Last week, I had to drive between Nashville and Murfreesboro, usually a 45 minute drive because I was going at 1:30 in the afternoon, so I didn’t foresee any problem, at least not a big one.
I was headed down to do an interview with a MTSU women’s basketball player and was going to be finished by 3:45 and was not worried about the drive back because I was going against rush hour.
Let’s just say, if they ever film Mad Max, part 2, all they need to do is film it on I-24 between Nashville and the Boro, at any hour of any day. If they added the Briley parkway, Harding place, Bell Road and Old Hickory Blvd signs to this clip, we would not know the difference.
(If you have not seen Mad Max, this is the trailer for the 2015 movie, that was a huge success.)
So, now that you have seen it, that my friends, is I-24. Even at 1:30 in the PM. I had smooth sailing until after the Harding Place exit where for some odd reason, no one was moving. After 10 minutes, I passed by a car, on the side of the road broke down with the driver standing by that car, on the phone.
THAT WAS IT!
Once you got past that, it was like all hell broke loose. Cars were passing me going at least 95 m.p.h. and cars passing them going 100. And it was non-stop. All the way to the Boro. I actually got over in the slow lane and went below the speed limit because I was legit scared and those that know me, know I loathe the slow lane.
I finally got to MTSU and to the interview where a guy said, “You OK?” I started to explain about I-24 and he stopped me and said, “Surprised you are alive.”
He was not joking.
Now, the drive back. I contemplating going another route back to the city but it is 3:45 and rush hour was coming towards me so 24 East from the Boro would be no problem.
Dear God, was I wrong.
A truck had hit a car and spun out in the fast lane and when I merged off of 840 onto 24, it was backed up. Got to the wreck and a guy in the next lane just hurls cuss words at the trooper for ‘stopping the “blanking’ traffic.”
Huh? What was he supposed to do? This guy proceeds to cut in and out of cars until I lost sight of him up ahead. He was replaced by a dozen other cars who looked like they were on the final lap at Talladega. I turned the radio off and look at myself in the mirror and was like this.
Once I got into Nashville, I breathed a sigh of relief for a brief moment until, yes, Harding Place exit. There is something mysterious about that exit that turns people into complete savages.
Cars getting on the interstate just swerving over like I am at the old Fairgrounds racing in a demolition derby.
Absolute chaos!!! I finally make it back to channel 4, one hour and 30 minutes after I left the Boro with my nerves shot and my BP higher than Snoop Dogg.
I hope Southwest would add a flight between Nashville and Murfreesboro because I would be the first one in line. Every flight would sell out. Every one.
