Chapter 4 - Turning/Reaction Time/Judgment
TURNING:
Of course you know how to go around a corner, but the trick is to go around that corner so that no one can cut you off, and so that, if YOU screw up, someone else will have the opportunity to compensate for your error.
By the way, do you know how far ahead you should signal a turn? The law says a minimum of 100 feet, but that's pretty worthless in real life. It means nothing to most people.
(Just so we’re talking the same language, a "rolling turn" is a turn you can make without having to stop the car first. A "normal turn" is when you are stopped waiting to make it.)
You should signal for a turn just as you start slowing down for it. Much sooner than that, and the guy behind you will begin to ignore it, and much later than that, he'll already know something's up, and he'll probably try to pass you. Hopefully not on the "wrong" side....
With very few exceptions, you should turn into the lane closest to you. If you make a right turn onto a highway, and turn immediately into the left hand lane, there is no way that a car you missed could avoid you. If you turn directly into the right lane, that car you didn’t see could very easily switch lanes and miss hitting you.
One of the exceptions would be when you’re making a left turn and then need to make an almost immediate right. You really don’t have enough time for a proper lane-change there, and you should carefully turn directly into the right hand lane.
If you’re making a left turn, your car should be as far to the left as possible - to give room for people to pass you on the right - WITH YOUR WHEELS STRAIGHT in case you get hit from behind - then you won’t get sent into oncoming traffic. (Keep that in mind while you're approaching a car waiting to make a left turn. If his wheels are not straight, EXPECT HIM TO CUT YOU OFF!)
* On country road, when you're making a left coming out of a side street, keep your car as perpendicular to the main road as possible for increased visibility.
* If you need to stop on the highway to make a left turn, you should stop so that the front of your car is even with the left-hand edge of the lane you want to turn into - blocking any traffic from the side road.
* NOTE: In a situation where you have more than one "left-hand turn lane," you should be in the one furthest to the right. Why? Because you are always much more aware of your left hand blindspot. There is no way you can keep track of the cars turning with you on your right, while you're looking up around the corner to your left.
NOTE: Actually, there ARE occasions when you may not want to be "as far to left as possible...." Most people, when they pass you on the right while you’re making a left turn, will do so at the speed limit. That’s risky and stupid, so if you think it would be unsafe for them to do that, don’t let them! Remember that if THEY screw up while passing you, it’s likely that YOU’LL be one of the cars they hit!
For a right turn, you should - whenever possible - angle your car slightly to prevent anyone from cutting you off, and to make it obvious to bikes and pedestrians that you are turning right.
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| Above: This is how Daren got around until he got his license. No WONDER he wanted it so badly... |
You may have wondered why I always say, "Look way ahead of you, in the center of the path that you want to be in..." rather than, "in the lane." That’s because there is not always a designated "lane" for where you want your car to go. If someone is changing a flat along a two-lane section of the highway, you’re "path" ought to be taking up both lanes, so that no one can pass you, and so that the people behind you can see the guy with the flat. And of course, so that you’re not too close to the parked car at 60 MPH....
Reaction Time
You know by now that it takes you almost a second to realize that something is wrong, and you need to either change your path or stop.
What’s commonly referred to as following distance should more accurately be called reaction distance, because the distance between you and the car in front of you is ONLY to allow you time to react to what that car is doing. It assumes that he can’t stop any faster than you can, which is a VERY bad thing to assume.
I guarantee you that most drivers can stop faster than you can (without skidding) if only because they've been driving longer. If they're driving a car with better brakes or better tires, then there would be a significant difference in your stopping distances.
Under IDEAL conditions, you should stay 3 seconds behind the car in front of you. So what the hell does THAT mean?
** It means that with some practice, it's easier - and more accurate - using time rather than distance to judge how much space you need to be away from the vehicle in front of you.
** Most manuals will tell you, "One car length for each 10 MPH of speed." QUICK! How long is a "car length"? And if you know that, how many feet are usually between telephone poles?
Go ask 4 other people how far it is from one side of your driveway to a point down the road. Then make your own guess. I guarantee that you'll have five different answers, and you'll all be wrong.
So, use the two-second rule - just make it three seconds until you have some driving time under your belt. It's explained well in the driving manual.
And remember! This 3 seconds is ONLY to give you time to react. If the guy ahead of you has a car pull out of the side street right in front of him, his car will come to a stop ALOT faster than you ever could!
So let’s talk about tailgating...
...tailgating is when a bunch of guys get a case of beer, go to the racetrack, and get drunk sitting on the back of a pick-up.
That’s Choike’s definition. Mine has to do with driving....
TAILGATING is when you don’t have enough "time" between you and the car in front of you. Remember to think of it as "time" rather than "distance" - not only because distance is nearly impossible for most people to judge, but because it’s always easier to add time than to remember how much "distance" you should add for each different situation.
NOTE: You might wonder why they call it the "Two-second Rule" when you leave three seconds’ between cars. You may pick either of these two answers to satisfy your curiosity:
a) Because three seconds is such a "generous" amount of time between cars, the "experts" figured no one would listen to it, and then they would lose their jobs, or
b) Because I said so.
Seriously, stay with three seconds for your first several months of driving. As they say on TV, "You’ll be glad you did!"
Okay, so now you have three seconds between you and the car in front of you. Does this mean you’re not tailgating? Did you REALLY think it would be that easy? Well, DID YOU?
ANSWER ME! HEY! LOOK at me when I’m talking to you!
Sorry to complicate this, but....
You are ALSO TAILGATING...
NOTE: The best way to get rid of a tailgater is to take your foot off the gas, turn on your 4-way flashers, and give the guy every opportunity you can to pass. As a last resort, pull over to let him get by. NEVER speed up to get rid of him, even if it’s an 18-wheeler. If you’re going to get hit, get hit at the slower speed!
JUDGMENT DAY
Not to get TOO corny, but one of the reasons driving is such a big deal, is because it really IS the very first opportunity for a young adult to be totally "in charge." If you think about it, your parents have a lot of say in just about every aspect of your life - as well they should.
But, when you’re out there alone in a car, it’s YOUR butt on the line, and no one can tell you what to do. The life and death decisions you’ll be making are decisions that you’ll be stuck with.
THE POINT? Don’t EVER get intimidated by people blowing their horns, telling you to "hurry up," or by anything else. Just like you wouldn’t let your friends talk you into diving into a pond you thought was unsafe, don’t let anyone talk you into pulling out into traffic. (If you want to play Russian Roulette, jump into the pond - it’s a better gamble.)
- As a general rule of thumb, if you’d be comfortable walking the route your car will be going across traffic, it’s safe to pull out.
- "If in doubt, DON’T PULL OUT!"
- Don’t ever feel like a wuss because you made a safe decision.
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Wanna know why intersections suck?
Combine everything you know, and you could tell ME!
Remember that time when you were turning into Taco Bell, and I shut off your directional because some lady was waiting to pull out of the gas station just before your turn? And then while you’re squirming in your pants because you had to pee, you were being polite listening to the big long speech about how "You never want to surprise anyone, but it’s okay to fool them?" Well, if that lady had seen your directional, she very probably would have assumed that you were turning into the gas station, and being in a hurry to get nowhere - as most people seem to be - would've pulled right out in front of you.
Most people drive totally in the shoulder to make the turn. That creates a blindspot for the person pulling out of the side street. You should drive into the shoulder only enough to prevent someone behind you from passing on the right, until you're ready to make your turn.
"JUDGEMENT POINTS"
(1) Sitting in the driver's seat, have your partner walk away from the front of the car slowly. Sound your horn when you can see his feet, at which point he'll stop walking. Now get out of the car, and see how far away he is from the front of your car. That's your front blindspot. This is as close as you ever want to get to another car, even at a stop light. Not only does this give you some leeway, but at this distance, you can easily pull around the stopped car if need be... like if he breaks down or something. This is also how to judge how far away from a crosswalk you should stop.
(2) Do the same thing to the rear of the car, while you're turning around looking out the back window. This is just so you know how huge the rear blindspot is.
(3) Do it again to the rear of the car, but this time look in the rear view mirror. Big difference from the back window, eh?
(4) Now, how do you tell how close the front of your car is to a curb? Inch up to a curb, and looking out the front of the side window (by the side-view mirror) , stop when it seems like the curb is even with the window where it meets the doorpost. Then get out and see how close you are. Figure out how it looks when the front of your car is even with the curb.
(5) For the back bumper, use the passenger side rear window. With some practice, you'll know just how far to back up to be even with the curb.
(6) At VERY slow speeds - below, say 5 MPH - the center of your hood will appear to be lined up with the curb when your car is about a foot away. This is as close as you want to get, unless you're parking. Get out and check, to see how close you really are. This'll come in handy later.
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How do you know when to go through a yellow light?
For each 10 MPH of the speed limit, a caution light is lit for one second. So, if the speed limit is 50 MPH, you have a 5 second caution light. You should be approaching ANY intersection worrying about traffic, NOT "whether or not you can make it through." The "judgment" we’re talking about here depends on several factors... like is someone tailgating you? Are there cars already stopped at the intersection? (because then you can worry less about some fool "timing it" so he runs through the light just as it changes....) Is anyone in FRONT of you? (Because then you have to worry about what HE is going to do.)
