been nice to have known that before i left.
Anyway , i got 100% pissed , called the owner at 3am and told him to stick it .... got a cab to the airport in the morning and flew home , i still dont know how that group got on.
Sorry to bore you , but it (the Korean thing) made me remember.