Breaking My Senior Superlative

As the proud though reluctant recipient of my high school’s “Most Accident Prone” senior superlative, the submission of an essay on the topic of safe driving may seem, well, accidental. Everyone says comparison is the thief of joy, but whenever my friends were stressed out over their own embarrassing moments, they could take solace in the fact that I have done something far more humbling. They hit a mailbox swerving a squirrel? Don’t sweat it, I ran myself over with my own car. Accident prone or not, the importance of driving education and safe driving habits can and does save lives. My personal experiences have taught me the responsibility and maturity that every driver must uphold each time they get behind the wheel.

After two summers of saving, I bought my first car: a tan, 2002 Dodge Intrepid from the old lady up the road. At my high school, a driver’s education course was mandatory for all juniors. It was also highly recommended that new drivers should take driving lessons through the local driving school before their official driving test. These lessons included merging/driving on the highway, navigating the local round-a-bout, right of way examples, parallel parking, and other day-to-day driving matters. Driving education is incredibly important; it teaches young drivers not only what to expect on the road, but how to react when things are unexpected. For example, my first time on the highway in those lessons, I was petrified. Learning about a car’s blind spot made me rethink getting my license entirely. My instructor taught me when I was in someone’s blind spot, how to check my own, and what to do in different “blind spot” situations. Part of being a good driver is someone’s reaction time and instinct, but everything about being a safe driver comes from education and awareness.

My car, lovingly coined “the granny-mobile”, has been through three accidents, including running myself over. The first was about a month after I got my license, on a foggy, rainy December morning on a back road. I hit a patch of gravel and proceeded to hydroplane into the sign of the local farmer’s market. Losing control of my car and helplessly pumping the brakes as I got closer to the sign is a feeling I still remember vividly. My father fixed up the sign, and with a new headlight my Dodge was back on the road, though I haven’t shown my face in Hollabaugh’s market since. Six months later, I rear-ended a 2023 SUV on my way home from school. It was just my luck that this couple was driving this brand-new car home from the dealership. For the half hour it took for a cop to arrive at the scene, the couple gave me a piece of their mind as I blubbered an apology. Thankfully, once the wife realized I had only bent their tailpipe while my car was undrivable, she kindly offered me a bottle of water. After that accident, the granny-mobile got an upgrade: a scrap hood from our local junkyard, spray painted a stylish black, that perfectly accented the tan color of the rest of my clunker car.

Finally, and most embarrassing of all, one fateful day that summer I ran screaming from my car because a wasp flew in my window. While I made it out unstung, I failed to put my car that I had just put into reverse back into park. For someone with such a fear of bees, I had no fear or doubt that I could stop my now rolling car from leaving my driveway. I confidently grabbed my open car door, which threw me to the concrete and dragged me halfway into the road. However, I would like to note, I did in fact stop the car from hitting anything besides myself as it came to a stop once the front tire rolled onto my right ankle. I managed to get my foot out from under the car and into the driver’s seat, drove lefty back into my driveway, actually put the car in park, and hobbled into my house to call my dad.

Though I can still remember how much the ER doctor laughed when I told him what happened, and I only came out with a bad case of road rash and a sprained right ankle, that accident was the scariest of all. If someone came flying down the blind turn on my road right into my car that was pinning me down in the middle of the street, I would not have been so lucky. It made me realize that cars, while a nice privilege to have, are scary. It taught me that the driving lessons I took to get my license weren’t just a prerequisite to the luxury of driving, but were instead a means to teach me the important and necessary skills to do my part to contribute to safe driving. My car keys come with the responsibility of protecting both myself and others on the road, and ever since I have driven with more caution and awareness in order to do just that. Running myself over is something I will never live down, but my genuine stupidity that day has changed my driving.

When living in a small town, people tend to start to recognize the cars of their peers, teachers, coaches, or that one Jeep that always seems to get gas when they do. If I see a blue Mustang I always check to see if it’s Lily. A giant Black SUV with all the bumper stickers makes me think of CJ. The yellow MINI Cooper that’s almost as recognizable as my own black and tan Dodge is usually Charlotte. Seeing those cars in town is a nice surprise, but the thought of passing an accident on the side of the road, one that makes people driving by think, “That looks bad,” and recognizing a car is something I hope to never experience. Some things, like hydroplaning into a farmer’s market sign, are less avoidable than others. But an extra left-right-left look before pulling out, a little more following distance, and being aware of what’s happening around the car is not only easy: it’s potentially life saving.

At least for now, my car will stay dented and multi-colored, my insurance will stay high, and my right leg will have a sizable scar. Those things I can’t change. Eventually, I’ll get a new car, my insurance will slowly go down, and that scar will tan out. But something I haven’t left up to time is prioritizing safety while driving. My poor driving history has made me a safer driver, my friends safer drivers, and hopefully everyone I tell a safer driver. My experiences reveal how important it is for drivers to be alert and cautious when behind the wheel, so that they don’t have to experience an injury or a loss. They have taught me how important my drivers education course was, and that the skills I learned protect everyone on the road. So, while I can’t change my accident prone nomination or the day-to-day mishaps that may come with it, I can change how I drive and make the road safer for myself and others.