Drivers Ed
 

What was your drivers ed. experience like? How old were you when you got your license? Did you pass on the first try? Any funny mistakes while behind the wheel? Did you ever freak your parents out? :)

I took driver's ed as soon as I was able. I passed the class just fine, but I was terrified of driving. When it came time to do the driving portion, I was scared, lacked confidence, and was just generally awful. My instructor teased me and made me cry. I even ran a stop sign. He told me to come back when I'd had more driving hours.

It took me until I was 17 to get up the nerves to go back to that guy. He was just as awful and insensitive as before, but I had enough driving experience that his nastiness didn't cause me to make stupid mistakes and he passed me.

What is it with driving instructors? I had two who were both awful. Even the man who gave me my test was ridiculous with the teasing. Granted, I almost turned too soon and got us run over by a Pepsi truck :o but I was very careful otherwise. But I passed both the written and driving portions on the first tries...only to get a ticket my first time driving alone. I will never forget the officer walking up to this big gray Volvo like a cowboy with his hand on his gun only to find it being driven by this tiny teen girl in pigtails and overalls. :p

Maybe they think nervous young women are cute?

These stories are low-key freaking me out. I'm 23. I got my permit a few months ago. AAAAAAND I have my driving test THIS Friday. Please pray for me lol

I've practiced and took some classes, but I just get super nervous. I don't drive badly, but my turns are a little jerky aaaaand I need to watch my speed. A lot. (For the record, it's not that I speed recklessly, I'm just trying to go with the traffic!)

Thanks =]

Good luck on your test! I'm sure you'll rock it.

When I was 15, I passed the written on the first try. But, when I turned 16 and I took the actual test to get my license, I couldn't pass it. I actually failed it 3-times.

At the time, my best friend from high school told me to go right before they close. I went like, about 10-minutes before closing. I could tell the guy was ready to go home, because when I went to parallel park, I got half way in, and then he goes "Okay, we're good. Let's move on to the next part of the test." I honestly don't even think I finished, because the first three times the test seemed much longer. It was like less than 10-minutes this time.

Then he goes "Okay, pull over here." He starts writing stuff down, and in like a few minutes he goes "Congrats, you passed." As I can remember, he gave me a 70, and a 70 was needed to pass. I barely made it.

Going right before closing worked lol. :p

Oh, and good luck to you, lulutnl. :)

...interesting thread.
 

I'm teaching my 18 year old daughter to drive now. I just try to speak in calm, reassuring tones so as to not add to her stress level.

Thanks for the "go test near closing time" tip, CG. I'll definitely make sure she does that. :) Along with taking her test using her grandfather's sports car, the smallest car in the family.

Haha my daddy taught me to drive too. I almost sent us through a brick wall when I hit the gas instead of the brake. A big uh oh but I got it right in time! I passed my tests just fine so he was a good teacher but I think he has a lot more gray hair after teaching his girls to drive!

My husband learned how to drive when he was in his 30's. My brother let him drive his car while he had the permit but not the license yet. My husband, not used to power steering, made a sharp turn and almost hit a car in the next lane. My brother pretty much freaked out. Anytime we talk about my husband driving this incident comes up and we all laugh. I feel sorry for my husband because he is always the target of "bad driver jokes" from everyone in my family. In reality, he has a "good driver discount" from our insurance company because he has never had an accident that was his fault.

LOL! props to your dad!

Right now, we're doing parking lots...wide, empty, expansive parking lots. Next we'll move to deserted city streets (like 4 a.m. on a Saturday morning deserted streets.)

My drivers' ed classes were actually just across the border in a different state from the one I live in, so I had to take a painfully simple test to pass the classes themselves. One of the questions was a yield sign with the options a) stop sign b) yield sign or c) no right turn on red for what it meant. Then I took some AAA driving lessons to lower my insurance rates, then the driver's test, which was only difficult to me because it was a city and I live in the boonie countryside where stoplights are few and far between.

Honestly, the classes themselves weren't that painful, but only because there was a Dunkin' Donuts across the street and I got Christmas-sprinkle Munchkins and white hot chocolate in between night classes :D

My dad taught me to drive. He was great, because he virtually never said anything unless a) I asked a question, or b) I did something wrong. For example, I'd run over a small curb when making a right turn, and he'd say, "I knew that would happen," or I'd slow down too much before merging into traffic on the highway and he'd say, "See, you need to move faster." Of course, he'd never let anything terrible happen, but he just kept quiet and let me do my thing. My mom on the other hand.. I was so stressed when driving with her because SHE was stressed, and she definitely let me know it.

New Hampshire doesn't require that you have a learner's permit; you just have to have proof of your age (15 1/2) on you when driving with an adult over 25. Basically, that means driving with your birth certificate. The state requires that you complete a driver's education course before taking your driving test (unless you're over 18).

I took my driver's education course with the state and it consisted of weekly (maybe bi-weekly.. I can't remember) hour-long classes, and then you had to sign up for driving hours - 10 hours of actual driving, and 6 "observation hours," where you had to ride along with another student that was completing a driving hour. Each driving hour had a different focus. I remember that hour 1 covered right and left turns, hour 2 was parallel parking, hour 3 was "country driving" ... hm.. I can't remember the ones in between, but hour 9 was highway driving, and hour 10 covered everything.

I passed my test on the first try :)

I passed the tests on the first try when I was 17, but I waited until I was 18 to get my license since I didn't have a car and I was in college out of state.

I was told by my driving instructor that I almost passed the record for highest score, but I didn't check my mirrors after I changed lanes one time. Meh.