This morning I ran over a Stop Strip. Sort of.

No, this was not an episode of "World's Wildest Police Videos" but I do feel like have been assaulted. :(

In my last mile to work on my regular commute today, I was in a lane I usually don't get into but was forced there by heavier than normal congestion.

Two vehicles in front of me on my left was a pickup truck hauling a trailer. All of a sudden, a 6 foot long skinny white board flew out of the trailer and hit the road right in front of me, giving me virtually zero time to react. I was hemmed in on both sides and could not change lanes anyway. I just had to run over the board.

At the last split second before I hit it, I looked at it and LO AND BEHOLD, guess what was pointing skyward? A row of nails all along the board. And I had just run over it. :angry:

When I got to work, I tried to listen for air escaping from the tires, but the "after shutdown fan" was running on the HCH and I could hear nothing. Went out a few minutes later and had a front passenger side tire almost flat, and a back tire mostly flat. Used my $9.99 compressor in the trunk to fill the tires to about 25 PSI.

Drove to Discount Tire to get a free flat repair, but BOOM there were 15 people in line. Drove to my local mom and pop tire repair store that I have used a lot over the years and find out I have SIDEWALL PUNCTURES in both. They offer to plug the holes as a temp fix, but I wanted to go right to the dealer and get replacement tires under my road hazard warranty, so I just asked for 45 PSI and a remount.

Then I realized I had left my warranty papers at work, so I had to drive to get them. While inside, I called to see if the dealer had the OEM tires in stock, and of course they do not, and their normal distributor is out of stock too. They are calling around right now trying to find me two tires. Dealer just called and said he can only get 185/65-14 tires, not the 70-14, but they can swap them in two weeks when the 70s get here....I'm going in as soon as he gets the tires.

And my two tires, because I refused the plug offer, are sitting FLAT again in the parking lot.

So, MORAL OF THE STORY :

Do not run from the police in a 2004 HCH - the Stop Strips *WILL* get you.... :ph34r:

But you did get the *best* mileage of anyone running over the strips!