Decades ago when potholes were rare on European roads, I used to travel frequently on business to "third world" countries where damage to tyres for which holes were largely to blame was accepted as a simple fact of life by the local motoring populations. On the relatively few occasions when I drove hire cars I managed, thankfully, never to get a flat, simply, I think, as the result of being highly circumspect as well as lucky. Certainly, I never acquired sufficient experience or developed the sort of skill - which would be useful on many European roads today - that enabled some local drivers, especially professional ones, to determine the size, depth and nature of potholes at a glance and then negotiate them accordingly. In this regard, there were - and no doubt still are - two directly conflicting schools of thought. Namely, you either accelerate on approaching a hole in the expectation of "flying" over it or, at worst, merely clipping its edge, or, alternatively, you slow down, sometimes almost to a standstill, and gently steer in and out of it. I suppose the decision depends on finding the right combination of self-confidence and rationality.