GABRIEL TORNEY
Fort Rucker, Alabama

I’d set the cruise control on 70 mph that evening as I enjoyed the long drive home from leave. I was listening to the radio, resting my foot on the gas pedal to give me an added 5 mph. You know how it is … anything to whittle a little more time off the drive.

I noticed rain drops lightly hitting the windshield, but they soon came down in torrents. I wasn’t worried, however, because I was an experienced driver and had navigated this route many times. Before heading out I’d checked the tires, headlights and wipers and even treated the windshield with Rain-X. I owned a very large rear-wheel drive car — one of the safest types of vehicles according to the TRiPS report I filled out before leaving.

Spotting a large puddle ahead, I got off the gas to slow down. In the past that normally worked, but this time was different. My car began slowly fishtailing — first in one direction and then the other. Although I reacted by turning into the skids, things only got worse. I was fishtailing so badly I could see the headlights of the vehicles behind me through my windshield. Instead of slowing down I could hear my engine speeding up, so I tapped the brakes. Fortunately, I was able to straighten out and pull over to the shoulder. I nearly had a heart attack sitting there waiting to calm down. I’d barely avoided totaling my vehicle. If the cars trailing me had been any closer, there’d have been mangled metal on the road — or maybe worse.

I tried to figure out why this happened. I’d prepared for the trip properly, was experienced, took the appropriate steps and even accounted for the weather. It took me a while, but I finally recognized what occurred. Although I’d taken my foot off the gas to slow down, the cruise control was still engaged at 70 mph and providing power to the rear wheels. When I hit the puddle, my tires immediately began to hydroplane and the engine actually increasing power to try to keep me at 70 mph. That is what sent me out of control. It never occurred to me that would happen.

When I looked this up online, I found the following information from the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia. It states, “The only way to stop wheels from spinning and maintain control is to immediately reduce power. An activated cruise control system applies continuous power, keeping the wheels spinning. By the time you disengage the cruise control it may be too late — you may have already lost control.”

So what can you do when you’re driving on wet roads? The National Safety Commission recommends you disengage your cruise control the moment it starts to rain or you encounter wet road conditions. The sooner you do it the better because even tapping the brakes to disengage your cruise control can send you skidding on a wet road.

To stay safe on wet roads requires being especially alert to the added risks involved. Cruise control, a welcome convenience for long trips, can pose its own risks when the weather turns nasty. To keep your drive from turning nasty, stay alert to stay alive.