Lastnight after work I was on my way to check and pull traps. Just before my pull off was a car on the side of this winding 2 lane. I was pasted it before I comprehended the problem was a flat and someone was still in at the car. There wasn't a good spot to turn around tell my pull off so I went ahead and pulled the traps. I only had 3 330s and one mb 750 still out and it was less than 300 yards round trip so only took a few minutes.

On my way back another car had pulled off on the opposite side of the road to help. I stopped and asked if the needed anything as always. It was a young man(boy) and girl. The girl had the flat and he was there for the rescue.
He didn't know any terminology his this wont work to get the tire off but I gleaned his lug wrench would not fit her car so I pulled over and sure enough mine did. I broke the lug nuts loose while he messed with the jack. For some reason I double checked where he was putting the jack I'm glad I did. He was putting it on" this black thing" that black thing was a rubber plug not anything solid.

I showed him where the jack should go and explained why. Then I started removing the lug nuts while he was jacking. Then I looked over. It was a scissor jack and he was trying to turn it with the wrong end of the handle. So I politely said let's look at that handle and after pointing out the hook said let's try it this way.( trying my hardest to not make him look dumb in front of his girlfriend) I explained the tightening the lug nuts in a cross pattern
Her spare was a donut that had seen so much road time it was slick with no tread. I showed her and warned not to drive very far on it, shook their hand and drove away.

As I drove off I realized I treated that young man the same as I would have had I been talking to my 10 year old and I was concerned enough to do my best to not make him look like an incompetent boy in front of his young woman. Not to many years ago I would have had no care in the world about his image and may have even busted his chops about his mistakes.

Yes I must be getting old. I saw some inexperience youngsters and went into that concerned understanding dad teaching mode.

What's more it's a poor county with low paying jobs. I'm sure her family struggles financially. She seemed to have tire problems often. I'm guessing probably buying used tires. After I drove away about 5 miles down the road and it was to late I was worring about her on junk tires on winding roads in winter weather that was to come and wished I would have taken her to a tire shop for new tires. I guess I'm also getting soft and a sucker? Then again I haven't donated like I normally do this year and a young ladies saftey would be as good as any cause.

Good for you and him that you were able to help him save face. It might not be exactly lady-like, but you might have been better off teaching her how to change the tire instead.

10 miles north of Billings Montana, -10, you could see the flashing hazards for two miles. 1:00am. A jeep pulled over on the side of the road. They are about out of gas, flat tire, no jack, and have only light jackets on. I helped get their tire on so they could make it into town. Had to use blocking and reset the jack because of the sagging suspension. I tried to show them what had to be done, but he didn't care. I don't think they knew how close to big trouble they were really in. The whole time we were there (an hour), not another vehicle went by.

Well done sir
It’s sad that so many young men these days don’t know the basics when it comes to automobiles.
I taught both my girls how to change tires , batteries ect , before they left home..
Taught my son how to cook and take care of himself, I don’t think his wife thanks me enough for the way he takes care of her..

I understand that. A lot of people no longer have much survival since and don't really understand how fragile they really are.

I drive around 30k miles a year and stop often. Tires, simple repairs, and rides when I can't help get them moving aren't bad but the wrecks.. sometimes the wrecks are rough when I'm first to stop. Its rough due to the injuries but sometimes the hardest is knowing the wreck was because of ignorant driving in bad conditions, intoxication, ect.. it hard to be nice and have a good Christian additude sometimes.

I seldom if ever hear if the bad one make it once they drive or fly them off I'm always left hoping and wondering .

Good thing you happened along, that coulda turned fatal real quick if they’d have run out of gas!

Sometimes I have to remind myself to have a little patience for folks who never learned how to change a tire or other things that seem simple to me. I forget that not everyone grew up with parents who work on their own cars, and these days with a tow truck just a phone call away a lot of people don’t even change tires, they call roadside service. I really should try to remember to teach, instead of saying “you can’t change a tire? Are you bleepin kidding me?”

great job ,

What’s important changes as we get older it seems.

Good deal teaching that young guy how to change a tire. Now maybe he can teach another one when the need arises.

I don't trust the jacks they send with modern vehicles so I carry a floor jack in the back of my pickup as well as a small sledge hammer as wheels like to stick on vehicles and not come off. On a recent long road trip I saw so many helpless people with flat tires that I would never get where I was going if I stopped to help them all. State Farm has service pickups out on the road to rescue people with flat tires and who ran out of gas.

I stopped to help a older gentlemen one night in Montana , he new what to do, but a bad back made it hard for him. Glad I could help!

Just being nice and helping those that need help. Thank you for being a good guy and acting like everyone should.
It does no good to belittle some that does not know what we do. In fact, it when folks run their chops to pick on someone it
simply says a lot about them, and not much about who they are yakking at.


Good job.

Mac

I agree I keep a floor jack and a four way in the truck of my work car

Great Thread

A helpful hand these days is rare.

Nicely done.At least he knew what a spare tire was.

I todays world that young man might not of had a father around to teach him. Good for you doing what you did.

X2

Great story about helping out, and letting the guy save face with his gal.

It's embarrassing when the table is turned. We here on a big culvert job and had some young laborers helping. At the end of the day, they made a wrong turn on the way home and we had to run after them to get them turned around. Then afterwards we had a a blowout and they stopped with us while we changed it. We couldn't get the spare to come down, the cable would unwind but the tire wouldn't drop. (Non of us old guys knew about GM's safety catch yet) Then another person stopped an said cut the cable, call a tow truck, and other useful advice. Then as us three experts were pondering the situation one of the young guys went and got the owners manual read it, then told us about the safety catch. Embarrassed we get the spare down and took off for home. Then to make matters worse when we got back to the shop, one of the young guys carried our jack over to us that we left in the middle of the road.

A lot of new cars don't even come with a spare or jack.

a great and charitable thought.

I did a similar thing years ago, helped out a "struggling" family by pay for some necessities that they couldn't afford. I found out at a later point the family spends a sizable chunk of its income very unwisely. Lottery tickets, atv for fun, etc.. If they made better choices they wouldn't of been in a bad place to begin with. I was just enabling their poor decisions. I should of helped them get into financial counseling instead.

It is always good to stop and lend a hand, great job!