What the........!!!!

[instigator]

Driving Instructors

Was out with for a driving lesson the other day with a "qualified" instructor today, just to brush up on my skills. First of all, he wondered why I couldn't set off nice and smoothly, even though I'd explained to him 5 times already that I had only driven one car before(1.1 corsa) and it had a clutch and accelerator which were extremely light - the exact opposite on this car|1.4 clio)

Anyhow, it wasn't his ignorance that pissed me off, it was what was to follow - Driving along, I get onto a dual carriageway and come up behind a ice cream van, as you do....Decide, "f*ck it, I'll overtake him"

Mirrors, signal, mirrors, and a quick glance more or less than 90 degrees to my right and out I go. Nothing long, just a quick glance.
After I'd passed the van, he said, in the most serious tone, and quite harsh as welll,

"Woaw, now thats one thing you don't do.......NEVER take your eyes off the road. It's whats up front thats important, never take your eyes off the road" He said....

Erm,

"My blindspot" I intuitevly said?

"No, you don't do that to check your blindspot, just a quick glance in your mirror...."



Driving instructor for 18 years...ffs

[18aprilia]

you should have just headbutted him

[Jrod]

It's people like him that knock people like us off.

[zx636]

Maybe he was right. A car is not a bike and there should be no need for lifesavers. If you were using the mirrors you should have known what was behind you and overtook accordingly.

Now after saying that and being a bike rider I also intend occasionally to have a quick glance. Remeber, he is teaching you to drive with the intention I presume of passing your test. If in his opinion taking a quick glance is not what the examiner would be happy with then listen to him.
Bear in mind that the driving test is to show you have some idea of driving but does not really have anything to do with the real world of driving or riding.

[Ste]

[zx636]

I did not in any way dispute that cars have blind spots. I am totally aware that they do and I have even admitted to having a glance myself.

Maybe thats the flaw in the car test, Instructors and examiners dont seem expect that final glance and teach car drivers to rely solely on their mirrors.

Good or bad I was commenting on the instructor teaching for an exam pass and not what really should happen. Maybe it would be an idea to ask the instructor the reasons for not having a quick glance or to expand on his explanation.

Driving tests most certainly do not reflect everyday driving. How many of us bikers ride as we were taught or how we rode on our test.

[mattsmith95]

[Jebus]

you should keep checking all your mirriors, but dont take your eyes off the road for more than a very quick glance, unless doing manovers

[Gazdaman]

In that situation a glance in the rear mirror and one in the right wing mirror should be enough, and a glance over your shoulder if you're being very thorough.

He shouldn't have been such an ass about it, maybe a bit of praise for being 'extra safe'.

Give him a swift kick in the nuts and get a new instructor.

Gaz

[instigator]

I was only going with him to see what I needed to brush up on.

I didn't say this but I did say I'd booked my test for the 3rd of Nov. He said "yeah, you'll need another 4 lessons minimum, I'd recommend more if you can"

Talk bollocks...they just try and con you out of the money, thats the only way they earn their salary.....

[Nighteyes]

Well I'm shocked about that to say the least. All the instructers I had for my car test advised me to check my blind spot quickly before moving out. What on earth he was thinking having 'a go' at you for being a safe driver I have no idea.
So are we now to forget the fact that while you are deciding to overtake the vehicle in front, a biker may of already made that decision behind you and be in your blind spot as you start to move over to the other side of the road. Because it's only what's in front that matters?
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[instigator]

I think he knows fine well I won't be going with him again, there was plenty of tension in the car, I disagreed with every secondpoint he made on my driving...

Driving instructors....yet another con...I pity those that have to take 45 lessons or so, whereas I bet a lot only need half that...

[xxxs]

Lol
I'm not too sure where the instructor's from, but when i was going for my car licence, i failed due to not checking my blind spot! here in australia you do it changing lanes, overtaking, merging, and a few other situations i forgot to do in my test!

[Kickstart]

[True Blue]

Not checking your blind spot when overtaking in a car will give you a minor fault in your driving test.
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[Ade067]

In my opinion no matter what you are driving or riding you can NEVER have too much observation.

[WildGoose]

indeed, unfortunately it seems your everyday 'joe motorway' driver have totally forgotten about it

it often amazes me how engaged people can become with their own lane ahead of them, to the extent that if you overtake them in another lane, they will not notice you at all, often you cant even attract their attention by waving

pretty dangerous, in the wet last night, everyone was guilty of it...

car in lane 1 wants to move into lane 2, car in lane 2 panics and chucks car into lane 3 no observation nothing, i'm in lane 3, this was happening over and over and over.

people see and indicator and shite themselves (annoys me when i indicate, and suddenly people slam brakes on, swerve or whatever assuming, im gonna jump right into them IT'S JUST AN INDICATOR FFS AN INDICATION OF INTENDED MOVEMENT, it's there for your benefit!

excuse the rant, meh at driving instructor
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So in other words, he stopped you for being flagrantly in posession of a motorcycle in direct contravention of the Hippies, Darkies and People Whose Face I Don't Like The Look of (Police Powers) Act. 1976

[stinkwheel]

[WildGoose]

it does indeed "signal in plenty of time" exactly what i try to maintain,

last thing you do before you move is check your shoulder, if there is something in the way, you obviously do not move
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So in other words, he stopped you for being flagrantly in posession of a motorcycle in direct contravention of the Hippies, Darkies and People Whose Face I Don't Like The Look of (Police Powers) Act. 1976

[mr jamez]

As far as I know during the test, the only time you need to check your blind spots are when pulling away and during a 3 point turn/parralel park/rever around a corner. Other than that you are just supposed to use your mirrors. However I prefer a quick glance over my shoulder, headrests are very low and the pillars are very narrow so I get a better view of the road than I do in my mirrors

Well that is how I was taught and passed my test by doing exactly that.

[mr.z]

There are some EXTREMELY crappy instructors out there, you need only be an "above average" driver yourself, so allot of bad teaching is going on, instructors are teaching things they dont fully understand.

One indication... if you go out on a first lesson and they take you on a dual carrage way you tell all your mates "yeh he took me on a 70 road" so what did you learn? going in a straight line, wow impressive, not only that very unlikely you would you be capable of handleing a serious incident...
Another favourite is spending 15minutes by the roadside being taught every lesson, all petrol money...

The main one is if you drive and they rarely say anything, if your not being told your mistakes then what the hell are you paying them for? best instructors will pull you up on every little thing, hard work but you will be ready for a test in half the time (but again, its in their best interests to keep you stringing allong).

Average lessons is 23/6, some less, occasionally more.

If i were you i'd look for your local iam/roaspa group, that will help allot more i think...
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>RidingSkills<->Tech Tips<->MyBikes<

[stinkwheel]

[WildGoose]

you do make a good point, and i may well have failed my test for it

but.... i've done my test, and hopefully wont have to repeat such unpleasentness again

indicator is generally the first thing i put on, then all the observations later, cant see the harm in it, as it gives other people an idea of what you want to do, i'd like to think they wouldnt panic, but if the majority of people are going by what you say i guess i can see why they would

i'm still here, so i must be doing something right, my only serious accident was caused by a van driver using his indicator during a maneouvre i saw 1 maybe 2 flashes, by then he was already in front of me as i was accelerating, maybe this is why i tend to overuse it

if he had read further into the road conditions ahead, he would have known he needed to lane change, it would have done me all kind of favours to know what he was planning to do, then maybe i wouldnt have tried to pass him

i was going too fast, but i do think he was in the wrong also, and old habits are hard to kill... but i'm not planning on advanced motoring, after reading roadcraft it seemed to make it all very clinical and sap the enjoyment

but good point, well made
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So in other words, he stopped you for being flagrantly in posession of a motorcycle in direct contravention of the Hippies, Darkies and People Whose Face I Don't Like The Look of (Police Powers) Act. 1976

[mchaggis]

The only indicating when you're moving lanes, rather than showing that you're going to change lanes strikes me as a bit odd really. If it's perfectly clear (ie when you pull out into a gap), then there's bugger all point to indicating anyway.

I personally think it's because people are taught to indicate for changing lanes, but are too lazy to check properly so will tend to move over with the indicator as a nod to civility. Hence people are always scared of things indicating next to them, (especially artics ), because they think it's about to pull out into them.


If everyone indicated in good time so that people had fair warning to expect something, then everything would be hunky dorey. Besides, if waiting to pull out into a traffic flow with indicators on is a test fail , how is the traffic supposed to know what you want to do? They quite often give you a gap in heavy slow traffic to let you out, if you were just sat there without indicators, they'd drive merrily by.

It all sounds very unclear and obviously is the cause of more than a few accidents...

Ontopic, it sounds to me like car drivers aren't taught or assessed to nearly the same extent as motorcyclists... Not checking your blind spot before you overtake? Madness. It shouldn't be any different to any other manoeuver.

[stinkwheel]

Your road positioning should be sufficient to indicate to other drivers that you would like to change lanes.

And you are correct, if it is not going to be useful to anyone, there is no need to signal, just change lanes. I do it all the time.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.