Useful Tips when Driving Abroad

Terrorism, crime, and diseases are foremost on the minds of travelers as soon as they get hold of their tickets. However, the chance of falling victim to these threats is but a small fraction compared to the risk of being injured or killed in a motor accident.

This article is not meant to scare potential travelers. But the facts just cannot be ignored: according to the World Health Organization, motor vehicle mishaps are the largest cause of injury and death in travelers, with an estimated 1.26 million people dying each year on the world’s roads.

Unfamiliar driving conditions, hazardous roads, and poor policies are just some of the factors that make driving abroad dangerous.

Perhaps the most important thing to consider when driving abroad is to learn about the road culture, or in other words, familiarize yourself with the foreign driving environment. You can do this by finding out important things like, for example, what street signs mean, the rules about right of way, acceptable blood alcohol levels, stopping at checkpoints, etc.

Knowing the road culture can help you drive safely. Make sure you know the rules of the road in the country that you are in and obey them. Many rules and traffic regulations will be the same as in your country, but some will not be. Try to anticipate that the rules will be a lot stricter and that being a tourist will not exempt you. Also make sure that you know the common hazards involved that might include poorly lighted roads, unlicensed drivers, and even animal crossings.

When opting to rent a car, try to get the kind you usually drive or one that you can drive comfortably. Make sure that the car you are driving is roadworthy and that necessary safety features are in place such as seat belts and airbags. When bringing children, you might also want to consider bringing your own child car seat. It is also important to test every feature of the car before you drive off the lot: turn signals, wipers, hazard lights, locks, high beams, etc.

Plan your route and make sure you have an up-to-date map. Do not drive too far without a break. Take a break every two hours and, if possible, change drivers regularly. If you must continue, pull over, have some coffee and take a brief nap (30 minutes or less). When you wake up, walk around briskly for a few minutes.

Overtaking is a difficult and potentially dangerous maneuver. Make you are safe while overtaking. One thing to remember is always make your own decision to overtake, not relying on the judgment of your passengers.

Another important thing to consider is driving a rented car in countries without strict regulations regarding the position of the steering wheel or driver seating position, or to put it simply, driving a right-hand or left-hand drive car on the “opposite” side of the road. There are many dangers associated with this but chief of them is having difficulty seeing what’s ahead of you while driving. It’s always a better idea to err on the side of safety and just opt to drive a car with the correct steering wheel placement.

In other words, enjoy your vacation and be safe. Especially when driving.

UFC 94: Georges St.-Pierre Batters BJ Penn in Rematch

Penn ducks a St.-Pierre punch

By Mark Lorenzana

www.8countnews.com

In  a previous article (UFC 94: In Pursuit of Blood-Sweet Revenge) prior to the BJ “The Prodigy” Penn – Georges “Rush” St.-Pierre rematch, I  wrote of Penn’s penchant for licking the blood of his fallen opponents, and speculated on what this act would mean should he win against St.-Pierre.  I wrote : “It remains to be seen whether BJ Penn has any blood-licking to do. But it’s certainly the one thing that might make revenge a little sweeter.”

That night there wasn’t any blood-licking, there was no revenge for Penn. On that night, St.-Pierre established himself as one of the most dominant fighters in the UFC and the top dog in the welterweight division. And St.-Pierre achieved this by dominating Penn for four rounds before finally winning by TKO at the end of the fourth.

In the runup toward the fight, a couple of concerns were brought up regarding both fighters. In Penn’s case, there were questions as usual about his conditioning and how he would handle St.-Pierre’s  relentless style. For St.-Pierre  on the other hand, it was  whether he still had the hunger to put in one of his superb performances against arguably one of the best lightweights in the game.

It’s safe to say that it was indeed one of St.-Pierre’s most impressive performances, and he showed that he still had the hunger that had won him the UFC Welterweight Championship.  In the first round, St.-Pierre established himself in the clinch, looking to neutralize Penn’s strong striking and stand-up game. Penn hardly made a dent in the first round especially since he was kept busy trying to fight his way out of St.-Pierre’s clinch.

In the second round, St.-Pierre continued to batter Penn. He managed to take down Penn at will and was able to get in a few hammer fists to the Prodigy’s face. In the third, Penn,  the supposedly stronger striker, was the one absorbing punches. By the fourth round BJ Penn’s face was already puffy, his nose was bleeding, and he was visibly spent. Again St.-Pierre landed punches early in the round, and managed to take down Penn easily. Remaining in a dominant position for most of the round, St.-Pierre kept raining hammer fists and elbows to Penn’s face. Penn spent most of the round on his back, and ended it in the same position.

Due to the punishment that Penn received in the course of the fight, and at the doctor’s advice, his corner was forced to throw in the towel before the fifth round started. Georges St. –Pierre retained his UFC Welterweight title.  St-Pierre will now have a mandatory title defense against the new number one contender, Thiago Alves.

Meanwhile, in the undercard, Clay Guida defeated Nate Diaz via split decision, Karo Parisyan decisioned fellow judoka Dong Hyun Kim, and John “Bones” Jones spoiled Stephan Bonnar’s Octagon comeback with a clear-cut unanimous decision victory.

In the co-main event, Lyoto Machida handed Thiago Silva his first loss via knockout in the first round.