12/03/24
December 14, 2007
Race car driver taxi driver to catch flight : Michael Schumacher can add the unofficial title of Germany's fastest taxi driver to his other achievements after taking over behind the wheel to get his family to the airport on time.
posted by commander cody to auto racing at 01:04 AM - 20 comments
Talk about a back seat driver. It's all those other idiots on the road that would terrify me. Not Schumacher.
posted by BoKnows at 02:36 AM on December 14, 2007
Schumacher Drives Car, film at eleven.
posted by JJ at 05:07 AM on December 14, 2007
You'll never guess, but I had that Michael Schumacher in the back of me cab once...
posted by owlhouse at 06:28 AM on December 14, 2007
You'll never guess, but I had that Michael Schumacher in the front of me cab once...
posted by JJ at 11:06 AM on December 14, 2007
I have been in a taxi in Germany whose driver reached 230 Km/Hr from the airport to the hotel!! 230 km/Hr =~ 138 mph
posted by Fly_Piscator at 02:07 PM on December 14, 2007
What I find funny is people are linking to this like it's a cool story, when the real headline should be "Schumacher breaks law". Moving onto racing drivers with actual class and grace, Gilles Villeneuve's wife used to lay down in the back of their car as his driving terrified her so much. And I've also read stories of people who rode in a car with Ayrton Senna and said how terrifying it was. And I don't care how fast Scum went. It wouldn't have been as fast the Journey into Terror I took from a Paris train station once.
posted by Drood at 02:35 PM on December 14, 2007
What a moron. How many people did he put in danger trying to catch a flight? It's one thing to have an F1 driver take you for a ride in a road car on a closed course, that would be the thrill of a lifetime. But to do it in a taxi on public roads is just plain stupid. The only thing he had control over was his own car, but what about everyone else on the road, pedestrians. etc. How many traffic laws did he manage to break in an attempt to get to the airport on time? The guy is one of the richest athletes in the world and could have just taken his own private jet. If I had that much money you'd never see me race to catch a commercial flight ever again. Just have my plane waiting for me, please. He's nothing more than an arrogant, self-centered jerk who feels he can get away with stuff like that because of who he is (or should I say, WAS.)
posted by eccsport78 at 06:39 PM on December 14, 2007
OK, I'm a bit slow, for certain, but what did Schumacher do that was illegal? When I read the above article, all it said was that he took over the driving duties of the cab's driver. It didn't say he flew around at a zillion miles/kilometers per hour or go up on the sidewalks, or drive on two wheels ala Joey Chitwood, or jump a river. Does anyone have the goods on the terrible scandal commited?
posted by THX-1138 at 06:47 PM on December 14, 2007
--Does anyone have the goods on the terrible scandal commited? If he was so late for the flight that he felt the need to take the wheel himself, then you can safely assume traffic laws were broken. F1 drivers don't drive their cars like the rest of us, I'm sure. Like many other pro athletes and celebrities, they feel they are above the law. The only thing bigger than Schumi's wallet is his ego, and he knew damn well this story would get circulated.
posted by eccsport78 at 07:26 PM on December 14, 2007
Does anyone have the goods on the terrible scandal commited? This article is a little longer and the taxi driver expresses his interest in getting a photo from the speed cameras.
posted by BoKnows at 08:03 PM on December 14, 2007
Ah yes, thank you, Bo. I agree. Schumacher must die.
posted by THX-1138 at 11:55 PM on December 14, 2007
If he was so late for the flight that he felt the need to take the wheel himself, then you can safely assume traffic laws were broken. F1 drivers don't drive their cars like the rest of us, I'm sure. Glad to know we can safely assume that even though he was on the Autobahn. And the thrust of your second assertion is awesome. "No evidence, I'm just offended and you should be too!" He wasn't drunk, no one died, but we should all get annoyed.
posted by yerfatma at 10:25 AM on December 16, 2007
Holy shit, guys - It's okay to be amused by this story. Really.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 04:15 PM on December 16, 2007
I thought it was humorous, too, until I read the vitriol being spat towards Schumacher. If he's on the Autobahn, which I have been on myself, my understanding was that he could reasonably drive fast as all fuck as long as he wasn't endangering himself or others. I was just wondering what the Schumacher hate was about.
posted by THX-1138 at 04:23 PM on December 16, 2007
fast as all fuck I believe that's exactly how it's stated on the speed limit signs *nod* Otherwise - why the over-reaction? Everyone was perfectly safe. The only chance of him crashing into someone was if they'd been within a couple of points of taking his title away from him.
posted by JJ at 04:25 AM on December 17, 2007
Schuey is now being investigated over the affair. From the tone of the thread, I presume it'll be the death penalty if he's found guilty of anything.
posted by Mr Bismarck at 12:08 PM on December 17, 2007
The only chance of him crashing into someone was if they'd been within a couple of points of taking his title away from him. Ba - Zing! Well played, Old Bean, well played indeed.
posted by The_Black_Hand at 12:52 PM on December 17, 2007
I believe that's exactly how it's stated on the speed limit signs *nod* Admittedly, my German is not that good.
posted by THX-1138 at 08:31 PM on December 17, 2007
I rented a car and drove on the Autobahn last summer during the World Cup and was very disappointed to find out that it is a myth that there are no speed limits there. While I imagine that there are sections of the Autobahn with no limits, in the loop I drove from Freiburg to Muenchen to Nuernberg to Frankfurt and back to Freiburg, I didn't see any of them. Sorry, if that ruins it for anyone else.
posted by bender at 03:38 PM on December 18, 2007
I once read an article in, I believe in SI, where the reporter said that he went on a ride in the country with Dale Earnhardt and that it was both the most terrifying and beautiful experience of his life. I wonder how it feels to have a true pro at the wheel in real traffic or on a real highway?