herratik: Toonz Schools upgrade driver's ed with high-speed skids, spinouts, BMWs, Starbucks coffee

Man, we never got a handjob with our lessons.

I do not think that word means what you think it means...in any event, wanna go for a "Starbucks"? ;)

I could use a "hot latte". Maybe afterwards, we could go get a "gentleman's tax return"?

/obscure? I hope not.

NightOwl2255: *****************ATTENTION*******************

Whoopty is a troll and should be ignored as such.

Gee, you would think adults would be able to handle differing opinions a little better than this. But I guess in Nightowl's world, a difference of opinion is not something to be debated, it is something to be shouted down and silenced. That is quite a policy you have there, Nightowl, Bravo.

Whoopty Whoo The Precious Bongo Boy: NightOwl2255: *****************ATTENTION*******************

Whoopty is a troll and should be ignored as such.

Gee, you would think adults would be able to handle differing opinions a little better than this. But I guess in Nightowl's world, a difference of opinion is not something to be debated, it is something to be shouted down and silenced. That is quite a policy you have there, Nightowl, Bravo.

NightOwl2255: The first lesson every driver should learn:

Right, because if there is one thing everyone should know about driving it is to make sure speeders are able to drive like maniacs without any kind of obstacles.

Whoopty Whoo The Precious Bongo Boy: Gee, lets teach our children to be aggressive and violent. That would never lead to something bad.

People wonder why society has a problem? It is because of nonsense like this.

Actually.. I learned self-control and how NOT to use violence, by taking several different martial arts courses over the years.

I also learned how to drive in Montana, in the snow and ice. Our teacher was a stock car driver (not NASCAR, but regional...) Quote: "The faster you can go, and still remain in control of your vehicle, the better driver you are."

He would take us out to an abandoned airstrip near the school to learn how to recover from slides and avoid accidents. This was over 20 years ago. Oh yeah, the cars were stick too..

I've only been in ONE accident with another car that was my fault, even though I've been hit a number of times. I've also trashed a few cars all by myself.. but that's different.

/I know.. don't feed the troll.. But he's getting better refined..

Go to any high-school parking lot when school lets out and watch the fun. Holy crap I don't know how those kids keep from killing each other.

I think they should raise the driving age to 18 and offer classes like this. I don't know exactly what they do in this particular class but they should be teaching evasive maneuvers as well. This is like where they set up a situation of someone going wrong (eg. someone pulling in front of you) and then you have to figure out what to do. Very good practice. The motorcycle course I took is the only "driving" course I know of that teaches that stuff but all drivers need it.

they should teach these kids evasive driving maneuvers ... in case the terrorists ever chase them.

Whoopty Whoo The Precious Bongo Boy: NightOwl2255: The first lesson every driver should learn:

Right, because if there is one thing everyone should know about driving it is to make sure speeders are able to drive like maniacs without any kind of obstacles.

Exactly. Your dumb slow ass doesn't need to be passing a car doing 69, when you're doing 70.5. Let me go on past at 75 - 80 and stop blocking traffic..Yes.. TRAFFIC.. when you've got more than 4 cars bunched up behind you, you're the problem.

I'm hoping I get road tested next time my license is up for renewal. I been wanting to try parallel parking like in the Audi A4 commercial.

Aevum:
/She taught me how to double-clutch before I got my license 2 weeks later.

Why? Did her Z28 not have synchros?

ghoti_nap: "The faster you can go, and still remain in control of your vehicle, the better driver you are."

Teaching teenagers to drive at high speeds with aggressive movements is the height of irresponsibility, and I would say that anyone who has taught children to drive in that fashion should be held liable for any injuries or damage sustained when those drivers eventually crash.

ghoti_nap: Exactly. Your dumb slow ass doesn't need to be passing a car doing 69, when you're doing 70.5. Let me go on past at 75 - 80 and stop blocking traffic..Yes.. TRAFFIC.. when you've got more than 4 cars bunched up behind you, you're the problem.

Again...irresponsible. Your desire to drive unsafe is secondary to my desire to maintain a safe flow of traffic on the highway. Sorry.

Due to liability, we no longer allow physical participation in our driving test. Please proceed from Point A to Point B using this simulator.

FTA: "Driver's education in this country is sort of a joke," he said. "We aren't really taught how to drive. We're taught how to pass the test."

spectacular idea. rather than restricting kids from having other kids in the car, let's educate them properly.

i'll say it again: spectacular idea.

FTFA: Every 19 seconds, a young driver crashes a car.

Dear God, take his license away already!

vodka
The motorcycle course I took is the only "driving" course I know of that teaches that stuff but all drivers need it.

I remember watching my classmates as they rode directly towards the instructor at about 30mph. When they got close enough he would put up one of his arms and you would have to go around him the OPPOSITE side. His arm represented an obstacle that had supposedly appeared suddenly in front of you and on that side.
Every time one of the worse students would take off I would think "Someone is going to freeze up and plow him". But I underestimated his experience and he quite deftly dodged out of the way when one of the girls froze up and just went straight.

I think everyone should have to take one of those motorcycle courses, and pass, and drive a bike for a year, before getting a car license.
As a daily rider I push this idea all the time. People think it's the bikes and the bikers that are dangerous, but that's not true, it's everybody the fark else. Sure there are asshats on two wheels that do stupid shiat and get themselves killed (and every once in awhile someone else), but for the most part we're safer that 99% of the people in the cages.

When you ride, you learn to pay attention to riding, not f'ing with the radio, or talking to passengers, or on the phone, or texting, or drinking, or eating, or any one of a dozen other things that are not "piloting your damn vehicle". You learn this real fast. After the first time I almost plowed into someone because I wasn't paying attention I paid a farkload more attention. It was alot more frightening than the first time I almost plowed someone in a car.
Within a few weeks you notice EVERYTHING going on around you on the road. You track every single car and you start to notice all the little twitches and warning signs that this asshat is about to come into your lane with no blinker. You learn to dodge instead of brake because it's safer. You learn to manage your power and to always know how much you've got left, be you on a 500cc endo or a 1300cc super sport.

But it all comes down to having to pay attention. Because if you don't you suffer. Seriously suffer. Kids these days need some more suffering to brighten them up a bit.

This is really cool. I just passed my US exam and it was scary how damn easy it was compared to the UK system - 2 weeks of studying and 15 minutes around a car park compared to the UK system which can take months to pass.

I took a professional lesson here where I asked about advanced driver courses and just got a blank stare.

Wonder if they'll let a 24 year old into these courses...

Oh, forgot to mention that in the UK there's "Advanced Driving Courses" where you learn this kind of thing and can get a discount on your insurance for taking them.

Great idea and one that's sorely needed in the US.

impaler: Kids should learn to drive an auto before a manual.

No point in trying to teach how to drive a manual when they don't even have steering/breaking down to a subconscious level.

Making things more complicated doesn't make people learn faster.

Maybe it would help to realize that not every family is wealthy enough to afford an automatic, and that by denying students the opportunity to learn to drive a manual, they would essentially be telling poor students that driving is for the wealthy only. Teaching to drive both should be required if it isn't already.

Duck_of_Doom: Skid recovery and other safe driving practices have zilch to do with being or teaching aggression and violence. You can get into a skid on ice, but also rain, snow, or sand/quickdry. Having mismatched tires or bald tires will definitely affect your control of a vehicle. Even misjudging the curve of a road can set you off if you're going too fast into it. There are many reasons to learn these techniques.

Here is what should be taught...if its snowing, don't drive. There. That takes care of having to teach aggressive driving techniques.

Pontiac G6 != Bimmer

Whoopty Whoo The Precious Bongo Boy [TotalFark]
Teaching teenagers to drive at high speeds with aggressive movements is the height of irresponsibility, and I would say that anyone who has taught children to drive in that fashion should be held liable for any injuries or damage sustained when those drivers eventually crash.

Completely agree. However you are straw-manning by forgetting to include the words "how" and "safely". Teaching teenagers how to drive at high speeds with aggressive movements safely; is actually quite a good idea. If you (the parent) have taught your child proper responsibility all along (from birth) then they should be able to handle this new knowledge in a responsible way, making them better prepared for the real road where a huge portion of the population drives like a moron.


Again...irresponsible. Your desire to drive unsafe is secondary to my desire to maintain a safe flow of traffic on the highway. Sorry.

Sorry, you're in a fantasy world here. 90% of the people on a multi-lane-per-direction road (like the freeway I use every day) are going 10-20mph over the speed limit (unless there's so much traffic that it physically prevents them from doing so). This is just truth. It has nothing to do with responsible driving or safety, it's just true.
In light of this truth, it's actually safer for those who are going the speed limit or slower to be in the right lane. This is safer for everyone as when you go the speed limit in the left lane you begin to back up traffic, causing people to go even slower, and to get more and more frustrated. This inevitably causes someone to do something stupid that results in a very high risk of collision.

Kids need to be taught realistic driving far more than the "safe ideal" driving. Because the system we have now is an obvious failure. People drive fast and reckless anyway, I wish more of them knew how to handle their vehicles while doing so.

impaler
Kids should learn to drive an auto before a manual.
No point in trying to teach how to drive a manual when they don't even have steering/breaking down to a subconscious level.
Making things more complicated doesn't make people learn faster.

No, but it does make them learn how to drive a car better. Once they learn to drive an auto "subconsciously" they then need to learn to stop driving subconsciously so that they can learn to drive all over again to learn a stick.
I taught an ex-GF how to drive a stick after she'd only driven autos for 5 years. It took me three times as long as it took me to teach a friend's little sister how to drive a stick, and she'd never driven anything before.
/It's not like it's that hard anyway

My son will be going to Car Control school and Young Drivers of Canada when he turns 16. (http://www.carcontrolschool.com/)

There is nothing more dangerous than an oblivious unskilled driver on the roads. ( Whoopty Whoop comes to mind... )

I've had MANY occasions when high speed abrupt maneuvers have saved me from hitting someone or something. I'm also an experience track rat, and like abusing my car frequently during the warmer months.

The roads are full of scary idiots trying to kill you. Drive like that and you're much safer.

/Approves of the upgraded driving school
//Whoopty Whoops can DIAF

impaler: Kids should learn to drive an auto before a manual.

No point in trying to teach how to drive a manual when they don't even have steering/breaking down to a subconscious level.

Making things more complicated doesn't make people learn faster.

What? This post is all kinds of stupid. Learning on a manual forces you to pay better attention to what the hell you're doing on the road. Learning on a manual should be mandatory.

Hell, if I had it my way autos would be banned period. The last thing we need are all the idiots currently out there doing their "point and shoot" driving.

Senor Revington: herratik:

I do not think that word means what you think it means...in any event, wanna go for a "Starbucks"? ;)

lol I was going to say the same thing.

You guys like money? I like money. We should totally hang out.

some_random_guy
Pontiac G6 != Bimmer

Reading comprehension != optional

FTFA: "Andrew Gingras stepped on the gas, and the BMW speed climbed to 50 mph"

Scrounger: some_random_guy
Pontiac G6 != Bimmer

Reading comprehension != optional

FTFA: "Andrew Gingras stepped on the gas, and the BMW speed climbed to 50 mph"

They're talking about the picture.

Perhaps you should listen to your own words.

stryker4526
Hell, if I had it my way autos would be banned period. The last thing we need are all the idiots currently out there doing their "point and shoot" driving.

While I agree with the rest of your post I think that people should have the option of an auto. In fact, I'm really starting to like CVT's, which are as auto as it gets. Sometimes they're just better... like when you're in traffic all the time... on hills (fark you San Fran!).
Can't wait to try out a CVT motorcycle.

We do need to do SOMETHING about people who can't drive though.
However, it'll never get done because the majority are those who can't drive.

SpamBot: //Whoopty Whoops can DIAF

well, if more teenagers learn to drive like you, they will be the ones to DIAF. And people like you will be the ones who are responsible, so congrats on getting to work 3 minutes earlier than those who drive safely. I am sure it was well worth it.

Everyone in the "learning to drive a stick should be mandatory" camp, can you tell me where you're from and what kind of car you drive? I drive a stick and while I agree that it makes you a more conscientious driver, a healthy majority of people under 30 in the US have no idea how to drive a stick, never mind even finding a car with one. Coming from a family that exclusively drives stick, I can tell you that many US production models don't even have the option anymore and if they do technically offer it, they're nearly impossible to find once you actually tell the dealership you want one.

I think it would help if everyone drove stick and therefore had more real control of their cars, but we are moving towards an all automatic culture where people treat real driving like video game driving.

I started autocrossing at age 16, and it took me a season or two to look even halfway convincing in a competition setting.

These driver education events are great, but they'd be even better if they lasted a whole semester or longer. Practice makes perfect.

CVT motorcycle? Go ride a scooter or get an old Hondamatic.

Philliam.H.Muffman
Everyone in the "learning to drive a stick should be mandatory" camp, can you tell me where you're from and what kind of car you drive?

From Hawaii, currently Nevada. I just drive my ZX6r right now (motorcycle) but before this I drove an '02 Celica GTS (stick). My GF drives a '98 Neon (also stick).

I can tell you that many US production models don't even have the option anymore and if they do technically offer it, they're nearly impossible to find once you actually tell the dealership you want one.

Actually I find that most of them DO have one, they just don't stock them at dealerships. When you do see them they're either on the strippy models or the sports cars. Finding a sedan with a stick and power windows was almost impossible.
For most people a stick either means "cheap" or "racecar!" which is sad. For me a stick means control. Sometimes I krinkle my forehead in wonder at the people using their brakes on the freeway. I think "why not just take your foot off the gas?". But then I had to drive my GF parent's truck (auto) and saw that when I took my foot off the gas at freeway speeds I didn't slow down! Right... forgot about how when you take your foot off the gas in an auto it puts it in neutral or something. grr.

I think it would help if everyone drove stick and therefore had more real control of their cars, but we are moving towards an all automatic culture where people treat real driving like video game driving.

Wise_Guy: I was always impressed with the driver's ed instructor's ability to get everyone drive time, go someplace different every day and make it back to school in time for the next class.

That, and we used to go through the McDonalds drive-thru on Fridays.

Hey, that drive thru time is important - given how we're a bunch of fatasses, we need to know how to properly order food as the driver.

Philliam.H.Muffman: Everyone in the "learning to drive a stick should be mandatory" camp, can you tell me where you're from and what kind of car you drive? I drive a stick and while I agree that it makes you a more conscientious driver, a healthy majority of people under 30 in the US have no idea how to drive a stick, never mind even finding a car with one. Coming from a family that exclusively drives stick, I can tell you that many US production models don't even have the option anymore and if they do technically offer it, they're nearly impossible to find once you actually tell the dealership you want one.

I think it would help if everyone drove stick and therefore had more real control of their cars, but we are moving towards an all automatic culture where people treat real driving like video game driving.

I'm in Michigan and I drive a '91 Ford Thunderbird SC.

impaler

I'm pretty certain you're a troll now. You have no idea what you're talking about. Go drive a stick for awhile and see how hard it is and how you have to concentrate so much harder and hurt your little brain, then come back once you figure out that you're just spewing BS.

impaler: Actually moron, and this isn't opinion: the human mind has LIMITED ability to concentrate. If you have to concentrate on acceleration, braking and traffic laws WHILE you try to figure out how to operate a manual, you will suffer learning BOTH skills.

It is indeed a fact that humans have a limited ability to concentrate, but learning to drive a manual is not beyond the capabilities of most people.

Jake Steed: pay attention to what the morons around you are doing.

My version of that phrase wasn't so harsh until I moved to Waco. Many of the drivers in Waco truly are morons.

I taught myself how to recover from a spin. Now I know what my car feel like when it is about to spin and I can better avoid those situations. If the situation is unavoidable, I still have some control over the car. That is why everyone should learn how to recover from spins.

Aevum

Actually I find that most of them DO have one, they just don't stock them at dealerships. When you do see them they're either on the strippy models or the sports cars. Finding a sedan with a stick and power windows was almost impossible.

See, that's what I mean. Technically, most production cars are listed as having a manual transmission option. But if you go and try to get one, it's very difficult. And if you want specific options plus a stick shift, you're usually totally screwed. So we're almost being pushed towards buying automatics by making the process of getting a stick shift so impossible.

impaler

You're funny.

Let the big boys talk now.