Blogging is harder than it looks!

OK, well, I already knew that.  It’s just like any other habit that doesn’t quite come naturally at first.

I have so many topics I want to cover, so instead of dwelling on the steadily accumulating pile of unpublished drafts, I thought it might be a good idea to make a list of some of the topics I plan to write about.

As for the “grand plan.”

Well, clearly a huge makeover is in order. This thing started back in the beginning of WordPress and blogs in general. So I will just say here that I plan to enlist some expertise from my friends who know all about this stuff. Looks-wise and search engine wise. [Look out, said friends!]

Back to that list of topics.

Here’s just a few – really a fraction of the HUNDREDS of topics that Adam and I have discussed over the years.

1. Why you should think of driving as a martial art
2. The ABCs of TEAM Driving (we have topics for every letter in the alphabet – and then some!)
3. Intersections to avoid
4. Transactional Analysis – a dusty and old but useful categorization of driving behaviors. (PARENT, ADULT, CHILD)
5. How we got here (the short history of TEAM Driving)
6. What we’d like parents of new drivers in PA to know
7. What DO parents of soon-to-be young drivers WANT to know?
8. “T” is for Tailgating [refer to #2 above!] and “L” is for left-hand turns.
9. Learning differences
10. Teaching disabilities
11. Can there ever be such a thing as “sustainable” ["green"] driving? (YES!)
12. Tapping into the survival instinct – The Gift of Fear
13. Stories of Near Misses on the Roadways
14. Stories from the road in general
15. Matchbox cars
16. Cars: Why do we love them so? It’s a room/den. It’s a steed/airplane. And it’s all MINE! Your Inner CavePerson has a serious involvement with these contraptions…

This list will grow. This is just a start.

Not to mention…another post!

Please stay tuned!

He’s cute, isn’t he? And legend has it that he’s wise, as well.

But the reason we chose him as our mascot is – can anyone guess?

We chose him because we want our students to mimic his way of seeing:

“Although owls have binocular vision, their large eyes are fixed in their sockets, as with other birds, and they must turn their entire head to change views. Most birds of prey sport eyes on the sides of their heads, but the stereoscopic nature of the owl’s forward-facing eyes permits a greater sense of depth perception necessary for low-light hunting.”

Depth perception! Did you know that many people lack the necessary depth perception to distinguish which of multiple oncoming vehicles is traveling at a faster rate? And most will be unaware of this fairly common vision deficiency until it’s too late. It’s not tested in most states when you go for a license. That explains why some drivers will turn right in front of you when it’s too late for you to stop in time. Even many commercial drivers’ licenses don’t require this test, so that means there are thousands of bus, tractor trailer and taxi drivers moving at high speeds who are going to misjudge and screw up in a potentially fatal manner.

Turning your entire head – we call it a “head check” – to see that blind spot on either side of your vehicle is a critical skill for changing lanes, but do you know how many drivers think that their mirrors are all they need to maintain a proper space cushion? (It’s an easy answer: Too many) And some of them are adamant on this point. I had a former manager who drove like this; it wasn’t the only thing he was stupid about, either.

Wiki does a decent job of making the case for the head check:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blind_spot_%28vehicle%29

Check it out! And the next time you’re changing lanes, maybe give it a whirl. You can follow the move with the TEAM Driving theme song: “HOOT! HOOOOOOT!”

So I ask you this, dear reader:

Do you think there are parents out there who are knowingly lying when they sign the 50-hour form?

If you said ‘yes,’ then you are right. Is that something to keep in mind as you enter the roadway?

HELLO!?!?! Think about it!

People under the age of 17, with less than 50 hours behind the wheel, going speeds that require stopping distances many, many times the average car lengths allowed on a typical highway. Who thinks about that as they merge into traffic? (You will now, though, right?)

But I just can’t figure out the part about the parents! Here you have a life that you brought into existence, spent the better part (qualitatively!) of your own life, in most cases, worrying about and taking care of, and, presumably, love and cherish more than anyone who has not walked in the shoes of parenthood can possibly imagine.

WHY would you go (blindly) along with the notion (yes! it’s a NOTION!) that ANYONE 16 and a half is ready to drive that multi-ton vehicle/weapon with any less than 200 hours of time logged behind the wheel?

I just

don’t

get it.

But I have what I think is a good new rule for young people who want a drivers’ license:

Drive every single day possible in those 6 months between your permit and your test. Even if you’re just going around the block a few times. Every day; rain or shine. If weather conditions are terrible, find an empty parking lot or private property owned by someone who has given you permission, and see what the car does in those bad weather conditions.

180 days could add up to just 100 hours, and to a busy household it’s a challenge. And it may sound like a lot of driving compared to the 50 that PENNDOT asks for.

But PLEASE trust me on this one: It’s a DROP in the bucket of experience that could save lives, anguish, and least important of all, money.