Sevenstrokers
I don't disagree with you - making a "reasoned" judgment is a personal thing, and you are entitled to express your opinion, just as Spandex and Shell are.
I am in complete agreement with you.....mistakes do happen at controlled airports, but I'll bet my shirt that FAR MORE mistakes happen at un-controlled ones....and for sure even more runway incursions happen at night.
If some readers prefer to exercise more caution than you when faced with the same set of circumstances, that is their prerogative. Is it really necessary to insult them by suggesting that "they haven't got a clue," simply because their measure of caution differs from yours?
Finally, just as an aside, and despite your tally of years and hours, the following statement of yours demonstrates that you hadn't fully thought through a point that YOU thought worthy of mention...
There are so many what ifs...as I've said before, a maintenance vehicle on the runway would have required a clearance from ATC. IF ATC wasn't answering the radio, the maintenance vehicle wouldn't go on the runway.
....perhaps Spandex and Shell figured that someone/something may have been cleared onto the runway,
but never told to get off!
clivewatson (clueless, and not a real pilot)