A matter of life or death

Some people think the driving test is a matter of life or death. Some of my pupils assure me it's much more important than that.
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about one such pupil who was SO desperate to pass his test. He contacted me months before his 17th birthday to arrange an intensive course of lessons, practised regularly with his parents, passed his theory and had his driving test booked for only a couple of weeks after his 17th birthday. His lessons were going so well that, not only was I convinced he was going to pass, but it was hard to imagine he would even pick up a minor fault. As you may have previously read, his test went very well (I sat in the back) until, 20 seconds from the end of the test, he misjudged the intentions of an oncoming learner driver and crossed in front of him. Result - serious fault and a failed test. I have seen pupils upset after a test, but I don't think I have ever seen anyone as shocked by a fail. There is no explaining it; I can think of several pupils who, over the years, have been almost faultless in their lessons, but just do something inexplicable on the day of the test.
Anyway, Friday was his second attempt. In the lesson beforehand his driving was good, but not quite as good as it usually is. Difficult for me to put my finger on what it was, maybe just a fraction rushed. I was surprised when he asked if I would sit in the back of the test again, but I was happy to agree. Whereas, in his first test, I had been relatively relaxed (until the last 20 seconds), I wasn't so relaxed this time. Especially when it came to his reversing manoeuvre. The examiner asked him to do a parallel park - something he could do with ease. But, he just rushed it and I could see we had to gone too far round and was heading for the curb. No problem, just stop the car and pull forward to correct his position. He did not stop. He slowed right down, slow enough so that he didn't actually 'bump' the curb with any force, but I could see the shock on his face. The rest of the drive was 'ok' - a bit shabby by his usual standards, but nothing serious.
At the end of his test, the examiner totted up the faults (7) and my pupil hung his head. It was hard to say whether he was more shocked last time, learning that he had failed, or this time, hearing that he had passed. Afterward the examiner had left, he was still slightly phased and babbled about how he was sure he had failed after his parallel parking. I explained that the examiner had decided that the manoeuvre had been completed 'under control' (but I wasn't entirely convinced, and nor was Andrew).
So, well done Andrew. Your determination and eagerness paid off in the end.

Out with the old and in with the new, as my next lesson was with a brand new pupil. She has set me a bit of a challenge: She passed her theory test back in mid-May 2009, with the intention of taking lessons then. But moving house and getting married delayed that plan and she recently realised that, unless she passed her driving test within two years of passing the theory test, she would have to sit the test again. So she has set me a deadline of less than 7 weeks to get her through her test - from scratch. I like a challenge.

My final pupil of the day was one who, back in December, had begun to lose her interest in driving. She had had lessons with another instructor prior to me and she had got it in her head that it was too long since her very first driving lesson. Was it worth the effort? she wondered. At the time I had suggested booking her driving test for a few months time so that she had a goal to aim for. Unfortunately, her progress had not been as good as we would have hoped and, with her test scheduled for next week, I did not think she was quite ready. I had to break the news.
"But I really want to pass. It's been so long since I started driving." She said. (It hasn't really.... many people take much more than a year from their first lesson to passing.)
I had to persuade her that it was in her best interests and that, no matter how disappointed she may feel about my advice, she would be more disappointed at failing her test. The killer question was "Do you think you can drive around the town without ever needing my help?" "No." was her honest reply.
She agreed to postpone her test. Later that evening, however, I was concerned when she text me to say that she could not get another date until June. I was anxious that she wouldn't wait that long and decide not to change her test date, but, to her credit, she did postpone it and has arranged immediate lessons.

As much as I agree with the DSA's motto, Safe driving for life, it is very rare to have a pupil who's main aim is to learn to be a very good driver, however long it takes. The large majority just want to get their licence to drive as quickly and cheaply as possible. But rushing the process is likely to be a false economy as driving tests cost two-and-a-half to three times as much as driving lessons, so you don't really want to take too many, even if you 'just want to give it a go'.

My final pupil of the night was even more detemined to succeed. Jordan, my 10 year-old grandson was at our house and he enjoys his computer games. I only have a few Playstation 2 games and his favourite is Gran Turismo. He is so determined to beat me (I won't let him win - I'm a bad grandad) and, over the last year, he has reached the point where he is at least equal to me. Suspecting that, one day, he will trash me, I suggested playing Tekken 5 instead. Unfortunately, this was not the best idea as the previous night I had got careless slicing up some ginger for a stir-fry and had lost the tip of my thumb. Despite being bandaged, the rigours of defending my Tekken  credibility opened up the wound and I had to lose real blood in order to beat Jordan. You see, I can be just as determined as anyone else, even if it is only to beat up my grandson.