Pay Attention

Rylie Deyo

2020 Drivers Education Essay Contest

It was a cool Friday night. I was driving up the highway to go to cruise night in Fort Collins, CO. As I was approaching a red light, all of a sudden I saw brake lights! I quickly had to mash on the brakes. Once I slowed down, followed everyone and moved over, I saw an accident occurred at the light. Looking back on that moment, I see how important it was that I was being a safe driver. I wasn’t texting, or talking, or doing anything on my phone or at my console. If I had been, I’d probably have caused another accident!

It is always important take drivers’ education and remember the steps that can make you a safe driver. I took an in-person class with hours with an instructor. And, I took the Safe Drivers course with my insurance company (which also saves me money!). All of the rules and tricks you can learn about how to be a safe driver won’t only help you stay safe, but also other people. The safer you drive, even being a defensive driver, the more likely it is for you and the people around you to not end up in an accident. The basics are watching the road and making sure you’re not distracted.

You also should think about weather and environment to see if you should really be on the road. One year during a snowy day, my brother and I took the car out to see a family friend about 30 miles away. Ignoring how bad the weather was, we went out. Not 100 yards from home is a roundabout. We got in an accident because we slid, even though we were only going about 5 miles an hour. This was very irresponsible, and we should’ve stayed home. One major way to help you and other drivers stay safer is when the weather is bad, if you don’t absolutely need to go anywhere, it is best to say home. Doing so will allow there to be less cars on the road and lower the chance of an accident. It also lets snow plows do their job and keeps police officers from dealing with a lot of accidents. Another step you can take is to drive defensively and pay attention to how the people around you are driving. If the drivers around you are acting crazy and driving unsafe, it is always best to give them as much room as possible and try not to egg them on.

Being a safe driver is a very important task. Driving deaths are often avoidable. My vehicle weighs 4000 lbs. My dad’s truck weighs 8000 lbs. These are big vehicles that can do damage to life and property. It it easy to see how important it is to make sure you always drive as safely as possible, pay attention to your surroundings and keep others around you safe.