Last Fall we were heading south on I295 through Portland Maine. Moderate traffic moving along at 60 mph or so. Out of the corner of my eye I see a Sea Gull carrying what looked like a good size Quahog (hard shell clam). Next thing I know the bird lets the thing go. The timing is perfect. The clam clears the overhang and hits the windshield on the bottom left side breaking it sending cracks all across the thing. I didn't have time to try to dodge the clam and with the traffic all around that is probably a good thing I didn't try. Had the windshield replaced the next week. But there is a small leak so I have to bring it back to the shop when the weather breaks. We weren't hurt but just amazed how fast unexpected things can happen on the road.

Several years ago (not RVing), had a deer jump out in front of me at 3:30 am. It was so fast, there was no time to react. The crazy animal landed on top of my hood (car), and his head was on the windshield right in front of me. His tongue was hanging out, like he was trying to lick the windshield. The whole thing sent me into a shock! I slammed on the brakes, he slid off, stood up, and jumped over the side of the road and gone!Left me with a broken headlight, broken grill, dented hood, all that plastic trim around the grill, and the drivers side fender buckled! Insurance fixed all, minus my deductible. Funny,.... got the car fixed and driving down the same road another night. I'm definitely over cautious now ... I see something on the side of the road my headlights catch. I immediately hit panic mode and slam on the brakes. It just stands there almost defying me to come forward, ... like ... "Come on forward buster, I'm just waiting to jump on top of you again!"I proceeded further, still the defiant thing refused to budge. I nudged closer and then my headlights were finally in full view! It was a mail box!To this day, mailboxes on the side of the road spark a bit of paranoia in me.

For me it was a wild turkey (not the alcoholic type) crossed the highway, seemingly out of nowhere, and bounced off the glass, and then continued on into the brush and woods, never to be seen again. This topic brings to mind some of the other "flying objects" along the highways and freeways stories on the news lately. People, often dumb kids or teens, dropping or hurling heavy objects off overpasses at vehicles, in some cases doing serious damage and grievous injury, or worse, to their occupants passing underneath at freeway speeds. Be aware. I now tend to look for pedestrians on overpasses as we approach them, just in case. If someone does throw something at you, about all you can do is brace for impact, but it's better than nothing.

One rainy night in D. C. In 1968. Some kids threw a chunk of cement or half a brick from an overpass at our car. It hit the hood about a foot from the windshield right in front of my wife. Left a dent and scrape in the hood. I hate to think what would have been if it hit the windshield. To this day I watch for pedestrians crossing overpasses.

Years ago we were in the Los Angeles area. We stopped at a red light, 2nd car back, under the interstate. A car came careening off the interstate, tumbled down the embankment and smashed into the car in front of us. We had nightmares about that incident for a long time and it still comes to mind if we are parked under an overhead roadway.We also have had a brick dropped on us from a bridge. It smashed through the passenger side of the windshield which went into millions of little shards. Car was only a week old.

I had a '56 ford ragtop and a pheasant went thru the windshield and landed on the front seat. I got a few stitches on my forehead and the car had feathers every where. That was a very long time ago and I don't drive that fast any more. I ducked when a bird flew by for the next few months.

Odd things that Happen when on the Road | Good Sam Community

DutchmenSport
Explorer
Jan 23, 2018
Several years ago (not RVing), had a deer jump out in front of me at 3:30 am. It was so fast, there was no time to react. The crazy animal landed on top of my hood (car), and his head was on the windshield right in front of me. His tongue was hanging out, like he was trying to lick the windshield. The whole thing sent me into a shock! I slammed on the brakes, he slid off, stood up, and jumped over the side of the road and gone!

Left me with a broken headlight, broken grill, dented hood, all that plastic trim around the grill, and the drivers side fender buckled! Insurance fixed all, minus my deductible.

Funny,.... got the car fixed and driving down the same road another night. I'm definitely over cautious now ... I see something on the side of the road my headlights catch. I immediately hit panic mode and slam on the brakes. It just stands there almost defying me to come forward, ... like ... "Come on forward buster, I'm just waiting to jump on top of you again!"

I proceeded further, still the defiant thing refused to budge. I nudged closer and then my headlights were finally in full view! It was a mail box!

To this day, mailboxes on the side of the road spark a bit of paranoia in me.
MDKMDK
Explorer
Jan 23, 2018
For me it was a wild turkey (not the alcoholic type) crossed the highway, seemingly out of nowhere, and bounced off the glass, and then continued on into the brush and woods, never to be seen again.

This topic brings to mind some of the other "flying objects" along the highways and freeways stories on the news lately. People, often dumb kids or teens, dropping or hurling heavy objects off overpasses at vehicles, in some cases doing serious damage and grievous injury, or worse, to their occupants passing underneath at freeway speeds.
Be aware. I now tend to look for pedestrians on overpasses as we approach them, just in case. If someone does throw something at you, about all you can do is brace for impact, but it's better than nothing.
bgum
Explorer
Jan 23, 2018
One rainy night in D. C. In 1968. Some kids threw a chunk of cement or half a brick from an overpass at our car. It hit the hood about a foot from the windshield right in front of my wife. Left a dent and scrape in the hood. I hate to think what would have been if it hit the windshield. To this day I watch for pedestrians crossing overpasses.
Tripalot
Explorer
Jan 23, 2018
Years ago we were in the Los Angeles area. We stopped at a red light, 2nd car back, under the interstate. A car came careening off the interstate, tumbled down the embankment and smashed into the car in front of us. We had nightmares about that incident for a long time and it still comes to mind if we are parked under an overhead roadway.

We also have had a brick dropped on us from a bridge. It smashed through the passenger side of the windshield which went into millions of little shards. Car was only a week old.
K_Charles
Explorer
Jan 23, 2018
I had a '56 ford ragtop and a pheasant went thru the windshield and landed on the front seat. I got a few stitches on my forehead and the car had feathers every where. That was a very long time ago and I don't drive that fast any more. I ducked when a bird flew by for the next few months.
Isaac-1
Explorer
Jan 23, 2018
Last spring on my way home from a weekend outing in my coach I drove under a railroad overpass as a brush clearing machine was passing by on the tracks. It threw a fist size rock that just barely missed the top of my windshield, it left a ding on the windshield trim on the fiberglass end cap.
Ed_Gee
Explorer II
Jan 23, 2018
bgum wrote:
One rainy night in D. C. In 1968. Some kids threw a chunk of cement or half a brick from an overpass at our car. It hit the hood about a foot from the windshield right in front of my wife. Left a dent and scrape in the hood. I hate to think what would have been if it hit the windshield. To this day I watch for pedestrians crossing overpasses.

Happens far too often.

Kids charged with murder
prichardson
Explorer
Jan 23, 2018
Have had a couple of incidents over the years. Ironically both involved 18 wheelers on an interstate. First was when one passed and kicked up a 2X4 that was laying in the road. The 2X headed endwise straight for the center of the windshield but at the last minute turned sidewise and flipped over the top of the car. The other going up a bridge an 18 wheeler ahead of me lost a universal joint, part of which skittered across and took out one of my rear tires and two tires on the car behind me.
AJR
Explorer
Jan 23, 2018
A number of years ago I am diving down a country road in my Superformance replica of a 1965 AC Cobra I see some wild turkeys feeding on the left side of the road. So I slow to about 20mph. A group like that will normally just stare at you. But they are turkeys so you never know. As I am half way past them I see one bird charge the car. I heard the thump right behind me. In the mirror the turkey is flopping on the road. It gets up shakes its feathers, puffs out its chest and starts strutting back to the group. I could just hear it saying “See how brave I am?”
Grit_dog
Navigator
Jan 23, 2018
DutchmenSport wrote:
Several years ago (not RVing), had a deer jump out in front of me at 3:30 am. It was so fast, there was no time to react. The crazy animal landed on top of my hood (car), and his head was on the windshield right in front of me. His tongue was hanging out, like he was trying to lick the windshield. The whole thing sent me into a shock! I slammed on the brakes, he slid off, stood up, and jumped over the side of the road and gone!

Left me with a broken headlight, broken grill, dented hood, all that plastic trim around the grill, and the drivers side fender buckled! Insurance fixed all, minus my deductible.

Funny,.... got the car fixed and driving down the same road another night. I'm definitely over cautious now ... I see something on the side of the road my headlights catch. I immediately hit panic mode and slam on the brakes. It just stands there almost defying me to come forward, ... like ... "Come on forward buster, I'm just waiting to jump on top of you again!"

I proceeded further, still the defiant thing refused to budge. I nudged closer and then my headlights were finally in full view! It was a mail box!

To this day, mailboxes on the side of the road spark a bit of paranoia in me.

Lol, yep. After you’ve whacked a deer or elk, every roadside reflector looks like an ungulate standing in the ditch!