A road well travelled
THE OLD LANDCRUISER WAS ACTUALLY A WONDERFUL VEHICLE TO LEARN TO DRIVE IN BECAUSE THE REVS WOULD ROAR WHENEVER YOU NEEDED TO CHANGE GEARS … IT WAS NOT SUCH A GOOD CAR AT 2AM RETURNING HOME FROM THE NIGHTCLUBS
IT WAS a fairly narrow road and straight. Bushland fringed both sides and other vehicles were rare. Behind the wheel I was young, eager and naive. Beside me was my trusty teacher. Older, resigned and experienced. Mum’s nerves were also a little frayed. Her youngest of four children was “that age” and itching to learn to drive. Mum had come to the end of the road — the last of her brood needed to get her licence and so there we were on the same road she had taught all the others how to kick a car into gear. “Right Jen, ease your foot onto the accelerator as you take your left foot off the clutch,” Mum’s abnormally high-pitched voice advised. Clunk, clunk, roaring engine, snapped necks. “OK Jen, turn the ignition back on and we’ll try that again. “Now, remember, gently and slowly.” Who is this woman? I thought. Gently? Slowly? I thought she knew me better than that. Clunk, clunk, shuddderrrrrr, clunk. Silence. And so that first driving lesson went — with some swearing and lots of “Jennifer, Jennifer, Jennifer, lisssteeennn to what I’m saaayyying!”. Yes, Mum. We kangarooed all the way down that long stretch of bitumen road, swerving and jerking all over the place.
The old LandCruiser was actually a wonderful vehicle to learn to drive in because the revs would roar whenever you needed to change gears. (It was not such a good car at 2am returning home from the nightclubs as the designated driver.)
We laugh about it now but poor ol’ Mum got the short end of the stick.
Dad’s only contribution to any of his offsprings’ driving skill (or lack thereof) was the final lesson of reverse parking. Mum flat-out refused to do it. Like everyone, I think I’m a pretty good driver. Just ask me ... or listen. “I nearly got wiped out by a bloody van on the roundabout just now.”
“Doesn’t anyone know what an indicator is in this town?”
“I just saw a driver with rigor mortis; that’s the only reason that fool could be driving that slow. It’s a 100km/h zone.”
“Why do drivers speed up on overtaking lanes? I had to drive like Craig Lowdnes to get around him.”
“That driver needs drug testing and what was with the mobile phone?” But I’m not alone, am I? You’re an expert driver too. We all are. I haven’t met a bad one yet. But they are out there and that’s why a new learner-driver test is being introduced. Today we’ve published some of the current learner’s test questions. Have a go, in private if you must, and find out if you’re really as good as you think you are.