Bruce Allen was driving slower than the required 50km/h through roadworks on State Highway 1 at Ruakaka when a missile hurtled into his windscreen.
His reaction - the sudden head movement - in the split second it took him to realise something had flown up off the road, on to his car's bonnet and into the windscreen left him with a slightly sore neck.
The Whangarei builder is thanking his lucky stars the glass didn't shatter because the missile hit the windscreen right in front of his face.
"It was very dangerous. I don't like to bleat about things but the roads in Northland are shocking, and traffic doesn't slow down enough for roadworks" Mr Allen said.
The incident happened on Thursday afternoon as he drove toward Whangarei along the straight stretch south of the Ruakaka roundabout, where one passing lane was closed for roadworks.