Young locals driving like madmen is nothing new to Dubai. Long term Ppruners might recall 'The Caravan', which used to be on the Humour Page (when PPrune had one). 'The Caravan' was written a LONG time ago. Here's an excerpt about "phor-wheal-dryves":
Phorwealdryves were the swift and sprightly steeds on which the young warriors of Knoteetinghamm jousted daily, often to the death, upon the dunes around their scattered tents. It was usually a timid, almost passive creature. However, the moment a young Knoteetinghammi warrior cast his thighs across its saddle, it became like unto a raging bull, unable to bear the sight of any other phorewealdryve unless that animal be far behind it. To see other phorwealdryves in line upon the desert sands would send it into a slavering, eyeball-rolling frenzy and plunge headlong past them, its two bright eyes flashing, until it found itself at the head of the queue… or smitten against the flank of another phorwealdryve, itself almost certainly racing to the head of yet another oncoming queue.
Where the phorwealdryves were hastening to, no one knew, for they seemed to go nowhere but in endless circles seeking out more queues of phorwealdryves to jump. In the market square, Gull Fnewz, the Cherif’s trusted herald, expounded almost daily upon varying theories passed to him by visitors from many lands who witnessed this strange and fearsome trait. Although still unproven to this day, it is believed by many learned scholars that the phorwealdryves and their young riders were in search of their final resting place, the fabled Doubleparkoutsidetheshwamashoppe.)
The only time you'll find a car driving slowly on Sheikh Zed Rd is when the driver is too deep into his (or all too often her) phone conversation to maintain warp 5 speed, and it would appear to be obligatory to wander from lane to lane as you gesticulate with your free hand - (i.e., the one not holding the phone - the one that
should be holding the ****ing steering wheel!). To prove that that is no a new problem either, the ancient scroll that was 'The Caravan' mentioned that as well.
To date, little is known of the gods and idols worshipped by the people of ancient Knoteetinghamm – with one notable exception: undoubtedly, there was widespread adoration of the humble conch shell. It is obvious from the scrolls translated to date that the small black palm-sized conch shell was venerated with deep religious fervour by the young and not so young warriors of Knoteetinghamm – and their women folk as well. Mention of it has been found frequently in a number of the other scrolls only partially translated to date. Other names for the conch shell god sometimes appear, like No-kia and Mo-torola, but the favourite by far seems to have been the tongue twisting Majornogoitem. The origins of this last name remain obscure, but it would seem that no warrior dared approach his phorwealdryve without his conch shell god clasped firmly to his right ear.
Other scholars studying these ancient scrolls have opined that the conch shell was not in fact a god, but used only to cover the right ear from a stranger’s gaze. They believe that in the Knoteetinghamm of yore, the display of the male’s right ear in public was the greatest of all social taboos. Some, seeing even less significance in this custom, believe that the warriors of Knoteetinghamm simply liked the rushing sound of the waves filling their ears as they rode their phorewealdryves upon the arid dunes. Whatever the reasons, religious taboo or not, one thing is certain: for any warrior of any age to ride upon the back of his phorwealdryve in public without his conch shell clasped tightly to his right ear was plainly unthinkable and against all custom and good taste.)