The 13th Duke of Wybourne
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*I must admit, I took lessons over about 9 months I saw glare, snow, ice, fog, rain, torrential rain, bad driving, me making errors, traffic, people swearing at me etc etc. Better to do it over a long period. Point of driving test is not to pass your A level, it's to DRIVE SAFELY
Your parents should WANT you to fail, in a way. And you yourself. I wondered if I was ready after I passed. That's why I did pass plus - Motorway driving and so on. That's a different ball game. What I mean, is that you know when you pass you are really ready.
Whatever you do, take the Pass Plus course - it gave me a years' no claims discount. I have five years now, not four and my premiums are low.
The key to driving is controlling the car at SLOW speeds. i mean, really slow. Anyone can drive fast. Not many people can drive slow.
And turn that wheel! When you do the turn in the road, turn turn turn the wheel!
I passed first time, five minors, my sister second time, 4 minors. When you pass, you pass. I didn't think about passing first time, whereas my sister did. If I'd failed - I'd take it again. You hear a lot of people criticise the Examiners but hey, if you're not ready, you're not ready. Unlike other exams, driving tests can be taken over and over. Better to be a safe driver than someone pass first time because it's market day in town and you didn't have to do any manouevres or the test was shortened because of the traffic.
You won't be able to get rid of nerves. No-one can. Look at top-level sportsmen and women. But their attitude is 'I like being nervous. If I'm not nervous, I'm not doing something worthwhile.' Your heart is pounding, your anxious - nerves are great! What would you prefer - boring... dull... quiet...?
The thing is, you have given yourself a timelimit - by doing in a week. Why? Impatient? Just want it out the way?
Anyway - you're doing it in a week. What can you learn...
You need to say to yourself: I'm going to learn as much as I can this week and if I'm ready, I'm ready. If not, I'm not. As soon as you turn the test into a big obstacle, that's when you'll be disappointed after. That's when you have pressure to pass as opposed to nerves. THERE IS NO PRESSURE TO PASS.
If you are ready, you are ready. Great! But if you are not ready, it will take slightly longer. There's no rush. Harsh as it sounds, I don't want you on the road near me if you aren't ready. Just the same as my Dad didn't want me driving if I wasn't ready. My friend Kris took us out the first night he passed - and nearly crashed. I drove to London my first time and was fine, although I had a few moments. You get better with experience. By the time the week is done, you'll be able to do all the moves and steer and brake and so on. The question is, how good will you be? Some people won't be good enough to pass, some will, some will pass easily.
I had 40 lessons. My friends thought I was being ripped off, maybe I was a bit. But by the end, I was completely ready. I was never: 'I'm bored of this stuff now, i can't wait for my test' or 'my instructor thinks I'm ready'. He never told me that. He just said one day, 'book your test up.' So I did.
In the test itself, it seemed no different to a driving lesson. On the morning of the test we had a brief lesson and I made a major f*** up. But my instructor was cool, said, 'You're good enough' and that was it. The lesson itself, I chatted to the examiner all the way round. About my job, his jobs, football, all sorts. he didn't like football. So I asked 'what do you do in your spare time?' All the time I'm looking in my mirrors, driving properly. And he must have been impressed - because he knows that in real life, passengers ask questions. You just have to be in control. My sister chatted to her examiner too, the second time (when she passed).
He asked a question and I made an error and stalled the car. Luckily, he was a top bloke and made me do the same move 6 more times, realising what had happened until I proved to him I could do it. He didn't say this and I didn't ask him, but we both knew.
Get Dad or Boyfriend (if he's over 21) to take you off-road to an old airfield or disused car-park at night. Practice parking and driving round at LESS than 5 MPH. The needle barely flickering. Find a small incline (often near a drain) with plenty of space around you in a car park and get him have you hold the car on the hill using clutch control. See what happens (when you have the car balanced) if you depress the clutch a little bit - how you go forward, or raise it up, or use the accelerator. Hold the car on a hill in reverse. Or take both feet off and stall the car. Find out HOW things happen, because if you know why you stalled the car you'll be 10X better. I taught my girlfriend off road like this and it really helped her.
These are the mistakes you make and that people still make years after they pass: Not turning the wheel enough in a 'turn in the road', stalling the engine, coasting, rolling backwards etc. Learn how to nearly stall the engine and catch it before it does. |
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Gambling
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