As a kid I used to rock climb, in a previous job I’d climb telegraph poles and work at the top for ages with no worries. However just lately been getting “heightened senses” when driving on some bridges and elevated roads.
It’s not all, and haven’t yet been so knotted up as to avoid any where…yet.
My main culprits are the Dartford crossing, the first Severn Bridge, on the M48 and the exit from the M4 West bound at Jcn 42, they just seem so exposed with low side barriers.
Any else get this and if so what locations? Has anyone ever been so spooked as to divert away from such routes?
Wiretwister:
As a kid I used to rock climb, in a previous job I’d climb telegraph poles and work at the top for ages with no worries. However just lately been getting “heightened senses” when driving on some bridges and elevated roads.
It’s not all, and haven’t yet been so knotted up as to avoid any where…yet.
My main culprits are the Dartford crossing, the first Severn Bridge, on the M48 and the exit from the M4 West bound at Jcn 42, they just seem so exposed with low side barriers.
Any else get this and if so what locations? Has anyone ever been so spooked as to divert away from such routes?
I’d say M5 Northbound Avonmouth bridge is more exposed than the old Severn bridge I’m not too keen on that one especially as I’m normally in the inside lane with a flimsy looking set of railings between me and the river below.
But I understand your fear of the Dartford crossing as it’s pretty high.
Crossing the Friarton Bridge in Perth in the wind usually makes my arse twitch a bit with having no hard shoulder and a flimsy railing. But I was slightly reassured a couple of years back when that decker got blown over on it and the railings seemed to hold up well.
Mmm…not sure about vertigo but as we get older im sure most of us get more aware of dangers around us, we were all ‘invincible’ once but age experience makes you think more…its probably all a load of old ball ■■■■■ ive just spouted there but thats my take on things…
I was the last man acrosss before they shut it. I can imagine them now watching me on the CCTV giggling away saying to themselves ‘bleedin’ heck that’s harsh out there, best we close it in a minute’ being battered sideways and right in the middle, THE MIDDLE, where the gap is the biggest, the strongest gust would hit the side of my empty curtainsider DD.
Then, seconds after I’d made it onto English soil, they’d close the old M4 bridge to high siders.
Wiretwister:
As a kid I used to rock climb, in a previous job I’d climb telegraph poles and work at the top for ages with no worries. However just lately been getting “heightened senses” when driving on some bridges and elevated roads.
I wouldn’t say its vertigo, more that its a growing sense of your own mortality. When you’re young you’re invincible so think nothing of doing what you did but as you get older you recognise possibilities for things going south you never even gave a moments thought to.
When I drove over the Forth road bridge earlier this year, I thought to myself how it felt a bit flimsy, and was making a lot of creaking noises. I laughed at my, and thought ’ don’t be silly, if it wasn’t structurally sound they would close it…'. Less than an hour later, they closed it after finding some massive cracks in the structure…
Wiretwister:
As a kid I used to rock climb, in a previous job I’d climb telegraph poles and work at the top for ages with no worries. However just lately been getting “heightened senses” when driving on some bridges and elevated roads.
I wouldn’t say its vertigo, more that its a growing sense of your own mortality. When you’re young you’re invincible so think nothing of doing what you did but as you get older you recognise possibilities for things going south you never even gave a moments thought to.
Agreed, I often wonder how I am still alive when I think back at some of the stuff I used to do on a bike and in a car when I was younger, as you say, you are fearless then.
My youngest lad is the same now, when I’m a passenger in his car he tends to show off a bit, and I’ll say to him… ‘‘Look mate, I used to do all this once over, so you won’t scare me, but you could quite easily kill me’’ and he takes the hint.
I have also been very wary of the Perth Friarton bridge also.
been over the new severn crossing over a number of years and if its windy I will sit in the middle lane,at least if blown over you have a lane and hard shoulder width to land on before the railings/barrier,probably pxxs off a few car drivers but in that situation it’s self survival
Never been good with heights despite sitting in chairlifts each winter in the Alps but the crackers which scared the wotsit out of me was the Nantua
Viaduct on the way to Mont Blanc and then the ski slope up to it but the real cracker even BEFORE it was open was Millau when we used to drive under
it, just looking up as it reached out put the willys up me for months but then it was opened and the high guard rail well that took away any feeling
of vertigo.
Wiretwister:
As a kid I used to rock climb, in a previous job I’d climb telegraph poles and work at the top for ages with no worries. However just lately been getting “heightened senses” when driving on some bridges and elevated roads.
It’s not all, and haven’t yet been so knotted up as to avoid any where…yet.
My main culprits are the Dartford crossing, the first Severn Bridge, on the M48 and the exit from the M4 West bound at Jcn 42, they just seem so exposed with low side barriers.
Any else get this and if so what locations? Has anyone ever been so spooked as to divert away from such routes?
Ironically long dark tunnels scare the bejesus out of me, I’m touching cloth halfway through Dartford tunnel.
It’s prolly just age as our mortality dawns on us later in life. To combat this just try thinking of something else during moments of anxiety. Tribbing works for me.
They say we are born with only 3 natural fears:
falling, loud noises and those oversensitive auto flushers at motorway service area loos.
So just crack on, take no notice, safe in the knowledge that worse things happen at sea.
Especially if you take a nose dive off Dartford bridge
I have had similar problems but though strange…
I can’t get even 4 feet up a ladder, yet can climb the ladder on my tanker without a problem, I figure that is because it is fixed to the trailer. I can quite easily stand and lean against the door of a 747 and 37,000 ft and look out the window withour a care.
I’ve actually had about 5 episodes of the real vertigo the last one being about 15 yrs and it’s very disabling and the only thing you can do is lie down and wait for it to pass .
