[joab]

I was working for a pest control company that used the cheapest vehicles they could find.
My S-10 had a bad gas tank that had to routinely be drained to get the rust and other injector clogging contaminants out of it.

One day, in a pouring rain, I was trying to get onto the expressway when the truck started lurching, spitting, and sputtering. The truck speed dropped to about 10 to 15 MPH.

The guy in the PU behind got irritated and crawled up my tail pipe, backed off and did it again. When he tried the third time I did a very quick brake check to let him know that I was not in the mood to play the game.
It was pouring, my truck was dying on an on ramp with no break down lane to pull into. He would just have to wait.

As I made it on to the highway my truck started to drive a little better and I pulled to the far right lane. PU boy got a running start and acted as though he was going to ram me from behind like some weird version of chicken.
As he got close, but not to close I brake checked again ( I was a 24 yo having a bad day) He locked up his brakes on the wet pavement a slid sideways.

He got another running start and was heading for me again. This time I was through with it. If he got close I was going to lock up the brakes, consequences be damned.

But instead he pulled up next to me and was trying to push me into the concrete embankment.

I pulled my just bought that morning unloaded 6" .357 and leveled it at his head.

He locked up his brakes as he was steering away from the gun and slid into the ditch on the other side of the highway.

If the gun had been loaded I have no doubt that I would have shot him ,out of road rage more than the very real threat that he was presenting

It was many years before I wanted to carry a gun in my car again