Rode in the back seat while my teenager was driving. OMG! How do...

[Phentex]

people survive the teen learning to drive thing?

My palms were sweating. My husband kept telling me to be quiet (squeals, gasps) but I swear we just about took out MORE than a few mailboxes. He seems to hug the right side of the road and my husband wasn't correcting until the last second. Geez-oh-pete! He kept telling my son, "You can go a little faster than 15." And I was thinking GOD NO, SLOW! SLOWER! SLOW!

I thought they were a little further along than this since they've been practicing since last fall. There's no good place to practice around here that doesn't seem dangerous.

Thank god he's enrolled in driving school this summer.

Suggestions?

:scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared:

[hobbit709]

1. don't ride along.

[Phentex]

2. Will. Not. Do. That. Again...

until he's 20 or so. :)

[HopeHoops]

3. Strong sedatives

[Phentex]

11. Yes...

something to take the edge off. :)

[HopeHoops]

16. Actually, I'm in the process of teaching my middle of three daughters.

The eldest (almost 20) is an excellent driver. The middle one is almost 18 but still working on the skills. The youngest just turned 16 and isn't even interested in getting a learner's permit yet.

It takes patience, strong nerves, and a nice safe empty parking lot to get started. The main problem the middle one had initially was not pealing out every time she took off. Sure, it is a mini-van, but it has a 3.4ltr Pontiac engine and can seriously kick ass. I got a new set of Michelin HydroEdge tires and that's helped quite a bit. She's also learned to ease into the pedal.

On a historical note, I was a complete asshole on the road when I was in high school. Having kids mellows most people quite a bit. There's something about having that special package in the baby seat that makes you realize that your motorhead dick isn't the most important thing in the world.

[Phentex]

20. I drive like an old lady...

even when I commute, I stay to the right and I try to avoid anybody.

I learned to drive on a dirt road in the sticks. And "in town" the top speed limit was 35.

Atlanta drivers all seem very impatient.

[alphafemale]

22. ATLANTA? Oh SHIT!!!

That's some hard core driving skills required there!

You don't DARE use your turn signal there because it will give away your intentions and they will speed up to Cut You Off!

LOL!

I actually Love Driving the Atlanta Corridor. But it IS possibly the most aggressive driving in the US.

That's WHY I love it.

[Phentex]

23. Yes, and there is never a time when the orange barrels are gone...

metal plates everywhere, streets that became one way overnight, etc.

I am overjoyed somebody finally fixed the crater on the 285 ramp to 85 northbound (spaghetti junction). I swear to you, it was a sudden 6 inch drop making for a lovely sound when you made it out the other side. I avoided it when I could but worried for night-time drivers who would be caught off guard. I screamed with joy the other day when I realized it had been repaired.

[HopeHoops]

27. I can still rip up the pavement if need be, but I'm generally pretty mellow on the road now.

[Bunny]

4. I'm going through this now.

My oldest is learning. When she first started, I was teaching her and I just could not take the stress. Every time I'd try to give her instructions she'd get either flustered or pissed off, and by the time the lesson was done we'd both be snarling at each other. The last straw came when she stopped at a stop sign and then proceeded to pull out RIGHT IN FRONT OF a car coming from her left. Honest to god, I don't know how we didn't get crunched. I finally gave up and paid for professional driving school, which she successfully completed just this week. I rode with her yesterday for the first time in months, and everything was going fine until she made a right turn practically on two wheels and then went barrelling up this winding, curvy country road going at least 10 miles above the speed limit.

She takes her test in a few weeks and we have more practice driving to do before then. I'm not sure I'll make it....

[Phentex]

12. There's hope I guess...

I know he needs to practice but finding a place without buses and taxi vans and stopped vehicles is scary right now. But that's what he'll have to deal with anyway. *sigh*

[PJPhreak]

5. Get him a Go-Cart...

With a bit of power (6-10 hp Briggs motor) Their cheap,easy to fix and he will learn to drive better than one might think...he will learn how to handle fishtailing,skidding,sliding in all directions among other things.

all with the benifit of softer grass and dirt and no other traffic or as many obstacles

[Phentex]

13. We had neighbor kids with go carts when I was growing up...

but we also had lots of land to drive on. I don't know where he could drive one here where we live.

But I WILL take him to the go cart places here. I think that's a great idea.

[PJPhreak]

31. look up Carting Clubs in your area,

they run both dirt and pavement,are REALLY big on safety and safe driving practices and the kids have a Rippin time to boot!

Lotsa times the clubs have their own courses,again both dirt and pavement.

[alphafemale]

6. I had THREE teens I was teaching to drive a STICK-SHIFT

My daughter, son and step-daughter.

We rat-a-tat-tatted a guard-rail and back-drifted on a slope into another vehicle on a start. Funny. On that one step-daughter tried to panic drive away. :rofl:

I was like "No. Put it into park. Roll down your window. Be charming."

[Phentex]

14. LOL! ...

You must have nerves of steel!

[alphafemale]

21. Pretty Much.

My Flow Chart synopsis of Life Situations is More or less...

Are we going to Die?

No. Okay then. No need to panic.


Yes. Okay then. No need to panic.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

30. Put it into Park? Stick-shifts have "park"?

What do I know, haven't seen a stick-shift car in years.

:hi:

[alphafemale]

33. OK Emergency Brake then. Details!!! Harummphph!

:hi:

[seabeyond]

7. i KNOW. i am doing the same with my son and a couple months ago was going to start a thread

after he goes to make a left turn and instead of hitting his side of divider with lanes that had no cars, he was trying to go on the side of dividers where cars where sittin at their red light. i am turning wheel to get him into his lane, lol

it is a hoot. i said the same thing.... where are these kids suppose to learn, because i tell ya, took a long time for my son to get it. the last couple times out with him has been night and day, in difference. he lost the fear and gets it. much more comfortable. much smoother driving. but i hear ya.

buckle in, hold on, and a big heavy trooper, not my car.

[Phentex]

15. Seems a simple idea ya know...

a place out in the burbs with a driving course that included curbs, 4 way stops, divided lanes, some stopped city buses and brick mailboxes. Why doesn't somebody do this? I'd pay for a safe zone for him to practice.

[seabeyond]

24. i havent had the nerve yet to get him on the freeways and that speed, lol. nt

[sarge43]

8. Get knee walking drunk. When the cops pull you over,

claim he kidnaped you, refuse all DNA testing, leave the country.

[Phentex]

17. Love it!...

driving with a teen is similar to being tortured I think. I'd spill my darkest secrets to be removed from the car!

[sarge43]

29. Enhanced Interrogation Technique

"You will be forced to teach a teenager how to drive."

[elleng]

9. My suggestion? Driver's Ed.

SO BAD that its not offered anymore. Daughters took course from AAA.

Daughters driving w their father while learning was a TOTAL disaster, and perfectly expected (by me.)

SUGGESTION: Parents, do NOT attempt to teach your children to drive.

:hi:
:dilemma:

[Phentex]

18. ALL Children Left Behind...

I don't know many schools that can offer it anymore and it's a shame. So driving school it is. Those instructors earn every dime!

[madmom]

10. When my daughter was first learning, I took her to the high school parking lot, we

live close. I had her drive in the painted lanes, no going over a line, and park,until she was comfortable enough to go out on the road.Now I'm more comfortable with her driving than I am with my hubby's.:crazy:

[Phentex]

19. He's been in the Home Depot parking lot...

I think a mall parking lot would be okay, too but you don't have curbs and potholes. :)

My husband took him to one of the larger Marta parking lots but they got kicked out.

[MorningGlow]

25. Professional driving lessons

My parents tried to teach me all of twice. Then they abdicated in favor of paying a Very Calm Professional (with her own brake pedal on the passenger side) to take over. Wisest use of tightly controlled funds EVAR.

[Phentex]

36. Probably so...

he'll have time in a car with the pro. I just think he might need years of it!

[MiddleFingerMom]

26. MiddleFingerMomMom was the world's WORST passenger/co-pilot.

.
.
.
She would sit forward all tensed up and make sharp intakes of breath, "almost"
sub-lingual exclamations, and SLAM on her non-existent brake pedal.
.
.
.
On family vacations, MiddleFingerMomDad would be able to take it for about
20-30 minutes, pull over to the side of the road, and just look at her and
say, "It's time".
.
.
.
She would swap seats with one of us kids in the back.
.
:rofl:
.
.
.
As an adult, when I was driving her around 40 years later, I would sometimes
have to look over at her and ask her if she would be more comfortable riding
in the back seat.
.
:rofl::rofl::rofl:
.
.
.

[Phentex]

37. I had trouble with the side hugging...

couldn't he feel the tires going off the edge of the road?????

I almost had them drop me off so I could walk back.

[graywarrior]

28. I almost just accepted a job as a driving instructor until I sat in on a lesson

I'd end up on valium and gin everyday at that job.

[Phentex]

38. They must do something!...

Or take something or pray a lot...something! I wonder how many accidents they've been in?

[trof]

32. You got a cemetary? That's where I learned.

Streets, but no traffic.
Usually.
Grandpa taught me on a straight shift.

When he thought I was advanced enough, he put an almost full glass of water on the roof.
When I could drive and shift without spilling any water, I was pronounced 'graduated' and ready to get my license.
:-)

[Phentex]

39. That's an idea...

I'll have to check.

But I'd sure hate for my son to destroy a headstone. :scared:

[TheCanadianLiberal]

34. When I was 10.....

I was told to go drive this gigantic old ford truck we had out through the fields after we hayed them. For the next 6 years I drove that old work out POS around fields and by the time I was 16 I knew how it all worked.

Looking back I know why they told me too, they'd rather not have to teach me the basics at 16. It was still dangerous though but great fun.

[Phentex]

40. It's good when you have a place like that...

I drove in the middle of nowhere, too, and then later started driving very short distances with my mom. It's a wonder I survived since I had so little skill at driving!

[kimi]

35. I tried to teach my oldest son to drive once

Took him to a big old parking lot, and figured I had the patience and skills to get him on the road in no time.

20 minutes later, I was ready for a big drink, a Valium, and a trip to my therapist. And this was ten in the morning. I never attempted to teach any of my 5 boys to drive again, and never drove with them in the car till they had driver's licenses. I'm still not entirely comfortable with a couple of them driving.

My tip -- don't drive with them, have a professional do it. Or someone who has done it before, with loads of successful graduates. Good luck!

[Phentex]

41. I never knew my husband to be the more patient one...

I can handle babies, toddlers and teens with all the patience in the world. But this driving thing? Freaked me the hell out! I didn't think we were going to die or anything. I just imagined the cost of replacing people's mailboxes, landscapes, the car damage, etc.

[seaglass]

42. Driving with my daughter now is more stressful than when I was teaching her.

It seems that once they get their license they think they know everything.

My daughter has a really bad habit of taking really tight turns when she pulls into a road and it makes me crazy. When she - very infrequently - drives me, we usually end up in an argument.