My first mistake was driving 35 mph. In a 35 mph zone.
My second mistake was stopping at a yellow light – in complete disregard for the people in a hurry behind me.
As I was coming to a stop, one of those hurried people pulled up next to me in a lane intended for people to go around others turning left. After verifying my left turn signal was not engaged, my assumption was his intent was to pass me at the earliest opportunity because his lane disappeared. As a precaution – I shifted the t-case to full time while slowing down.
A large decal on the back of his truck announced that it was ‘Diesel Powered’. Well guess what – he wasn’t the only one at the red light with a diesel…
The light turned green and with a little preload on the turbo the KJ launched with a satisfying 4 wheel squawk. I quickly pulled a (liberty) hood length ahead before Mr. Diesel Powered realized what was happening, and hurried past me in a cloud of black smoke. I really never thought I’d stand a chance, but there was no way I was going to make it easy for him.
The look of disbelief on his face was well worth the price of admission (extra fuel on my launch), coupled with the knowledge that he burned probably three times the fuel that I did.
Of course, the outcome could have been completely different if I didn’t have a 5600# camper strapped to my backside…
