The few, the brave - those of us taking driving lessons right now!

Those aren't hazards, that's just driving.

When my daughter was doing it I tried the mock hazard test and I struggled yet I am an an advanced driver, been driving a way over a quarter of a century with a good record and it was kicking my ass. I said that too, that's just driving. They are hazards by definition but I just know them instinctively so I think experienced drivers will struggle with that portion of the test. Didn't have that when I got mine, and yes I did have to sit the driving exam. I ain't that old that you just got one for the asking.

I'm doing fine on mock theory tests, but that hazard perception thing...yeesh! I'm supposed to click when I see a pedestrian safely on the sidewalk fifty yards in front of me? A car on a side road looking perfectly ordinary and in control?

Those aren't hazards, that's just driving.

If it makes you feel better, I did awful on the practice clips on the CD-Rom. I failed most of those mock exams. When you are actually there in the test centre, it's far easier. For me, it was easier, because the screens were a bit bigger, the clips were full screen and much better quality, and they had the chair positioned really close to the monitor so I could see upcoming things much easier, plus you are in a cubicle with giant headphones on, so it tends to help you concentrate better. I got mostly 4's and 5's on the hazard perception, minus the 0 I got for clicking too many times. As a tip, don't click too many times in a row when something has already started happening, only the first click counts anyway. Also, when I would see an upcoming pedestrian crosswalk, I would click on it, just in case someone was on the corner or coming toward it that I didn't see, and that worked for me. (But only click once when the pedestrian crosswalk is coming closer.) Also, I would click on motorcycles and bicycles once, just in case they were going to do something at the last minute. But, in the actual test, the hazards were much more obvious than on the practice CD. You can do it! It's actually very easy for anyone who has been driving for some amount of time. You can tell if a car is moving so fast to the junction that they might just drive through the junction without looking, so you click on it just in case. In the case where I got a zero, the action kept unfolding, so I kept clicking in case I didn't click at the right time, but I obviously got a bit too ambitious with it. Also, the theory questions were exactly the same as on the practice CD, so if you are doing well on those mock exams, then you will have no problem with that part at all.

Yay Jewlz! 

After taking a roughly 4 month break (not planned, my driving instructor turned out to be a bit unreliable), I went out with a new instructor today.  Wow, the difference is night and day.  He's not uptight about the parking brake (YAY!) and I felt like I accomplished so much more with this one in 4 hours than I did in 15 hours of lessons with the other.  He thinks I should go ahead and get the practical booked for around the 2nd week in Novermber.  I haven't done it yet because every time I go on the DVLNI site, I feel like I'm gonna have a panic attack.

Yay Jewlz! 

Thanks!   I had a bit of a breakdown driving with DH today. I pine away for driving in the states compared to here. It's so much more enjoyable there. But I guess it's just because it's my comfort zone. I am sure I will get there eventually.

I had a bit of a breakdown driving with DH today. I pine away for driving in the states compared to here. It's so much more enjoyable there. But I guess it's just because it's my comfort zone. I am sure I will get there eventually.

  Rats.

You're right, it will get easier though.  If I can do it so can you.

Rats.

You're right, it will get easier though.  If I can do it so can you.

Yeah. I hate all the narrow, windy country roads and feel terrified of what could be coming around the corner. In the states, I could just relax and enjoy driving. Here, I feel like I am white-knuckled the whole time. Even riding with DH driving on some of the roads around here makes me nervous. I hate feeling like that, because I always loved driving in the states, and I was so confident there. Here.... *sigh*. I guess it will get easier sometime. I'll just have to keep practicing. I am getting better, though. Slowly but surely.

After taking a roughly 4 month break (not planned, my driving instructor turned out to be a bit unreliable), I went out with a new instructor today.  Wow, the difference is night and day.  He's not uptight about the parking brake (YAY!) and I felt like I accomplished so much more with this one in 4 hours than I did in 15 hours of lessons with the other.  He thinks I should go ahead and get the practical booked for around the 2nd week in Novermber.  I haven't done it yet because every time I go on the DVLNI site, I feel like I'm gonna have a panic attack.

Go Petunia!    I think a good instructor makes all the difference.  If it makes you feel any better, I still feel like I'm going to have a panic attack every time I drive past the testing place...and I passed last January.

Yeah. I hate all the narrow, windy country roads and feel terrified of what could be coming around the corner. In the states, I could just relax and enjoy driving. Here, I feel like I am white-knuckled the whole time. Even riding with DH driving on some of the roads around here makes me nervous. I hate feeling like that, because I always loved driving in the states, and I was so confident there. Here.... *sigh*. I guess it will get easier sometime. I'll just have to keep practicing. I am getting better, though. Slowly but surely.

That's what it's like on most of the roads here. The roads are way too narrow, very windy and, in many places, the verges are all screwed up. So if you go a little too far to the left, you can get the offside wheels stuck in a rut and, worse case, flip the car into the ditch. With water in. Oh, the colorful ribbons on the memorial shrines by the canals!

On the other hand, the road is too narrow in places for you and something big, like a lorry from the Continent driving with wheels over the line. Or a piece of farm machinery. Or one of the hundreds of crazy motorcyclists. Then there's the livestock and the wildlife.

But, hey, it's national speed limit in most places, so let's do all that at 60 mph!

You can never, EVER safely relax while driving around here. Never will. To DH, driving is about practicing and honing your skills.

Duck fat. Give me the right-hand lane of I-95 and I'll do it from Florida to Maine without turning a hair. But this stuff? Honestly, it isn't safe if you're a GOOD driver.

Yeah. I hate all the narrow, windy country roads and feel terrified of what could be coming around the corner. In the states, I could just relax and enjoy driving. Here, I feel like I am white-knuckled the whole time. Even riding with DH driving on some of the roads around here makes me nervous. I hate feeling like that, because I always loved driving in the states, and I was so confident there. Here.... *sigh*. I guess it will get easier sometime. I'll just have to keep practicing. I am getting better, though. Slowly but surely.

For me, a lot of the comfort has come with FINALLY driving the same roads over and over again by myself (to go to the store or the riding centre where I ride).  On those roads, I feel comfortable (most of the time) and I know what is coming, so that allows me to relax (a tiny bit). We also own a small car, which helps, and I've always been good at backing up (although, ahem, not necessarily around a corner!), so the meeting situations on those roads, don't worry me so much. I don't think I'll ever hit the "foot on the dashboard" level of relaxation I had in the US, but a lot of the feeling of terror has faded.  Now, the second I have to go somewhere new, the panic sets in again, but to be fair I could get lost on a straight line, so a bit of that is directional anxiety. And, umm, my DH is not the calmest person ever in a car, but we are slowly getting better at him letting me drive--I think eventually I'll be the *driver* in the family so he can keep us from getting lost!
Good luck everyone!

But, hey, it's national speed limit in most places, so let's do all that at 60 mph!

You can never, EVER safely relax while driving around here. Never will. To DH, driving is about practicing and honing your skills.

60 my ass! I'm given a 10% grace, so I am taking this baby to 66. MHP. And when I hit a straight and I can see there ain't no polis aboot, I'm really gonna give it some welly just to clean my pipes. And those go faster stripes really do work. Ever done a Eddie-the-Eagle over a blind summit? Ah you can really feel the power when that engine free wheels in mid flight. It's great. I really wanna get a convertible for those sunny days but hey I ain't dumb, I know that'd be dangerous cuz I'd probably lose my backtofront ballcap and that wouldn't be too cool for my mate behind me on his crotch rocket. Even though I got a lot of competition, I recon another 2 years and ya'll see me over on Skysports during the World Rally Championships. I'm gonna need a navigator that will not relax until we finish the circuit, you interested?

Ha! My belovedest bought me a convertible. I've had MX-5's since the damn things were invented, and he bought me a lovely old grungy one to help me learn to drive. It does help, because it's familiar and little and maneuverable and the gearbox is crisp and clean. (I loathe my instructor's Peugeot. The gearbox is mushy and I've done several unforgivably bad shifts in it). It's perfect for these crap roads (except, of course, the dangerous verges become lethal).

I have never lost a hat in a convertible. They do clever things in wind tunnels now to make sure the air currents sail harmlessly overhead.

Though I do have a huge, absurd Tilley hat with a chinstrap that I'm partial to. One of these days, I'm going to do a Flying Nun in that thing.

But, hey, it's national speed limit in most places, so let's do all that at 60 mph!

You can never, EVER safely relax while driving around here. Never will. To DH, driving is about practicing and honing your skills.

Duck fat. Give me the right-hand lane of I-95 and I'll do it from Florida to Maine without turning a hair. But this stuff? Honestly, it isn't safe if you're a GOOD driver.

Oh God, that's just how I feel! I think why on earth should the speed limit be 60 when there aren't even any lane markings and two people can barely pass each other on the road! Im driving about 30-40 MPH, and still nervous about what's around the corner, meanwhile, someone is attaching themselves to my bumper. Grrrrr.

I miss so much just being able to turn on the radio, roll down the window on a nice warm day, and drive for hours with my music and my own thoughts. It was so relaxing. Sure, things could've happened, but geez, here, something life threatening could happen around every corner! How can anyone relax when driving like that?! I am sure the dual carriageways and motorways will be more like that, but why do the country roads have to be so lethal?

Yet, there aren't that many accidents. So I guess it's just me being a Nervous Nelly who wants to drive on the nice, straight, wide roads with hard shoulders that I am used to, not some curvy, narrow, deathtrap road with hedges on each side so I can't even move over a few inches if a tractor is taking up part of my lane. AAAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But maybe there are less accidents because you can't ever let your guard down? All the bends in the road keep you alert? I guess that might be the case.

Oh, any AyouBob, you are crazy!  I wish I was more like you and could look at it as being loads of fun. I'm not sure I ever will think of driving as fun again.  :\\\'(

I wonder if some of this a country vs city issue?  I know that, growing up in farm country (I lived across from a 400 acre vegetable farm!), I, ahem, used to drive quite quickly on our narrow winding roads and never, ever think about it.  (This was in SoCal).  So, although the country speed limit seems excessive here in the UK, it's not *really* that much faster than we all used to drive on those types of roads in the US. (Except for the various people who would go out for a "weekend drive" and go 30 or less while being passed by tractors). It might be that the country is so much closer to everyone now (no huge swathes of suburbs to go through?) that you're running into it earlier/more. It's weird, because I feel *more* comfortable out on the country roads, for sure.

I have to admit that, for me, *cities* were always the worst. I hated driving in San Fransisco, even if it perfected my parallel parking, and driving in some of the east coast cities was possibly the worst experience of my life. Driving in Manchester city-centre is no picnic either, but at least it's flat!

I wonder if some of this a country vs city issue?  I know that, growing up in farm country (I lived across from a 400 acre vegetable farm!), I, ahem, used to drive quite quickly on our narrow winding roads and never, ever think about it.  (This was in SoCal).  So, although the country speed limit seems excessive here in the UK, it's not *really* that much faster than we all used to drive on those types of roads in the US. (Except for the various people who would go out for a "weekend drive" and go 30 or less while being passed by tractors). It might be that the country is so much closer to everyone now (no huge swathes of suburbs to go through?) that you're running into it earlier/more. It's weird, because I feel *more* comfortable out on the country roads, for sure.

I have to admit that, for me, *cities* were always the worst. I hated driving in San Fransisco, even if it perfected my parallel parking, and driving in some of the east coast cities was possibly the worst experience of my life. Driving in Manchester city-centre is no picnic either, but at least it's flat!

Well, I don't know, but the country roads in Texas aren't really like the ones here. At least not that I remember. They were at least a bit wider, with a bit of a shoulder, and although the speed limit was usually 70, it was fine because there weren't so many sharp bends or anything like that. The rest of the country roads were dirt roads, and still pretty straight, and not nearly as busy as the country roads here. There is quite a lot of traffic on these "country roads" here! I am used to city driving, so to me, honestly, I think I would rather brave Newcastle city centre anyday than drive on some of the crazy roads around here.