Duane Innes was driving when he noticed a passed out pickup truck driver heading towards traffic. Innes, an engineer and Boeing's manager of the F-22 fighter-jet program, quickly did the math, sped up, and let the pickup crash into him.
Bill Pace had a minor heart attack this summer while driving on a Seattle interstate, causing him to pass out at the wheel of his pickup truck. It was just his luck to pass Innes, who was en route to the Mariners-Red Sox. Innes noticed Pace was unconscious and barreling towards an intersection and did the unthinkable: he stepped on the gas, caught up to the truck, and let it crash into the back of his minivan (full of his family) thus slowing it down.
"Basic physics: If I could get in front of him and let him hit me, the delta difference in speed would just be a few miles an hour, and we could slow down together," Innes explained.
Innes was successful and both vehicles were able to safely pull to a stop on the shoulder. Pace's insurer paid out the $3,500 to Innes and also sent a note thanking him for his good deed.
"He saved my life, really — and God knows who else," said Pace at a thank you dinner for the brave engineer.
Hear that kids? Stay in school and save a life.
(Hat tip to David!)