Thursday 29 April 2010
Zzzzzzzzzzzzz
Yes, I'm still here. I just haven't roused myself to write anything this last week. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe the day after.
Thursday 22 April 2010
Wednesday 21 April 2010
Four seasons (and five tests) in one day
If the winter wasn’t enough, this last week, with volcanoes and whatnot, has been another reminder of how much we are at the mercy of nature.
Today is another test day in Ullapool and I have five pupils taking their test. Andy had the 8.40am test, but he was taking it in his own car. Michael had the 9.37am test and wanted an hour’s lesson beforehand, so that meant a 5.30am alarm call for me. Although we have had temperatures up to 22C recently, it is still too early to rule out more snow and ice. So I felt a huge wave of disappointment last night when I received a text from Michael saying “Will you be able to make it up here alright tomorrow? It’s snowing pretty heavy.” Ullapool pupils have already had December and January tests wiped out due to snow. Surely it couldn’t happen in late April? Here is my usual 'as it happens' account of the day:
As I drove over, at 6.30am, I could see a fresh cloak of snow on the hills and mountains, but, luckily, it had not been cold enough to settle on the low ground. You might think that I would be sick of the sight of snow by now, but an early morning drive to the west coast, with brilliant blue skies, pure white mountains and golden sunshine is still an exhilarating sight.
Snow panic over, Andy got the day off to a great start with a pass and only 4 minor faults. Next up was Michael. At times Michael can drive as well as anyone, so it was no surprise to have him sail through his test too. He is especially pleased because he had a £10 bet with Fionnlagh, one of my other pupils, that he would pass first (Fionn’s test is next month). If anyone deserved to pass, it was Michael. He has completely committed himself to being as good a driver as possible. He applied for, and passed, his theory as soon as he started learning to drive and was always asking for extra lessons. We had quite a wait for his test and, where most pupils of his standard often want to cut down on lessons, he has been keen to keep taking regular lessons.
Only time for a brief ‘good luck’ chat with Michael before picking my next pupil up for her second attempt. She is more nervous than she was for her first attempt, but, in the short drive before her test she (hopefully) calmed down and did nothing to make me doubt that she will pass. The trouble is, you just never know what is going to happen in those 40 minutes.
My bid for franchise freedom has been delayed. I thought I only had to give one month’s notice to terminate my franchise, but Eddie insists it is three. Not a massive blow, but it was disappointing to call the people supplying my new car to tell them that I would like to delay the delivery. On the bright side, it does give me more time to think about a name and how I am going to promote my business. Some of my pupils are disappointed, because they too were looking forward to the new car, although others are happy that they can keep driving the Fiat for a while longer.
Sadly, it was not to be a clean sweep. My next pupil did not pass. She did not have enough of a biting point on her hill start and rolled back a little too far before correcting it. Although I am confident for her to re-apply straight away, I doubt very much that she will find an available test within the next two months, so we may have to consider taking her test in Inverness, Alness, or Gairloch. Perhaps I should have insisted on her having more lessons, as she has only had a few since Christmas. Although her driving was good enough to pass a mock test and she certainly has the ability, the lack of lessons perhaps caused her lack of confidence. Another point is that, although she may have been saving money by not having so many lessons, it could prove to be a false economy if she has to pay for more tests.
Barely any time to plan her next test before I was off to pick up Connie for her test. Connie failed her first attempt back in November, had her second attempt cancelled due to snow, got her dates wrong and missed her next test date, then finally got her second shot booked for today at 1.33pm. In the hour's lesson before her test she was working herself into a bit of a state. She has been far too reliant on waiting for me and her previous instructor to tell her exactly what to do, when she knows what to do herself. I have never known anyone apologise so much as she does, whether it is because she knows she missed a mirror check, or because she had a less than perfect gear change. A couple of weeks ago she was driving beautifully and she had to deal with a crossroads, which she did faultlessly.
"Sorry." she said.
"What for?" I asked, "that was perfect."
"Oh, sorry........sorry."
I'm not going to start up the whole 'reference points' thing again, but Connie was heavily reliant on them, which caused big problems when I switched from the Corsa to the Fiat. With 15 minutes to go before her test she wanted a final practice parallel park. It was not her best.
"What am I doing wrong?"
"Talk me through what you are doing." I suggested.
She then described a method involving lining mirrors up with certain points, which may have worked in the Corsa, but we had not used any such method for months now.
"Where do you want the back of the car to go?"
"Away from the curb."
"Ok. A lot away from the curb? Or a bit away from the curb?"
It took a while, but we got there. And then it was time to get to the Test Centre.
"What happens if he asks me to do a parallel park? We haven't had time to practice reversing round a corner. What happens if he asks me to do that? Which gear should I be in on the downhill corner on the way to Ardmair? I shouldn't be taking my test. I shouldn't be taking my test."
"Connie......"
"What?"
"You'll be fine." A Zen-like calm had descended over me.
She was fine. Connie passed with 7 minor faults. She got asked to do a parallel park and a reverse round a corner and both were fine. She was asked to drive to Ardmair and was fine. She can do it. I always knew she could do it. It's just that she couldn't convince herself. Hopefully, once she gets a car, the extra hours behind the wheel will finally convince her that she really can drive.
Jayanne was already waiting at the Test Centre when Connie's test ended. We only had ten minutes before her test, so I insisted that Jayanne drove Connie home, just so that she could drive as much as possible in those precious ten minutes. No time to practice any manoeuvres, which is what cost Jayanne her last test, but if I had any concern, it was that she sometimes over-compensated for the sensitive clutch by slightly over-revving.
By the time she finished my test, it was warm enough to sit outside in a T-shirt. My minor concerns about Jayanne were groundless. The sun reflected strongly off the windscreen, so I couldn't see inside the car. But her shriek of delight gave away the result. So, quite a result; five pupils on test and four passes.
No time to rest on my laurels though as, after thanking Jayanne for her invaluable help in introducing so many new pupils to me, I was straight off to meet a new pupil, Chantelle. Very much out with the old and in with the new.
I have shopped for cheese, crackers, chorizo, tomatoes and Haggis & cracked pepper crisps for my supper, but first I am off for a celebratory and deserved pint.
Today is another test day in Ullapool and I have five pupils taking their test. Andy had the 8.40am test, but he was taking it in his own car. Michael had the 9.37am test and wanted an hour’s lesson beforehand, so that meant a 5.30am alarm call for me. Although we have had temperatures up to 22C recently, it is still too early to rule out more snow and ice. So I felt a huge wave of disappointment last night when I received a text from Michael saying “Will you be able to make it up here alright tomorrow? It’s snowing pretty heavy.” Ullapool pupils have already had December and January tests wiped out due to snow. Surely it couldn’t happen in late April? Here is my usual 'as it happens' account of the day:
As I drove over, at 6.30am, I could see a fresh cloak of snow on the hills and mountains, but, luckily, it had not been cold enough to settle on the low ground. You might think that I would be sick of the sight of snow by now, but an early morning drive to the west coast, with brilliant blue skies, pure white mountains and golden sunshine is still an exhilarating sight.
Snow panic over, Andy got the day off to a great start with a pass and only 4 minor faults. Next up was Michael. At times Michael can drive as well as anyone, so it was no surprise to have him sail through his test too. He is especially pleased because he had a £10 bet with Fionnlagh, one of my other pupils, that he would pass first (Fionn’s test is next month). If anyone deserved to pass, it was Michael. He has completely committed himself to being as good a driver as possible. He applied for, and passed, his theory as soon as he started learning to drive and was always asking for extra lessons. We had quite a wait for his test and, where most pupils of his standard often want to cut down on lessons, he has been keen to keep taking regular lessons.
Only time for a brief ‘good luck’ chat with Michael before picking my next pupil up for her second attempt. She is more nervous than she was for her first attempt, but, in the short drive before her test she (hopefully) calmed down and did nothing to make me doubt that she will pass. The trouble is, you just never know what is going to happen in those 40 minutes.
My bid for franchise freedom has been delayed. I thought I only had to give one month’s notice to terminate my franchise, but Eddie insists it is three. Not a massive blow, but it was disappointing to call the people supplying my new car to tell them that I would like to delay the delivery. On the bright side, it does give me more time to think about a name and how I am going to promote my business. Some of my pupils are disappointed, because they too were looking forward to the new car, although others are happy that they can keep driving the Fiat for a while longer.
Sadly, it was not to be a clean sweep. My next pupil did not pass. She did not have enough of a biting point on her hill start and rolled back a little too far before correcting it. Although I am confident for her to re-apply straight away, I doubt very much that she will find an available test within the next two months, so we may have to consider taking her test in Inverness, Alness, or Gairloch. Perhaps I should have insisted on her having more lessons, as she has only had a few since Christmas. Although her driving was good enough to pass a mock test and she certainly has the ability, the lack of lessons perhaps caused her lack of confidence. Another point is that, although she may have been saving money by not having so many lessons, it could prove to be a false economy if she has to pay for more tests.
Barely any time to plan her next test before I was off to pick up Connie for her test. Connie failed her first attempt back in November, had her second attempt cancelled due to snow, got her dates wrong and missed her next test date, then finally got her second shot booked for today at 1.33pm. In the hour's lesson before her test she was working herself into a bit of a state. She has been far too reliant on waiting for me and her previous instructor to tell her exactly what to do, when she knows what to do herself. I have never known anyone apologise so much as she does, whether it is because she knows she missed a mirror check, or because she had a less than perfect gear change. A couple of weeks ago she was driving beautifully and she had to deal with a crossroads, which she did faultlessly.
"Sorry." she said.
"What for?" I asked, "that was perfect."
"Oh, sorry........sorry."
I'm not going to start up the whole 'reference points' thing again, but Connie was heavily reliant on them, which caused big problems when I switched from the Corsa to the Fiat. With 15 minutes to go before her test she wanted a final practice parallel park. It was not her best.
"What am I doing wrong?"
"Talk me through what you are doing." I suggested.
She then described a method involving lining mirrors up with certain points, which may have worked in the Corsa, but we had not used any such method for months now.
"Where do you want the back of the car to go?"
"Away from the curb."
"Ok. A lot away from the curb? Or a bit away from the curb?"
It took a while, but we got there. And then it was time to get to the Test Centre.
"What happens if he asks me to do a parallel park? We haven't had time to practice reversing round a corner. What happens if he asks me to do that? Which gear should I be in on the downhill corner on the way to Ardmair? I shouldn't be taking my test. I shouldn't be taking my test."
"Connie......"
"What?"
"You'll be fine." A Zen-like calm had descended over me.
She was fine. Connie passed with 7 minor faults. She got asked to do a parallel park and a reverse round a corner and both were fine. She was asked to drive to Ardmair and was fine. She can do it. I always knew she could do it. It's just that she couldn't convince herself. Hopefully, once she gets a car, the extra hours behind the wheel will finally convince her that she really can drive.
Jayanne was already waiting at the Test Centre when Connie's test ended. We only had ten minutes before her test, so I insisted that Jayanne drove Connie home, just so that she could drive as much as possible in those precious ten minutes. No time to practice any manoeuvres, which is what cost Jayanne her last test, but if I had any concern, it was that she sometimes over-compensated for the sensitive clutch by slightly over-revving.
By the time she finished my test, it was warm enough to sit outside in a T-shirt. My minor concerns about Jayanne were groundless. The sun reflected strongly off the windscreen, so I couldn't see inside the car. But her shriek of delight gave away the result. So, quite a result; five pupils on test and four passes.
No time to rest on my laurels though as, after thanking Jayanne for her invaluable help in introducing so many new pupils to me, I was straight off to meet a new pupil, Chantelle. Very much out with the old and in with the new.
I have shopped for cheese, crackers, chorizo, tomatoes and Haggis & cracked pepper crisps for my supper, but first I am off for a celebratory and deserved pint.
Wednesday 14 April 2010
.........that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I am struggling to think of a name for my new venture.
There are a lot of driving schools that have really positive sounding names, such as ‘A+’, ‘Surepass’, ‘E-Z Pass’ and ‘ProDrive’, but I just think they sound a bit crap.
It is a business, so a brand name should be something that attracts customers - that rules out ‘Demon Driving’, ‘Probable Pass’ and ‘Crack the whip’.
I don’t want anything long-winded because I am hoping it will be snappy, easy to remember and short enough to fit on a sign without needing a telescope to read the writing. I have received a few suggestions for names that have fallen at this hurdle.
I don’t just want my name, because every John, Chris or Harry does that.
Perhaps it should be something that reflects desirable qualities in a driver - I think ‘Focus’ is really good, but another local instructor (and a multinational car manufacturer) has beaten me to it, and I thought about ‘Control’ until Jane suggested it sounded a bit scary.
How about something that says I do not belong to a big driving school? ‘Independence’ - a bit dull. ‘Solo’ - a bit sad.
Many driving schools use their location in their name. But how precise should I be with this? Village? Town? County? Region? Country? ‘British School of Motoring’? That has a nice ring to it. Another difficulty is that I live in a wee village between two small towns, so I don’t want to use ‘Nairn’ or Forres’ in the name. I live almost equidistant between Inverness and Elgin, so I don’t want to use those. And I straddle both Highlands and Moray (painful). So what’s wrong with using my village name? Erm… I’m not sure that ‘Dyke Driving’ gives the exact impression I am hoping for. Actually, Brodie Castle is only half a mile away, so ‘Brodie’ is a definite contender (not to be confused with Muriel Spark’s titular character, or Lewis Collins’ character from ‘The Professionals’).
I love music, so I have been trying to think of any favourite bands, albums or tracks that might inspire me:
‘Complete Control’ (The Clash) - Not too bad, but a slight hint of fascism.
‘Unknown pleasures’ (Joy Division) - A bit…. pervy? (great album though).
‘Smash it up’ (The Damned) - Not quite the image I want to convey.
‘Upside Down’ (The Jesus and Mary Chain) - Ditto (especially after what happened to another BSM instructor in Oxfordshire this week - see the end of this post for details.)
'The Itchy Glowbo Blow' (The Cocteau Twins - ???
‘Wave of mutilation’ (The Pixies) - I’m just being silly now.
'Ooh look, there goes Concorde again' (....And the native hipsters) - Now I'm being really silly (haven't heard this in ages).
‘White Lines’ (Grandmaster Flash and Melle Mel) - I’m not sure that they were referring to road markings.
‘Life is a rollercoaster’ (Ronan Keating) - Pass me a sickbag.
‘Art of Driving’ (Black Box Recorder) - Actually, I really like this and, for weeks this has been my favourite name. I’m slightly going off the idea because it is just a bit….. immodest. And I would be worried that some drunken wag would add an ‘F’ to the name. I would probably be disappointed if I saw another instructor with this name, but would console myself with the fact that I rejected it first.
So you can see my dilemma. It’s not easy. ‘Art of Driving’ and ‘Brodie School of Motoring’ (….BSM, Damn!) have not been ruled out, but I’m not convinced. I do have one other name, which I have not yet mentioned (for fear of commercial espionage), but I am suggesting it to my pupils first to see their reaction.
Keep the suggestions coming (either on here, Twitter, or email) and I shall give a free lesson to any pupil who comes up with the perfect name, and a lifetime of gratitude and indebtedness to any non-pupil who does the same.
Meanwhile, here is the picture (and article) I referred to earlier:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/oxfordshire/8618414.stm
There are a lot of driving schools that have really positive sounding names, such as ‘A+’, ‘Surepass’, ‘E-Z Pass’ and ‘ProDrive’, but I just think they sound a bit crap.
It is a business, so a brand name should be something that attracts customers - that rules out ‘Demon Driving’, ‘Probable Pass’ and ‘Crack the whip’.
I don’t want anything long-winded because I am hoping it will be snappy, easy to remember and short enough to fit on a sign without needing a telescope to read the writing. I have received a few suggestions for names that have fallen at this hurdle.
I don’t just want my name, because every John, Chris or Harry does that.
Perhaps it should be something that reflects desirable qualities in a driver - I think ‘Focus’ is really good, but another local instructor (and a multinational car manufacturer) has beaten me to it, and I thought about ‘Control’ until Jane suggested it sounded a bit scary.
How about something that says I do not belong to a big driving school? ‘Independence’ - a bit dull. ‘Solo’ - a bit sad.
Many driving schools use their location in their name. But how precise should I be with this? Village? Town? County? Region? Country? ‘British School of Motoring’? That has a nice ring to it. Another difficulty is that I live in a wee village between two small towns, so I don’t want to use ‘Nairn’ or Forres’ in the name. I live almost equidistant between Inverness and Elgin, so I don’t want to use those. And I straddle both Highlands and Moray (painful). So what’s wrong with using my village name? Erm… I’m not sure that ‘Dyke Driving’ gives the exact impression I am hoping for. Actually, Brodie Castle is only half a mile away, so ‘Brodie’ is a definite contender (not to be confused with Muriel Spark’s titular character, or Lewis Collins’ character from ‘The Professionals’).
I love music, so I have been trying to think of any favourite bands, albums or tracks that might inspire me:
‘Complete Control’ (The Clash) - Not too bad, but a slight hint of fascism.
‘Unknown pleasures’ (Joy Division) - A bit…. pervy? (great album though).
‘Smash it up’ (The Damned) - Not quite the image I want to convey.
‘Upside Down’ (The Jesus and Mary Chain) - Ditto (especially after what happened to another BSM instructor in Oxfordshire this week - see the end of this post for details.)
'The Itchy Glowbo Blow' (The Cocteau Twins - ???
‘Wave of mutilation’ (The Pixies) - I’m just being silly now.
'Ooh look, there goes Concorde again' (....And the native hipsters) - Now I'm being really silly (haven't heard this in ages).
‘White Lines’ (Grandmaster Flash and Melle Mel) - I’m not sure that they were referring to road markings.
‘Life is a rollercoaster’ (Ronan Keating) - Pass me a sickbag.
‘Art of Driving’ (Black Box Recorder) - Actually, I really like this and, for weeks this has been my favourite name. I’m slightly going off the idea because it is just a bit….. immodest. And I would be worried that some drunken wag would add an ‘F’ to the name. I would probably be disappointed if I saw another instructor with this name, but would console myself with the fact that I rejected it first.
So you can see my dilemma. It’s not easy. ‘Art of Driving’ and ‘Brodie School of Motoring’ (….BSM, Damn!) have not been ruled out, but I’m not convinced. I do have one other name, which I have not yet mentioned (for fear of commercial espionage), but I am suggesting it to my pupils first to see their reaction.
Keep the suggestions coming (either on here, Twitter, or email) and I shall give a free lesson to any pupil who comes up with the perfect name, and a lifetime of gratitude and indebtedness to any non-pupil who does the same.
Meanwhile, here is the picture (and article) I referred to earlier:
Tuesday 13 April 2010
Leaving the nest
Notice anything different about this blog? Any changes?
I'll give you a clue, it's in the 'About me' bit on the left. I'll give you a minute or two to read it.....
(drums fingers)
(looks at watch)
Spot it? Yes, I have left BSM. Actually, that's not strictly true. I am leaving BSM (I just got a bit ahead of myself).
Various changes at BSM have upset some instructors. I'm not going to bore you with their reasons, because a lot of them are boring. So let me get this out the way; I almost don't want to leave BSM. I am not leaving because of any decision the company has made. As far as I am concerned, I am happy with the Fiat. I am happy with the number of pupils I have. I am happy with the support I get from the office. I am happy with the training they gave me. I can even tolerate the fact that Eddie, the Inverness Centre manager, supports Man Utd (...just).
The fact is that the BSM franchise is not the cheapest going. In return for my weeekly franchise fee, they provide me with a new car, pupils and they manage my diary and make life as an instructor relatively easy. That's fair enough. It's just that perhaps I don't want it easy anymore.
Consequently, I have given notice that I wish to terminate my franchise and have ordered a new car. Exciting stuff.
Bedtime for me now, but I will leave you with some homework. I would like suggestions for a name for my new venture and I want something with a bit more imagination than 'Martin's Driving'.....
I'll give you a clue, it's in the 'About me' bit on the left. I'll give you a minute or two to read it.....
(drums fingers)
(looks at watch)
Spot it? Yes, I have left BSM. Actually, that's not strictly true. I am leaving BSM (I just got a bit ahead of myself).
Various changes at BSM have upset some instructors. I'm not going to bore you with their reasons, because a lot of them are boring. So let me get this out the way; I almost don't want to leave BSM. I am not leaving because of any decision the company has made. As far as I am concerned, I am happy with the Fiat. I am happy with the number of pupils I have. I am happy with the support I get from the office. I am happy with the training they gave me. I can even tolerate the fact that Eddie, the Inverness Centre manager, supports Man Utd (...just).
The fact is that the BSM franchise is not the cheapest going. In return for my weeekly franchise fee, they provide me with a new car, pupils and they manage my diary and make life as an instructor relatively easy. That's fair enough. It's just that perhaps I don't want it easy anymore.
Consequently, I have given notice that I wish to terminate my franchise and have ordered a new car. Exciting stuff.
Bedtime for me now, but I will leave you with some homework. I would like suggestions for a name for my new venture and I want something with a bit more imagination than 'Martin's Driving'.....
Friday 9 April 2010
Today this could be the greatest day of our lives.....
.......well, maybe a slight exaggeration, but certainly one of the greatest days of my career as a driving instructor.No, I'm not talking about Liverpool's triumphant march through to the Europa Cup semi-finals (and congratulations to Fulham too). I'm not talking about Manchester Utd's demise at the hands of Bayern Munich. I'm not even talking about how much more enjoyable that result was because of Fergie's hilarious little strop about 'typical Germans'.
Over the whole of Britain, the average Driving Test pass rate is less than 50%. And of course, not all tests are first time tests. So, the stats say you are not likely to pass 1st time. I'm quite happy with the amount of my pupils that do pass 1st time, but there are certainly pupils that take 2 or 3 attempts to pass. A few years ago I was concerned when I had one pupil take 5 attempts to pass. It was a pupil I was very sure would pass 1st time, so each successive failure increased in shock value.
If you have read certain earlier posts on this blog, you will know that I currently have one pupil who has taken more than 5 attempts at the test. In fact, Ruby has failed 6 times. I'm not going to go on about 'what a good driver' she is, blah blah, because I have done that already. She just does silly things on her tests. Today was her 7th attempt.
She was not particularly impressed when I told her I had booked the 8.40am test, meaning she would have to find a babysitter to start at 7.30am. "I cannae do 7.30! I'll never be awake." "You'll be fine." I reassured her, but I could see she wasn't convinced.
A bit futile trying to create some suspense because I have already hinted at the result in the title and opening paragraph. Still, she had me in suspense. The examiners now ask the candidate if they would like the instructor to accompany them, or if they would like the instructor to be present at the post-test debrief. Ruby was happy for me to go and have a coffee, but she wanted me to be at the debrief. When Ruby returned from her test I wandered towards the car and was dismayed to see her with her hands on the wheel, but her head between her hands (on the wheel). 'Oh, no. Not again.' was my immediate reaction. I wasn't sure how many more times I would be able to lift her spirits and encourage her to book another test. I opened the door in time to hear Ruby say "REALLY?! I could kiss you!" I'm sure the examiner blushed a little.
She got out the car and gave me a big hug. "I PASSED! I PASSED!
"Why did you have your head in your hands?" I asked.
"I dunno..... I was just preparing myself for the result."
"So, did you think you had done something wrong?"
"No. I don't think so..... I just didn't expect to pass."
"Nice feeling though, isn't it?"
"Yeah...... Don't think it's sunk in yet."
Last year I taught Fiona how to drive when her husband died unexpectedly and she was left without any means of transport. The day she passed was probably the happiest moment of my career, but today came pretty close to that. And, in case Ruby needs more good news, she will be relieved to learn that her 7 attempts pale into insignificance when compared to Ch Sa-soon, who took NINE HUNDRED AND FIFTY attempts to pass her driving test. See http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6908557.ece
Unfortunately, I now have a bit of a queasy feeling, having realised I actually quoted Take That.
Over the whole of Britain, the average Driving Test pass rate is less than 50%. And of course, not all tests are first time tests. So, the stats say you are not likely to pass 1st time. I'm quite happy with the amount of my pupils that do pass 1st time, but there are certainly pupils that take 2 or 3 attempts to pass. A few years ago I was concerned when I had one pupil take 5 attempts to pass. It was a pupil I was very sure would pass 1st time, so each successive failure increased in shock value.
If you have read certain earlier posts on this blog, you will know that I currently have one pupil who has taken more than 5 attempts at the test. In fact, Ruby has failed 6 times. I'm not going to go on about 'what a good driver' she is, blah blah, because I have done that already. She just does silly things on her tests. Today was her 7th attempt.
She was not particularly impressed when I told her I had booked the 8.40am test, meaning she would have to find a babysitter to start at 7.30am. "I cannae do 7.30! I'll never be awake." "You'll be fine." I reassured her, but I could see she wasn't convinced.
A bit futile trying to create some suspense because I have already hinted at the result in the title and opening paragraph. Still, she had me in suspense. The examiners now ask the candidate if they would like the instructor to accompany them, or if they would like the instructor to be present at the post-test debrief. Ruby was happy for me to go and have a coffee, but she wanted me to be at the debrief. When Ruby returned from her test I wandered towards the car and was dismayed to see her with her hands on the wheel, but her head between her hands (on the wheel). 'Oh, no. Not again.' was my immediate reaction. I wasn't sure how many more times I would be able to lift her spirits and encourage her to book another test. I opened the door in time to hear Ruby say "REALLY?! I could kiss you!" I'm sure the examiner blushed a little.
She got out the car and gave me a big hug. "I PASSED! I PASSED!
"Why did you have your head in your hands?" I asked.
"I dunno..... I was just preparing myself for the result."
"So, did you think you had done something wrong?"
"No. I don't think so..... I just didn't expect to pass."
"Nice feeling though, isn't it?"
"Yeah...... Don't think it's sunk in yet."
Last year I taught Fiona how to drive when her husband died unexpectedly and she was left without any means of transport. The day she passed was probably the happiest moment of my career, but today came pretty close to that. And, in case Ruby needs more good news, she will be relieved to learn that her 7 attempts pale into insignificance when compared to Ch Sa-soon, who took NINE HUNDRED AND FIFTY attempts to pass her driving test. See http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6908557.ece
Unfortunately, I now have a bit of a queasy feeling, having realised I actually quoted Take That.
Wednesday 7 April 2010
Martin's Dining
Inverness, for its size, is quite spoiled when it comes to the number of decent places to eat. Not only that, but there is lots of good value too. You can stroll along the River Ness and find many places that offer high quality two-course lunches for £6 - £10. Equally, you can spend (a lot) more and get the most fantastic multi-course dinners. On a couple of occasions Jane and I have treated ourselves to the ten-course tasting menu at ‘Abstract’, overlooking the River Ness. Even at £70 per person (including wine tasting), it was still good value.
My new office is right next to the restaurant at Bunchrew House Hotel and shares the glorious view of the mountains beyond the Beauly Firth. They have recently introduced a 2-course lunch for £10, which is excellent. I had dinner there the other day and it was a real treat. The early evening sunshine, bouncing off the water reflected off the silver cutlery and made the crystal glasses sparkle; while white linen tablecloths and coral roses on each table completed the picture. The Achiltibuie smoked roasted salmon, wrapped in Cromarty smoked trout with a quenelle of salmon mousse and golden mango dressing, followed by Loin of Galloway lamb wrapped in Parma ham, with baby vegetables and Earl Grey sauce wasn’t bad either. The lamb was just the best I have ever tasted.
As a driving instructor, it is all too easy to be so eager to fill your diary that you don’t set aside time to take a decent break. I am as guilty of that as anyone. Occasionally I plan ahead and prepare a varied packed lunch, but usually it is a case of grabbing a supermarket sandwich and an espresso as I go from one lesson to another. Not good. And not good value either. It is quite scary when you add up what is spent on ‘snacks’ over a whole year.
Time to head off to my next lesson now, then I will stop at the fishmongers on the way home to find something tasty for tea.
I might have to stop at a petrol station to buy a Yorkie bar on the way.
My new office is right next to the restaurant at Bunchrew House Hotel and shares the glorious view of the mountains beyond the Beauly Firth. They have recently introduced a 2-course lunch for £10, which is excellent. I had dinner there the other day and it was a real treat. The early evening sunshine, bouncing off the water reflected off the silver cutlery and made the crystal glasses sparkle; while white linen tablecloths and coral roses on each table completed the picture. The Achiltibuie smoked roasted salmon, wrapped in Cromarty smoked trout with a quenelle of salmon mousse and golden mango dressing, followed by Loin of Galloway lamb wrapped in Parma ham, with baby vegetables and Earl Grey sauce wasn’t bad either. The lamb was just the best I have ever tasted.
As a driving instructor, it is all too easy to be so eager to fill your diary that you don’t set aside time to take a decent break. I am as guilty of that as anyone. Occasionally I plan ahead and prepare a varied packed lunch, but usually it is a case of grabbing a supermarket sandwich and an espresso as I go from one lesson to another. Not good. And not good value either. It is quite scary when you add up what is spent on ‘snacks’ over a whole year.
Time to head off to my next lesson now, then I will stop at the fishmongers on the way home to find something tasty for tea.
I might have to stop at a petrol station to buy a Yorkie bar on the way.
Friday 2 April 2010
Shocking
I've been thinking about the Toyota Yaris driver, the white van drivers, the Audi drivers and all the other ..... um........ how can I put this........... arseholes..... that drive around with such selfish disregard for other road users.
Before BSM changed to the Fiats, we used to have bright orange learner driver roof hats ('toblerones'), which clearly displayed that the car was being driven by a learner driver - SOMEONE WHO IS INEXPERIENCED in driving and dealing with such lowlife as mentioned above. So when BSM changed to the Fiats and it was announced that the roof hats were going, there was concern among some BSM instructors that having 2 standard 'L'-plates at each end of the car would not be visual enough. That maybe so, but then, to some following drivers, a 2 metre flashing neon 'L'-plate would still not be effective enough.
Fortunately, Fiat have come up with the solution......
The new, limited edition Fiat 500 Pink. Perhaps BSM should change from the current whites, greys and blacks to the 500 Pink. The possibility of permanent damage to the retina would surely be a deterent from following such a car too closely.
Before BSM changed to the Fiats, we used to have bright orange learner driver roof hats ('toblerones'), which clearly displayed that the car was being driven by a learner driver - SOMEONE WHO IS INEXPERIENCED in driving and dealing with such lowlife as mentioned above. So when BSM changed to the Fiats and it was announced that the roof hats were going, there was concern among some BSM instructors that having 2 standard 'L'-plates at each end of the car would not be visual enough. That maybe so, but then, to some following drivers, a 2 metre flashing neon 'L'-plate would still not be effective enough.
Fortunately, Fiat have come up with the solution......
The new, limited edition Fiat 500 Pink. Perhaps BSM should change from the current whites, greys and blacks to the 500 Pink. The possibility of permanent damage to the retina would surely be a deterent from following such a car too closely. Some people have said that this Fiat 500 no longer looks like a 'Noddy car', it looks more like a 'Barbie car'. But they are incorrect. Barbie's is white.
Niggles
It’s not been the smoothest of weeks. It just seemed that, whenever one problem was solved, another cropped up. In addition to that, it has been an especially bad week for idiotic drivers.
Actually, the week started really well: My pupil passed his test in Elgin. I won’t mention his name because he had to retake his driving test after being disqualified from driving for four years after failing a breathalyser test. On top of that he had to pay a £750 fine, he had to pay a driver for four years so that he could carry on his business, he had to pay me for driving lessons and he had to pay for three attempts at the driving test. Quite a harsh punishment for having a drink, but not harsh enough if he had killed or injured someone as a result of that drink.
For a few short days it seemed as though Spring had sprung. The ice had finally disappeared from the lochs on the Ullapool road, the meltwater had turned the rivers and burns into frothing, bubbling serpents, and only the highest hills remained capped with snow. Of course, you know what happened next. On Sunday we had not just ‘severe’, but ‘extreme’ weather warnings. By Tuesday the Borders were suffering from this ‘extreme’ snow, which led to the tragedy of the 17-year old girl, Natasha Paton, being killed in a coach crash. Strong winds meant that ferries were cancelled, leaving my pupil, Maggie, suffering the brunt of angry passengers in Ullapool and the B&B where I stay being run by the landlady’s mum because the landlady was stuck in the Hebrides. The section of the Highlands that I cover escaped the worst. I became concerned on Tuesday night, when the snow started falling in Ullapool - What on earth would the Inverness road over the hills be like? After 16 hours of lessons in Ullapool in a day and a half, I headed home and was relieved to find the roads well gritted and clear of snow. Someone else had not been so lucky, as I passed a car, on its side in a ditch (no-one inside). This, however, was still not enough of a deterrent to stop a couple of white van men racing down the road, overtaking at the most ridiculous of places. One belonged to Morrison Construction (registration number LC58AZF…. I think) and the other was a hire van.
Even worse driving was witnessed a couple of days earlier. James approached a right turn and was hesitant in crossing. This apparently was reason enough to cause the red Toyota Yaris (SY52AXT) behind to overtake us on a blind bend, with parked cars on the right further adding to the danger, thus causing James to brake to avoid a potential collision.
A while ago, I wrote about other instructors’ reliance on ‘reference points’. To be fair, in order to pass the Driving Instructor Part 3 exam, the DSA examiners expect us to know reference points for all manoeuvres, parking position, driving position and virtually every driving situation imaginable. So it is understandable that many instructors stick rigidly with these reference points. I still don’t agree with the concept though, and I certainly don’t agree with instructors who cover their cars in strips of tape and coloured dots so that their pupils become dependent on these points, rather than actually thinking about what to do with the car. Anyway, one particular instructor didn’t take too kindly to my comments and assumed it was a personal attack on his abilities as an instructor. In fact, he took it so personally that, this week, I received correspondence from his solicitors threatening me with legal action. It was tempting to tell them to go and play with themselves, but in the spirit of peace and harmony to all men, and solicitors, I will remove the ‘offending’ posts from this blog. I have always got on with instructor concerned and, with too many pupils for me to manage in the area he covers, I was going to refer three potential new pupils to him, but, somehow, I no longer think he will appreciate any communication with me.
As I said, not the smoothest of weeks, but any problems I have (or others have with me) are put into sharp context when you consider the plight of Natasha Paton, her family and friends.
Actually, the week started really well: My pupil passed his test in Elgin. I won’t mention his name because he had to retake his driving test after being disqualified from driving for four years after failing a breathalyser test. On top of that he had to pay a £750 fine, he had to pay a driver for four years so that he could carry on his business, he had to pay me for driving lessons and he had to pay for three attempts at the driving test. Quite a harsh punishment for having a drink, but not harsh enough if he had killed or injured someone as a result of that drink.
For a few short days it seemed as though Spring had sprung. The ice had finally disappeared from the lochs on the Ullapool road, the meltwater had turned the rivers and burns into frothing, bubbling serpents, and only the highest hills remained capped with snow. Of course, you know what happened next. On Sunday we had not just ‘severe’, but ‘extreme’ weather warnings. By Tuesday the Borders were suffering from this ‘extreme’ snow, which led to the tragedy of the 17-year old girl, Natasha Paton, being killed in a coach crash. Strong winds meant that ferries were cancelled, leaving my pupil, Maggie, suffering the brunt of angry passengers in Ullapool and the B&B where I stay being run by the landlady’s mum because the landlady was stuck in the Hebrides. The section of the Highlands that I cover escaped the worst. I became concerned on Tuesday night, when the snow started falling in Ullapool - What on earth would the Inverness road over the hills be like? After 16 hours of lessons in Ullapool in a day and a half, I headed home and was relieved to find the roads well gritted and clear of snow. Someone else had not been so lucky, as I passed a car, on its side in a ditch (no-one inside). This, however, was still not enough of a deterrent to stop a couple of white van men racing down the road, overtaking at the most ridiculous of places. One belonged to Morrison Construction (registration number LC58AZF…. I think) and the other was a hire van.
Even worse driving was witnessed a couple of days earlier. James approached a right turn and was hesitant in crossing. This apparently was reason enough to cause the red Toyota Yaris (SY52AXT) behind to overtake us on a blind bend, with parked cars on the right further adding to the danger, thus causing James to brake to avoid a potential collision.
A while ago, I wrote about other instructors’ reliance on ‘reference points’. To be fair, in order to pass the Driving Instructor Part 3 exam, the DSA examiners expect us to know reference points for all manoeuvres, parking position, driving position and virtually every driving situation imaginable. So it is understandable that many instructors stick rigidly with these reference points. I still don’t agree with the concept though, and I certainly don’t agree with instructors who cover their cars in strips of tape and coloured dots so that their pupils become dependent on these points, rather than actually thinking about what to do with the car. Anyway, one particular instructor didn’t take too kindly to my comments and assumed it was a personal attack on his abilities as an instructor. In fact, he took it so personally that, this week, I received correspondence from his solicitors threatening me with legal action. It was tempting to tell them to go and play with themselves, but in the spirit of peace and harmony to all men, and solicitors, I will remove the ‘offending’ posts from this blog. I have always got on with instructor concerned and, with too many pupils for me to manage in the area he covers, I was going to refer three potential new pupils to him, but, somehow, I no longer think he will appreciate any communication with me.
As I said, not the smoothest of weeks, but any problems I have (or others have with me) are put into sharp context when you consider the plight of Natasha Paton, her family and friends.
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