SURVIVING THE STREETS
Advanced emergency driver training can help save lives, especially for newbies
Most people remember their ‘firsts.’ First grade, first date and first car.
But in terms of that first car, how many can recall facing an emergency situation in the initial years of driving ? What if there had been a program that taught, beyond the basic driving skills, how to be prepared for emergency conditions — new drivers and parents alike could certainly feel more assured.
That’s what the Tire Rack Street Survival school is all about.
“From my standpoint,” explains Street Survival program head coach Gary Coleman, “when young drivers go through basic driver training, those skills only go so far. They get out on the road without having had to deal with any kind of emergency situation and when something happens, they’re simply not ready to react.”
Coleman is a member of the BMW Club of southern Alberta, the group presenting the Street Survival school in Calgary.
“I think advanced driver training is necessary for all drivers,” Coleman continues, and adds, “That might be difficult for some people to swallow, but it helps save lives.”
According to Stats Canada and as reported by the BMWCSA in their monthly newsletter, motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death among drivers in their first 10 years behind the wheel. And that’s the group Street Survival is geared toward — drivers with 10 years of experience or less, with preference given to those between the ages of 16 and 21.
This is certainly not a performance driving school. Instead, the program instils skills that will make everyday drivers even better as they learn in both the classroom and on closed-course pavement in their own vehicles.
“We feel it’s important that (our), students use the vehicle they drive day to day, because they can take away what they learn about how the vehicle responds in the driving exercises,” Coleman says.
“We’ll start participants off almost immediately on the exercises, and we’ll alternate groups back and forth between the skid pad and the classroom every 40 minutes — this will not be a boring day,” Coleman ensures.
Each student will be paired with an experienced driving instructor.
“The first job of the coach,” Coleman says, “is reviewing how the student is sitting in the car, and going over the importance of seat and mirror adjustments to ensure proper control. We’ll also talk about the importance of tires and maintaining correct tire air pressure.”
From that starting point, students will learn emergency braking techniques, stopping in the shortest distance possible while also experiencing how ABS braking systems work on dry pavement.
If a young driver has never experienced the shuddering brake pedal of an ABS system, it’s much better to learn in a safe environment than in panic mode on the road.
Next is a slalom component that provides instruction regarding vision and car placement.
“A student has to look all the way down the line, and not at the individual cones,” Coleman says. “This translates into the real world by being able to drive a narrow and twisty road, watching four or five seconds ahead, and not just looking down at the end of the hood.”
Emergency avoidance steering techniques are also taught.
“You can do one of two things in an emergency situation — stop or drive around,” Coleman says, “but you need to make a decision and react quickly, and know how your car will handle those inputs.”
Finally, there is time spent on a dampened asphalt surface where students will learn about understeer and oversteer and what those conditions feel like.
“Students will go away with a much better understanding of their car’s capabilities and how to handle their vehicle in emergency situations,” Coleman says. “It instils a confidence that becomes almost a natural reaction and the training should give them a sense of recall. When faced with an emergency situation it won’t be foreign to them and they won’t panic.
“If you’re panicked, you can’t make a good decision.”