- California Highway Patrol officers stopped the Ridgeline in Madera County before Christmas.
- Debris was flying from the truck’s overloaded bed, creating a serious risk for motorists.
- Authorities remind drivers to secure cargo and avoid overloading vehicles to ensure safety.
The holiday season brings out the best, the worst, and sometimes the most bizarre behavior on the road, like this overloaded Honda Ridgeline that looks more like a mobile Christmas yard sale than a functional vehicle. For California police, the sight of this rolling festive disaster was probably just another reminder that the holidays can turn any road into a weird, chaotic wonderland.
A photo of this teetering tower of holiday cheer was shared on Facebook by the California Highway Patrol (CHP) in Madera County on December 17. While the Honda Ridgeline has built a reputation as a practical, do-it-all pickup, this was certainly beyond its design brief. In fact, it was more of a spectacle than a vehicle, a festive fiasco waiting to turn into a real traffic hazard.
Read: Should The Next Honda Ridgeline Look Like The New Passport?
Authorities haven’t provided any information as to why the driver loaded up the Ridgeline like this, but perhaps they had just had a raging pre-Christmas gathering or party and were heading home. Included in the haul appears to be part of a Christmas tree, a small Santa doll, a gold star, and various other decorations. According to police, they pulled over the Ridgeline because “debris kept flying off onto the roadway.”
Curiously, there aren’t any tie-down straps or ropes that are clearly visible – although something must have been used to prevent the tower of junk from toppling over. It would have been wise for the driver to at least cover the items with a large tarp. However, it would have been even smarter to rent a trailer or a small box truck to carry everything, instead of putting other motorists in danger.
Those commenting on the CHP’s Facebook post had a field day with the driver, with some suggesting they might be the “world-champion of car tetris,” while the others said it may have been the Grinch behind the wheel trying to steal Christmas.
“It is important to always secure your load/cargo and not exceed your vehicle’s load capacity,” the CHP said in the post. “It can make it difficult and unsafe to operate. Flying debris can make motorists take evasive action and potentially be involved in a traffic crash.”
There’s no word on whether the driver was ticketed for overloading the truck or ordered to offload some of their makeshift Christmas parade. But let this be a cautionary tale for anyone tempted to push their vehicle’s limits this holiday season. The Ridgeline may be a versatile truck, but even it can’t handle the full weight of poor planning—and neither can the rest of us stuck on the road with flying tinsel missiles.