It sounds like a line from a country song. Putting your feet up on the dashboard is symbolic of being carefree on a hot summer day while you and your friends drive out to the lake, blasting music and living the good life. You've probably seen music videos flaunting this exact pose like it's the height of relaxation. It's the sort of picture you post to Instagram to showcase just how well your afternoon is going.
One small problem: That position can be deadly.
A post from the Chattanooga Fire Department has gone viral after it shared a picture showing a young girl riding with her feet up. The explanation is absolutely worth the read for several reasons — if you're not taking precautions in your car, you're not just risking your life, you're endangering the reality of everyone who cares about you.
This is something everyone who's tried this position needs to see.
Here's the post that has everyone talking:
As you can see, it looks like a young couple out for a drive. They're wearing no seat belts, and the girl has her feet up.
Here's the first half of the caption. You'll notice that the Chattanooga Fire Department isn't mincing words — "knees through your eye sockets" might be the most colorful visual ever written by a fire department.
And like we already mentioned, the teens in the car should be wearing seat belts. But more on that later…
The post has inspired people to share truly horrifying stories of their own accidents:
They don't usually show injuries like these in the music videos.
Unfortunately, as comfortable as the position might be, it's just not worth the risk.
The consequences for letting passengers ride like this could redefine their lives.
As has been now pointed out multiple times, the seat belt thing is another egregious error. Thankfully, the photographer has finally spoken up about the picture.
CFD acknowledged that this was a repost.
Not that a fire department is ever trying to steal internet likes, but giving credit to the original photographer led to an interesting development:
If you've been fuming thinking that two teenagers were driving a fancy car recklessly, you can calm down now. It was a staged, still photo, and the photographer added in the motion effects.
Most people have gotten the message, however: Putting your feet up is dangerous.
Some lifelong offenders are making an effort to change their ways, now that they know the dangers of such a position.
The stories have continued to pour in, and some are truly terrifying.
Sticking a foot out the window is just as dangerous — perhaps even more so.
Even if the driver is doing nothing wrong, you can never predict what other drivers might do. If you're keeping your feet up like this, you're increasing the risk that the road could redefine your entire life.
And "redefine" is the best-case scenario. You might just lose your life for a careless posture.
