It’s sad that mythbusters isn’t running anymore. It’d be interesting to see them trying to recreate this scene with a remotely controlled car.
If there’s any inexplicably wealthy science adjacent YouTubers reading this, hire a disused runway and steal this idea. Once you’ve proven tyres have more grip than wood, try it on the grass next to the runway or headon for your viral money shot.
Hoimo@ani.social 4 weeks ago
What would realistically happen when the logs fall off the truck? They still have their forward speed, so braking should be enough to avoid them, right?
Artyom@lemm.ee 4 weeks ago
They would probably never fall off in the first place, which is why you’ve never heard of anything remotely like this ever happening. Usually, there’s two supports, one in the front and one in the back. Even if one of these large steel posts somehow fails, the other one will hold the logs long enough for the driver to stop the car. They’ve almost certainly tested stuff like this from a standstill while designing those beds. Same principle holds for ratchet straps, although there will be far more than 2 straps, making catastrophic failure even rarer, and those would be routinely inspected for damage.
sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 4 weeks ago
They’re not going to go very far forward due to friction, and stopping distance will be longer on the wet road, so I think steering to the right would be the better bet. Don’t brake or you’ll lose traction, just swerve a bit and aim for the grass on the edge of the roadway, hopefully it’ll slow you down while getting away from the logs.