Climbing up cottonwood pass (two lane road) I had just blown the exhaust cannister loose a few miles earlier. I got slowed by a pickup pulling a camping trailer so big it would have stopped a diesel truck. Several cars were between me and the RV.
After toping out on the grade, I could see for a few miles and no traffic was comming the other way. I waited for the traffic between me and the RV to pass. No one took advantage of the situation to get around the RV.
I downshifted, gave a signal, looked in my mirror (nothiing behind me), twisted the throttle cable tight as a guitar string and pulled into the oncoming lane to pass. Passed all the cars between me and the RV and as I approached 100MPH as I approached the last one. Just as I got almost aroud the second car behind the RV, the first car decided to pull into the oncoming lane to pass.
I grabbed a handful of front brake, started downshifting hard. The bellow of the broken exhaust woke up the @%$#*^&%$#@& in front of me and he gased it. My front wheel was screaming and the rear wheel chirped every time I downshifted. My deceleration coupled with @%$#*^&%$#@& @%$#*^&%$#@&'s acceleration allowed me to keep from hitting the B*****d.
Pulled over in front of the RV and noticed flashing red lights behind me.
I pulled over just knowing I would get that yellow piece of paper, or a trip to jail. The Officer went around me and motioned me to follow him. I did and when I caught up with him, he had the miscreant pulled over. I got out the required paperwork and waited for what I thought would be my doom.
The Officer finally walked back to me and said "son, you're kind of noisy, I heard you pulling the grade". I explained the exhaust just failed a short time before all this. He looked at the exhaust, asked me when I planned to get it fixed. I said "just as soon as I get home".
He turned back towards the other excuse for a driver, paused looked back towards me and said "I'm throwing the book at him (the cage driver); God, that was some d***ed good ridin' son. Be sure and get that exhaust fixed".
I was so relieved I almost fell down.
The exhaust was fixed two days later.
