Driving and Automobiles

Two of our grandsons are 16 years old this year. Actually Ryan turned 16 in April and Shawn will be 16 in July. When teenagers turn 16 their plan is to get their drivers permit. I think my grandsons would probably not believe that I can remember when I turned 16 and got my driving permit. Some things just stick in your head very clearly. My father started teaching me in his car. It was a little hard because it was a standard shift so you had to learn that first and then you could concentrate on the road. This was in my Junior year of high school. During my Senior year I took Drivers Ed. After finishing the course I took my drivers test, and failed. When you took the test it wasn't like today where they tell you right away whether you passed or failed. You had to wait a week or two until they mailed you the results. So back to practicing. During one of my practice driving sessions with my father we had a incident. I believe I showed my father I could handle myself in an emergency. There was smoke and flames coming out from under the hood. I very calmly pulled the car over and we all got out. At this time there were no cell phones. On the light poles on corners there were fire alarms that you pulled. My father did that and very shortly the fire department showed and put out the fire. I' m sure my brothers, who were 7and 5 at the time and with us in the car, thought it was the most fun drive they ever went on. There was a time period before you could apply again, so it was after I graduated that I could take the test again . When that day came my Father had to work and Tom had to work so my future father-in-law offered to take me. He worked nights so was available in the afternoon. When we got there he got out of the car and I started my test driving down the road and around the corner. It then started to rain, I didn't panic just pulled over to turn the wipers on. This was a very new 1960 Pontaic Ventura and I had no idea where the wiper knob would be found. The inspector had no clue either so we hunted around until we found it. Meanwhile Tom's father is waiting in the pouring rain. I had a very short test and returned to pick him up. I thought for sure I failed again, you really should know your car very well. I did pass!! So some tips for the new drivers. First practice, practice, practice. Try to take the test with a car you have driven many times. Do not text or talk on the phone while driving. Always keep two hands on the wheel.