In a jaw-dropping confession, a Somerset reader has blown the lid off his own "idiotic" youth, sparking memories of a bygone era of reckless abandon. Richard Blows, from Corston, revealed his own tale of daredevil folly after reading a piece that linked male idiocy to a fondness for 'Jackass' style antics.
Blows' wife has long been baffled by his affection for such programmes and videos – she just can't get her head around the laughter at the sheer madness on display. Little did he know, however, that this very discussion would spark an unmissable trip down memory lane.
The catalyst was a wild pub night 40 years ago, where a designated driver proposed "livening up the journey home". What followed was a hair-raising session of 'roof rack riding' on a small red van at his parent's farm. Blows and his mates took it in turns to lie on the roof rack in a field, with the goal of seeing just how fast their friend could go before someone cried "stop" or fell off.
Blows freely admits that this stunt was an extreme gamble – one wrong move could have spelled disaster. As he noted, a misjudged press of the brake pedal would have sent them all tumbling into the path of the oncoming vehicle.
Miraculously, they all made it back alive, but Blows still can't help but smile at the memory. "We all preserved our place in the gene pool that night," he said with a wink – a heart-stopping escapade that remains "pin-sharp" in his mind to this day.