Backing Up Is Hard To Do!

Listen to the Oldies stations and you'll hear Neil Sedaka complain about this all the time. Oh, I'm sorry. He sings about breaking up. Well they're both difficult, but once you get the hang of backing up, you can scratch that off your worry list.

Actually, reversing is not tough, however reversing in a straight line often frustrates most beginners and their parents.

Why? Well maybe because the correct backing stance is uncomfortable, or the view out the back window seems weird, maybe the car is moving too fast, or perhaps someone believes that one has to steer in the opposite direction of where one really wants the car to go. The latter misconception thwarts most new drivers.

Follow these steps to ease the burden of backing:

1. Find a nice quiet intersection where the streets join at a 90 degree angle. Have your teen pull into the curb (about a foot or two away from the vertical portion). Make sure your vehicle is parallel to this curb as it's much easier to back up in a straight line if you're already set up for it by driving straight forward. You're going to have her back straight along the curb and stop just before the cross walk.

2. Have your teen pivot her upper body to the her right so she can look over her right shoulder and out the back window. The rear view mirror should not be used for this maneuver. She should grip the steering wheel at the 12 o'clock position with her left hand. Make sure she doesn't succumb to the natural tendency to tilt the steering wheel to the left while in this stance. Initially she'll have to take extra care to separate left-hand movement from movement of her right shoulder and her head.

3. Reverses should be executed slowly. Speed should be controlled with the brake almost exclusively. Your teen should rarely have to use the accelerator for this. Her right foot should always be covering the brake.

4. Tell her to steer in the direction she wants the back end of the car to go. Make this even easier by eliminating all references to right or left. Instead she will now steer towards either the curb or the middle of the street. Steering corrections should be minuscule. The bigger the corrections, the harder it is to maintain steady course.

Just remember - have her keep her eye on the course, move slow and steer straight. She'll pass this event on the road test with flying colors.

The Instructor's Brake

I hate using my instructor's brake.

I hate it because when I was 15 years old my driving instructor absolutely loved to use his. He used his brake the same way a dog-handler uses a choke chain. I'd be driving along and out of the blue the car wouldn't respond to me anymore. When that happened I'd think I was not pressing on the gas pedal correctly, so I'd press harder and rev the engine a bit more than Mr. Nuccio liked. Then he'd get upset. Then I would get even more upset.

Thus I use my instructor brake only to keep my students from hitting things when it appears that they are on a collision course. I use it quite a bit, but never as gratuitously as my instructor did back in 1971.

Yesterday afternoon was rather warm - over 80 degrees. You know how you get kind of sluggish and dopey when the temperatures jump, especially when you're acclimated to 65 degrees.

The higher temps just put Devlyn, my first student, into a torpor. Well not exactly a torpor, but she wasn't really at her best. She was slow in spotting a few dangerous situations and slow to react once she recognized them.

I ended up using my brake about 4 times in 90 minutes with her behind the wheel. That's not something I usually do even with the worst of my drivers. With Devlyn this was even more extraordinary because up until yesterday she was always on the ball.

"What's wrong with you today kiddo? I'm helping you out a bit too much."

"I'm sorry. I'm just so tired. This heat is killing me."

"That makes sense. Did you know when you're tired you tend to look down and to the right? You need to force yourself to look through the upper half of that windshield. Pick up on those cars stopped up ahead so you can slow down softly and I don't have to do your braking for you."

"OK. I'm sorry."

"Don't sweat it. Now you know why "Aim High In Steering" is so important. And you know how it feels to drive when your tired. Now you know what you have to do to compensate. You've learned some important lessons today."

Really a good session. I'm glad I could point these things out while she was training with a safety net.

Yep, a safety net beats a choke chain any day.

What do You Do When...Road Debris is in Your Path

Houston's ABC 13 Eyewitness News reported yesterday on the death of a motorcyclist:

"A piece of debris on the East Loop played a role in a fatal accident Wednesday night. A motorcyclist drove over a large wooden board, sending his bike into the air and causing the rider to hit the guard-rail. He died at the scene. "

Wherever you drive you will find debris on the road posing a hazard to you and other drivers. Objects lying in the road can cause serious crashes, injuries, and deaths. Road debris comes from a variety of sources. Equipment can break loose from vehicles, objects being transported may fall out of truck beds or off the roofs of cars, and tire treads may separate, placing debris on the roads.

Objects ranging from blown tires and tire treads to drive shafts, bumpers, hoods, leaf springs, brake parts, and dislodged cargo have all contributed to serious crashes. One report mentions that even off beat items such as ladders are commonly found in the roadway.

At highway speeds even a relatively small object such as a hand tool, spare tire, tarpaulin, or tie-down strap can be deadly.

Every state and major city has some version of a "debris patrol". In the Houston area six Texas Department of Transportation drivers patrol every day. Their main job is looking for debris. But even then, they say the problem doesn't go away.

Texas DOT's John Zientek explained, "It's a daily battle. I'm pretty sure that when I get back out there, there will probably be another good amount to pick up just on the same area I just went through."

What actions can you take to avoid junk on the road that may hurt you or damage your vehicle?

1. Brake if traffic permits.

2. If braking is not an option you can elect to swerve around the debris, strike it a glancing blow, or drive over it.

3. If confronted with something slippery such as an oil spill or a truckload of smashed pumpkins maintain your speed and roll right through the mess. Don't brake. Don't accelerate. Don't try to get fancy and swerve around it. An abrupt change in speed on a slippery surface will probably send you into a skid. Just keep on going, even if there are crates in your way.

4. If you come upon something of considerable mass like a freezer unit, a chest of drawers or a stuffed elephant you have a major challenge. You definitely don't want to hit such things squarely, but if you brake suddenly you risk a rear end collision. A sudden swerve to avoid may put you in conflict with traffic that is on your flanks.

You will have to make a quick mirror and blind spot check and go around if possible. If you're skillful enough (and lucky as well) you may just come out of the situation unscathed.

5. If you can't execute the swerve, hit the junk off center. The glancing blow might move the object out of your way causing only bumper or fender damage.

6. When faced with mystery debris like a paper bag or a cardboard box you may gamble on straddling them if they appear to be small enough. If you win, no harm done. If you lose the debris may rip through your oil pan, put your car in the shop, and you in the hospital.

I once sent twenty-four Pepsi cans rolling all over Quentein Road in Palatine while playing this game.

Be careful out there.

A Moment in Automotive History

When did motor vehicle accidents and traffic safety become part of our culture? Who crashed the first car? Who became the first fatality? Who first thought of stop signs?

I don't think anyone can give a definitive answer to all these questions. The first recorded crash has been credited to Nicholas-Joseph Cugnot who drove his steam-powered "Fardier" against a wall in 1770. He survived the collision, but the crash put an end to his experiments with self propelled vehicles.

The earliest recorded motor vehicle fatality was Mary Ward who died on August 31, 1869 in Parsonstown, Ireland after being thrown from an experimental steam car built by her cousins.

Many of the earliest innovations in road safety are credited to a man who never drove a car himself, William Phelps Enos. He is sometimes known as the "father of traffic safety". Enos is credited with conceiving the stop sign, the traffic circle, and the one way street.

Teaching Your Teen To Drive: Objective # 3 - Taking Turns

"Knowledge is gained by learning; trust by doubt; skill by practice; and love by love." ~ Thomas S. Szasz

How does a parent go about teaching a brand new, inexperienced driver how to make proper turns?

Here are the step by step instructions:

#1 - Get behind the wheel to show and explain the proper steps for turning corners. Tell your student when and where to start turning and how to straighten the front wheels for coming out of a turn. Have the kid watch your hands as well as the road.

For a left turn you might use the following script while you demonstrate:

Check your rear view mirror and signal your turn at least 100 feet (about two houses) before the intersection.

Slow down as you approach the intersection and position your car next to the center line as you get closer to the corner.

Look left for cross traffic, look right for cross traffic, look across the intersection for oncoming traffic, and look to your left a second time.

When it is safe to do so - drive to the point where your steering wheel is even with the left corner curb (that straight line of concrete to our left), look out the drivers side window, and begin steering into the lane just to the right of the yellow (center) line.

You should move your eyes towards the right (out the front windshield) as the car progresses into the turn.

Just before the front of the car is perfectly straight begin begin steering back to the right until the car is moving forward in a straight line.

By the way, you're going to have to take very slow turns if you're going to coordinate the words with the actions during the demonstration.

#2 - Find a good place to turn the car over to your new driver. If you can find an empty parking lot, mark out a 200' by 200' rectangle and mark the corners with orange safety cones (or sand filled bottles). If you can't find a parking lot, find a quiet neighborhood with straight streets and 90 degree intersections.

#3 - Review the lessons from Starting and Stopping. Afterwards have the student demonstrate the hand-over-hand technique while the selector lever is in park and engine idles. Then have the student start making left turns very slowly. You can coach by telling him where to start steering, when to hold the steering wheel in place, and when to start straightening. You should be ready to assist his steering with your left hand.

#4 - After making the first few turns begin emphasizing proper eye habits. Learning to visualize the proper turn path and "looking into and through the turn" are essential to making smooth and precise turns.

#5 - Practice right turns in the same manner. Remember to keep things slow.

#6 - If you've been working in a parking lot up to this point, move the lesson out into the streets. It's time to start practicing proper positioning and signalling in a quiet, low traffic area. Your job just became more complicated because now you have to watch the traffic in addition to coaching. Take an aspirin or two.

#7 - You can begin to gradually speed up the maneuvers. The timing of the steering and braking is closely tied to the speed of the car. The faster your student drives the more difficult the turns become.

#8 - Your teen should learn that the time to begin the straightening process is when the front wheels, not the hood, start to point down the street being turned into.

#9 - Progress to areas where you can take a variety of turns. Your teen should learn how to turn from the halt, while moving, when positioned on a hill top, when positioned at the base of a hill, at corners with both sharp and rounded curbs, and from narrow streets to wide streets.

Have fun. And remember this takes time.

See also:

Help! My Teens Are Taking Killer Turns!! Part I

Help! My Teens Are Taking Killer Turns!! Part II

Drivers Aren't The Only Ones Who Are Tuned Out

Yesterday afternoon I posted my account of a spaced out driving student. Last night Chicago's ABC7 ran a feature on distracted pedestrians. Coincidence? Or are we just both impressed by a problem of epic proportions?

ABC7 noted in its report Tuned Out, that 4500 people were struck by vehicles in Chicago last year. Police say there is no telling how many of them were using iPods, Blackberrys or cell phones at the time -- but safety experts warn that too many people are "tuned out" on bustling crosswalks.

In just one afternoon, ABC7 saw hundreds of people who were "tuned out" at intersections with PDAs, mp3's and cell phones. ABC7 found one woman ignoring a "don't walk" sign as she crossed Michigan Avenue on her cell phone.

Two people listening to headphones at intersections recently died in New York City, so one New York state lawmaker is proposing a law to fine pedestrians $100 for crossing streets while on a cell phone, PDA or mp3.

Personally, I don't think we need any more laws limiting our freedoms. If people want to walk around in a daze that's their prerogative. Don't pass any laws banning electronic devices or fining the users. Let the law of natural selection take over.

However, I would propose legislation that would absolve drivers of any fault should they strike pedestrians who committed unsafe actions while engrossed in the operation of electronic devices.