Thanks for the response guys. I know I know...I should have just laid on my brakes and taught rice boy a lesson. The thought ran through my head. But I had my fiancee' and her 2 nieces in the truck with me...one 3 years old and the other 6. My gut reaction was to protect them at all costs. As you can see the damage wasnt too bad. But its gonna set me back a few bucks. Approx. $175 for the grille, $40 for the turn signal, $35 for both marker lenses, $200+ for a new bumper, and $50-$100 bucks for bumper brackets. That bumper filler piece should be ok.

I had a similar situation happen to me a few years ago with my old Ford truck. Traveling down a back country road with some idiot in a car on my ***. A huge buck jumped in front of me, had to be at least a 10 pointer, so I just laid on my brakes. The guy hit me...hard. The back end of the truck came off the ground and I ended up sideways in the road. No real damage to the truck...I'm just glad there wasnt oncoming traffic.

That was the main decision maker in this situation. I had a long string of oncoming traffic on a 2 lane undivided highway. It wasnt him rear-ending me that really worried me...it was the possibility of having a head-on or broadside collision with traffic moving 55+ mph.

As for the dog...I dont carry a sidearm...never will. A good friend of my family who was a MN State Trooper was shot and killed with his own pistol. The guy lunged for his gun...they struggled and the guy came up with it. The Trooper bent over attempting to grab his backup pistol down on his leg, when he was shot in the head. It was all caught on the dashboard camera. Also just a few months ago, my cousin who is a county sheriff's deputy, was in a struggle with a drug dealer. He too wrestled for the gun and managed to shoot my cousin in the leg. My cousin was able to regain control of his weapon and managed to tackle and handcuff the guy.

To make a long story short I wasnt gonna mess with this guy...he looked tough enough to chew up a 10 penny nail and spit out a barb wire fence. Call me a chicken *****...I dont care. I'd rather have a scratched truck then have a German Shepard attack me or get a gun pulled on me. It turns out that he is now sitting in jail for a charge of Attempted Murder in the 1st Degree.

 

WOW! Talk about being in the wrog places at the wrong times.
I agree, you don't mess with someone who has nothing to lose. and a old rusted out Dodge pickup with a gun rack driven by a greasy haired crazy looking mo' fo' who looked like he just got out of prison who says "I got a loaded 12 gauge shotgun and a German Shepard that wants to rip your ***** off...I suggest you keep on moving and not hassle me." is definately someone who has nothing to lose, and he knows it.
As far as your rear end, ALWAYS get the towing package. Not only will the extra oil and tranny cooler protect your engine, the receiver will protect your *** from bozos who forget where the brakes are. I have been rear ended several times, and you can't tell by looking at my truck.
In deer country, many truck owners also put "cow catchers" (push bars) on their front ends too. In your case, you should check on "grocery cart" (step bars) and "dog" (spraybottle of amonia) stoppers too. Oh hell, just arm the whole thing!

Good luck.

 

Man, I'm very sad to hear about these two incidents. It pains me to think that we have people like this out on the streets. But, as for your comment about never carrying a side arm, I want to leave you with something to think about. I am IPDA (International Pistol Defence Assoc) certified, and shoot in sponsored events throughout the year. What you're taught through the training I've had, among other things, are the following two key items:

Item 1 - Never let an attacker get closer than ten feet to you. When they close into this range, go to Item 2.

Item 2 - When you draw your gun, the next action is to pull the trigger. No warnings are issued, and no threats are made to the attacker. In the end, he dies and you live which is preferrable to the alternative.

Unfortunately the police can't operate like this, but we can. With the proper instruction and mindset, you can protect yourself and those around you.

Given the scenario that was described, I'd have shot the dog and then had old greasy hair lay face down in the parking lot while I dialed 911 on my cellphone.

I'm not recommending you go out and buy a gun, I just thought this info might give you another perspective to think about.

I hope your cousin recovers well and doesn't encounter any more people like the person that shot him.

Take care.

-Mike-

 

If I had a .357 with me I would have shot the dog, then looked at the other scumbag and said "You feeling lucky punk, well ARE you?"

or maybe:

"Make my day punk"

 

01,

I don't think that would ever happen to you. Sheriff Buford T. Justice would be hot on your tail, so you wouldn't have time for rest stops!

MN,

Sorry to hear about your luck. When you clarified it for us, hitting the dear would be my choice too. The little kids could get whiplash pretty bad if that stupid ricer hit you hard enough.

 

Did you at least get to keep the venison?

 

LMAO, true but he drives a real POS so they would be plenty of time for "rest stops"...

 

"Then a couple of days ago I had two bad things happen in one day...first one was at the grocery store up in Moorhead. It was a fairly windy day and I was walking back out to the truck and to my horror I see a shopping cart that was headed for my truck. The cart had just been left in an empty parking space by some lazy, dumb 50 year old wench driving a Lexus SUV. She saw it starting to move but didnt bother to stop it. Anyways it hits the side of my truck leaving a nice half dollar sized dent in my drivers side door right by the door handle...where I always see it. She took off before I had a chance to say anything to her, the dumb b!tch couldnt even walk an extra 2 f'ing parking spaces over to put the cart in the corral. "



That shows just exactly what kind selfish inconsiderate pukes drive imports. They think only of themselves and nothing else. While your truck has suffered some damage and your bloodpressure has been forced to boil, the good thing is that no humans were injured. With on coming traffic and an arsehole on your rear, taking out the deer was your only real option.

Good thinking. Now if you have time, pour yourself four fingers of Chevas add three ice cubes. Savour, repeat if necessary.

 

Moorhead.

 

I would definitely like "Moorhead"

As the saying goes up there (the Fargo/Moorhead metro area) in a thick Minneesootaah accent..."It aint far to go to get more head"