A few of my friends' kids came of driving age, so I wrote what was going to be a brief driving manual for them, stuff they don't learn in Drivers' Ed. Maybe you know someone this could benefit.
(Pls feel free to offer suggestions, but mind that this is only part 1.)
What You Didn’t Learn in Drivers’ Ed
I will try to tell you stuff you might not learn from more “normal” sources; no one ever accused me of that.
Vision: There are times you simply cannot see where you are going: Over hills, thru blind curves, passing trucks, etc. The next time you’re a passenger, pay attention to how many instances of this you find yourself in; it happens quite often.
Think about this: You crest a hill @ 60 mph only to find a traffic jam which ends just under the crest. You will not be able to stop in time; you will crash; you will spend quality time with your insurance agent. Not a good thing, insurance people are generally quite boring.
Target Fixation: If you’ve skied, biked, etc. you may have experienced this phenomena. You see an obstruction (tree, curb, car or the like) and you want to avoid it. But, you tend to go where your eyes are looking, so you run into what you wanted to avoid. This is Target Fixation. In/on any vehicle, I repeat, you tend to go where you are looking. So, always look where you want to go (i.e. past the tree). This is a racing technique, used in turns, and it always works. I will not, however, be teaching you anything about racing beyond what is useful on the street.
Tailgating: This is a frightfully stupid habit. It reduces your vision of the road ahead and your chance of stopping in time and increases the probability of a crash and/or a ticket. It also makes the driver ahead of you angry or nervous. Tailgating is an emotional response to wanting to make time. It will not get you anywhere faster and will not serve you well.
Stopping behind the car in front of you: First, try not to hit the guy. Second, always stop far enough back so you can see where his tires touch the road. That way, you’ll have enough room to swing around him effortlessly, in case he stalls or carjackers are coming your way. Although, it’s unlikely that the piece of crap you’ll be driving will attract carjackers. But, if they had taste, they’d be in another business.
Speeding: Surprisingly, this is often also an emotional response to being in a rush. It rarely pays off, especially for tyros. Do the math: speeding on a 30 minute drive couldn’t save you more than a couple of minutes. I used to joke that I saved 2 weeks a year by speeding, but it was only a joke. Speeding in residential areas is particularly dumb, given that there are always: stop signs, traffic lights, traffic. Consequently, you really get nowhere faster. And, I haven’t mentioned the other problems with residential streets: Pets, kid, drunken old ladies coming from their “quilting bees.”
I lived on a street with a kid who drove a Camaro. The street was 1 block long; a dead end. He would tear down the street at 40 mph. When we spoke (at my request), he said that he was in a hurry. Clearly not a math major. I explained the math and then, for good measure – whatever that means, I threatened him. Can you believe people like him (and me) are allowed to vote?
Maintenance: I’ll keep this simple for now. Check your tire pressures every two weeks; they’re the only part of the car that touches the road. Keep your windshield clean, inside and out, so SUV headlights and sun glare won’t blind you. Check the oil once in a while to keep Dad happy. Try not to bring back the car on “empty” or, if gas gauges were more accurate, “fumes.”
Distractions: Wow, there are a lot of those just inside the car. Frankly, there are times not to adjust the radio, heat, light a cigarette, check your fly, check someone else’s fly, pick your nose, etc. It’s your responsibility to recognize those instances, like intersections, parking lots, etc. And, don’t call your friends on your cell phone while driving. They will know that you’ve called them because you’re bored and they will resent it.
Later, we’ll talk about where to hold your hands on the wheel while being mindful of airbags’ ability to break your arms, driving position, adjusting your mirrors so there are NO blind spots (Hint: If you can see any portion of your car on either outside mirror, you and your mirrors are maladjusted. You may be as well.)
In the meantime, feel free to ask me any questions. Even stupid ones. Although, really stupid questions will be sent to all my friends so we can all have a good laugh at your expense.
(Pls feel free to offer suggestions, but mind that this is only part 1.)
What You Didn’t Learn in Drivers’ Ed
I will try to tell you stuff you might not learn from more “normal” sources; no one ever accused me of that.
Vision: There are times you simply cannot see where you are going: Over hills, thru blind curves, passing trucks, etc. The next time you’re a passenger, pay attention to how many instances of this you find yourself in; it happens quite often.
Think about this: You crest a hill @ 60 mph only to find a traffic jam which ends just under the crest. You will not be able to stop in time; you will crash; you will spend quality time with your insurance agent. Not a good thing, insurance people are generally quite boring.
Target Fixation: If you’ve skied, biked, etc. you may have experienced this phenomena. You see an obstruction (tree, curb, car or the like) and you want to avoid it. But, you tend to go where your eyes are looking, so you run into what you wanted to avoid. This is Target Fixation. In/on any vehicle, I repeat, you tend to go where you are looking. So, always look where you want to go (i.e. past the tree). This is a racing technique, used in turns, and it always works. I will not, however, be teaching you anything about racing beyond what is useful on the street.
Tailgating: This is a frightfully stupid habit. It reduces your vision of the road ahead and your chance of stopping in time and increases the probability of a crash and/or a ticket. It also makes the driver ahead of you angry or nervous. Tailgating is an emotional response to wanting to make time. It will not get you anywhere faster and will not serve you well.
Stopping behind the car in front of you: First, try not to hit the guy. Second, always stop far enough back so you can see where his tires touch the road. That way, you’ll have enough room to swing around him effortlessly, in case he stalls or carjackers are coming your way. Although, it’s unlikely that the piece of crap you’ll be driving will attract carjackers. But, if they had taste, they’d be in another business.
Speeding: Surprisingly, this is often also an emotional response to being in a rush. It rarely pays off, especially for tyros. Do the math: speeding on a 30 minute drive couldn’t save you more than a couple of minutes. I used to joke that I saved 2 weeks a year by speeding, but it was only a joke. Speeding in residential areas is particularly dumb, given that there are always: stop signs, traffic lights, traffic. Consequently, you really get nowhere faster. And, I haven’t mentioned the other problems with residential streets: Pets, kid, drunken old ladies coming from their “quilting bees.”
I lived on a street with a kid who drove a Camaro. The street was 1 block long; a dead end. He would tear down the street at 40 mph. When we spoke (at my request), he said that he was in a hurry. Clearly not a math major. I explained the math and then, for good measure – whatever that means, I threatened him. Can you believe people like him (and me) are allowed to vote?
Maintenance: I’ll keep this simple for now. Check your tire pressures every two weeks; they’re the only part of the car that touches the road. Keep your windshield clean, inside and out, so SUV headlights and sun glare won’t blind you. Check the oil once in a while to keep Dad happy. Try not to bring back the car on “empty” or, if gas gauges were more accurate, “fumes.”
Distractions: Wow, there are a lot of those just inside the car. Frankly, there are times not to adjust the radio, heat, light a cigarette, check your fly, check someone else’s fly, pick your nose, etc. It’s your responsibility to recognize those instances, like intersections, parking lots, etc. And, don’t call your friends on your cell phone while driving. They will know that you’ve called them because you’re bored and they will resent it.
Later, we’ll talk about where to hold your hands on the wheel while being mindful of airbags’ ability to break your arms, driving position, adjusting your mirrors so there are NO blind spots (Hint: If you can see any portion of your car on either outside mirror, you and your mirrors are maladjusted. You may be as well.)
In the meantime, feel free to ask me any questions. Even stupid ones. Although, really stupid questions will be sent to all my friends so we can all have a good laugh at your expense.