09/30/2022
TOO FAST TO LIVE, TOO YOUNG TO DIE
SEPTEMBER 30, 1955
For Donald Turnupseed, the last Friday of the month started like most other Fridays. The 23-year-old US Navy veteran had just finished a hard week of studies at Cal-Poly in San Luis Obispo and was on his way back to his home in Tulare to enjoy his weekend.
The roughly 125-mile drive in his 1950 “shoebox” black and white Ford Tudor was monotonous but the lush scenery helped pass the time. The fastest route home would take him up the Kings Highway; east on Highway 466 then north on Hwy 41. At Lemoore, he would grab the 198 east over to the 99 back south to his home.
In late September, the temperatures still warmed rather quickly as you approached the San Joaquin Valley. Fortunately, by the time he got that far east, the sun would have sunk below the Cholame Hills, and heat would not be much of an issue. The sun was always at his back on his commute home, so he did not have to contend with the light glistening off the windshield and the heat warming his driver’s cockpit.
One thing he did have to contend with however, changed his life.
The setting sun, especially heading east at this time of year, reflected, and shimmered off many objects ahead of him.
Little did Donald know that his day would end with his Tudor
stranded along the side of the highway and him hitch-hiking home.
A stranger and fellow motorist would eventually stop to provide him with a ride. At one point, they stopped to grab a soda and use the restroom at a roadside café. The news had already reached the TV, but Donald was none the wiser because the courteous citizen who gave him his ride felt it was best that he heard the news from his family.
Until his death in 1995, he spoke only once about the incident and as a professional driver, I can only imagine that the day haunted him for the rest of his life.
You see, as he approached Highway 41 and was preparing to get the sun out of his rear-view mirror, the glare ahead was dancing on the objects both stationary and moving down the long Antelope Grade in front of him.
It turns out that one of those objects was moving, and quite rapidly at that. He never saw the Porsche Spyder.
Although Donald walked away from this accident with slight injuries including facial bruises and a bloodied nose, the driver of the speeding Porsche did not.
In 1955, the fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT) was 6.06.
In 2022, it was estimated to be 1.25 but is at 1.27 through the first quarter alone!
Even though we are making great strides in improving highway safety through driver education and advanced automotive technology, one fatality is always too many.
Whenever you find yourself in command of an automobile, consider the unexpected consequences one might face because of speeding or erratic and distracted driving.
Just DON'T do it. By the time you realize it’s too late, it’s too late.
