In a world of distraction, choose knowledge

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We live in an ever evolving world. Newer larger phones, cars that can operate independent of driver control, larger and larger trucks holding larger and larger dashboard tablets. To newer drivers, I can’t imagine the will it must take to keep your eyes centered on the road when there are so many variables trying to keep your eyes away. When I took drivers-ed my teacher hammered in to be a defensive driver, that there is rarely ever a no fault accident, how you are just as responsible. I have held this advice close over the years, inching my way out of the high rate insurance age bracket I am in, thanking God for my accident free record – but as grateful as I am for my experience, I ask, can these teachers truly prepare teenagers for the level of distraction on our roads today? Learning to drive you aren’t just learning the pedals, but you’re learning confidence, observational skills, you’re learning how to exist as a 2000lb vehicle. How well can you prepare a new driver in a classroom for an over-confident freeway texter? Or a middle aged commuter who turns their brain off to the routine drive?

In my opinion, one of the biggest challenges for teenagers learning to drive isn’t their own personal distractions, but it’s getting enough experience and knowledge before you’re on the road to know the signs of others who are distracted, before you’re left to the will of others and it’s too late.

I am very privileged to have been a part of driving class at the age of sixteen. My step-father, having recreationally raced cars in the past, knew the value of driving safety. He knew that the more you know, the less risk you’ll have day to day on the road, rather it be how to move your wheel when you skid on ice, or what you do when you come across an unexpected lane blockage on the freeway. Years later, I still refer to this class on the road, and believe it is one of the reasons I am accident free after six years of driving. They had us weave through cones, get to know our foot-on-the-floor braking distance, they had us skid through water while remaining in control, and had us practice making split second decisions. All of these things have proven to be invaluable to me as I’ve grown, and have avoided more accidents than I can count, although I can only take so much credit.

We are only in so much control. We can not control the person who stops dead on the freeway to merge into an exit lane, we can not control the person distracted by their children in the back seat causing them to swerve in and out of lanes, we can not control the person who decided to go ninety-five in a fifty-five, or the person who needed to send that text right then and there behind the driver’s seat. The only thing we can do is observe, predict, and stay in control. If I were to give advice on how to help teen drivers overcome the challenges of driving, it would be to simply be prepared. If you’re on an empty road and it’s snowing, slam on your brakes to test your ABS, see how long it takes you to stop. When you’re driving don’t just look at the brake lights in front of you, but if you can, look at the car in front of them or farther. Learn your car just like you learned the laws. How long it takes to speed up, how long it takes to come to a stop, how sharp you can turn, how steep of a hill you can climb. If it’s at all possible, invest in taking a clinic course and get some experience testing your skills away from the consequences of the real road.

We are in a world that is ever changing and ever consuming. Bigger and bigger trucks with bigger and bigger dashboard tablets, more and more ways to give up control and give up attention. I would challenge new drivers to distance themselves from ease and lean into knowledge, lean into being over-prepared. The biggest challenge to drivers might be the distractions we make for ourselves, but the easiest solution is to open your eyes, and take the control in your hands, as you are not just protecting yourself, but you’re protecting your friends, your future, and the future of others.