Austin traffic must get on everyone’s nerves that ever drives in it, even in the early 2000s. One day when leaving a business down on Riverside Drive, I heading up north on I-35 right in the middle of afternoon rush hour traffic.

When it was time to merge into traffic at the on ramp there was a guy in a big jacked up Ford Pickup that was determined that he wasn’t going to let me in. I was in a position to see him in my mirror. Every time a car would pull forward he made sure to keep the distance tight so I couldn’t get in.

Of course with my blinker on, there was no missing that I was wanting to enter. This happened about 3 times over the course of a minute or so. It was becoming a game. Finally he looked away as the car in front made it’s way forward. I made my move.

I guess he wasn’t happy because he had finally lost the little game. The next thing I knew he was out of his truck and approaching my door, screaming about how I’d endangered his pregnant wife, his passenger. Several obscenities were exchanged.

My glass was rolled down about half way. He was shaking his finger at me and when he finally got close enough that I grabbed his hand and jerked it in the window and at the same time had my other hand on the button rolling up the glass. Just as the window started to squeeze his arm, he freed himself.

My intention was to trap his left arm with the window, then as traffic moved along, let him walk backward along beside my car for awhile until traffic started moving. But my plan didn’t come together completely, but I guess he felt enough pressure from that window glass that he scurried on over and climbed back in his ride.

As we continued to ease along I could see the wife (pregnant or not) in my mirror, giving him a going over, I supposed because he wasn’t being courteous driver.

My son Ron Jr, and grandkids Holly and Tyler were there to witness that crazy episode. Just this morning, about 20 years later, I asked my granddaughter if she recalled this happening. She claimed that she didn’t. That’s all and good. She wasn’t scarred for life by it.

If this happened now, I bet another motorist who have been filming the whole thing.

I wonder if I could have been charged with false imprisonment if I had been successful?