In another accident :(

[angminas]

I'm not reading the whole thing, but one of the most important things about driving is NEVER to assume / trust that other drivers are driving the way they should. Absolutely do not assume that someone is going to turn because they have their signal on, or that they're not going to turn because they don't have their signal on, or that they're going to stop in time, or that they're watching what they're doing, or that they care if you die horribly. Do not put your car where they're not supposed to be- put it where they aren't, and where they clearly won't be. ALWAYS check, and expect them to be suicidal and trying to ruin your driving record. This approach has saved me from innumerable crashes.

Trust me- I've been driving for fifteen years (professionally for eight years) and I've never had a single moving violation. I've never even killed an animal with my car. I actually AM a good driver.

You didn't have bad luck- you had bad judgment. You actually had GOOD luck in that you did something stupid and all that happened was a lost bumper. Quit making excuses or eventually you're going to hurt somebody real bad. Maybe a little kid, maybe a pregnant mother; maybe yourself.

 

[XZeroII]

Look, we all make mistakes. Don't stop driving because of this. You just need to SLOW DOWN. You need to learn how to drive defensively. This means that you always expect something bad to happen and your driving style reflects this. You don't move your vehicle until you are 100% sure that everything is clear. When you're moving, you assume that a car is going to come shooting through every stop sign and red light and you prepare yourself for evasive action. It's a lot of work and worry at first, but once you have been doing it for awhile, it's second nature.

If you stop driving, you'll never get any better. What you need to do is wake up and slow down. I have nothing to back this up, but I would assume that most accidents are caused by people who are not paying attention and who are in a hurry.

 

[zoiks]

Correction 1/2 Asian.

You're lucky. The accident could've been worse.

 

[chipy]

OP, sorry to hear you're going through this. Be patient, maybe take a defensive driving class, and know that sometimes accidents are inevitable. But we should always try to reduce them. Sometimes it's the other driver, sometimes it's the landscape... i've seen some horrible landscap where bushes, hills, or curves made it very difficult to see beyond a certain point. Defenitely keep driving, but be careful and mindful of your surroundings. good luck!

 

[lxskllr]

Yeah I'm thinking of taking some courses. May stop driving for a little while as I don't want to spend the money for courses right now till I have a job.

Ome thing's for sure this hasn't helped my emotional problems or sense of self worth. I don't take this kind of thing well I guess.

Don't be afraid of driving. That's as bad as not paying attention. You'll do alright; you just need to get in the groove. Keep driving, but stay off the high speed/high traffic roads for the time being. Pay attention, just get out and do it. You learn best by doing :^)

 

[nick1985]

learn to drive

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

note to self: do not drive in Vancouver.

 

[rockyct]

note to self: do not drive in Vancouver.

I've done it and it's really not that bad, but I'm from SoCal.

 

[Saint Nick]

I never understood why people waited to drive. Is it a cultural thing?

I mean...I know that teenage drivers are pretty bad, but its good to start early to get that experience, you know?

 

[Locut0s]

I never understood why people waited to drive. Is it a cultural thing?

I mean...I know that teenage drivers are pretty bad, but its good to start early to get that experience, you know?

I can't give you a good explanation myself really. I guess as a self professed geek who's other friends were largely geeks I never was part of the hip High School crowd and wanted nothing to do with it. This combined with a general lack of need to go anywhere beyond the school. Driving just never seemed all the interesting or useful to me.

 

[ahenkel]

I never understood why people waited to drive. Is it a cultural thing?

I mean...I know that teenage drivers are pretty bad, but its good to start early to get that experience, you know?

I didn't drive till I was 20. Didn't own my own car and parents wouldn't put me on their insurance.

 

[tk149]

Drive like your life depends on it...oh wait...

Defensive Driving FTW

"Luck" had nothing to do with your accident, except that you were "lucky" it didn't turn out worse.

 

[Nik]

Sort of what I'm trying to do. :\

Maybe you should buy a bicycle.

 

[zinfamous]

Correction 1/2 Asian.

Asian enough for poor driving skillz, obviously.

 

[InflatableBuddha]

Don't be afraid of driving. That's as bad as not paying attention. You'll do alright; you just need to get in the groove. Keep driving, but stay off the high speed/high traffic roads for the time being. Pay attention, just get out and do it. You learn best by doing :^)

Exactly. Now is the worst time to quit. You have the resources (both time and money) right now to do the course, so do it! Don't let a couple hiccups get in the way - it's all part of the path to success.

Spend part of your time studying for the YD course and practicing to be a better driver, and some time job-hunting. Once you land a job and get your license, those are 2 accomplishments that will dramatically boost your self-confidence and help you face your other challenges.

 

[halik]

Actually I took 2 weeks of classes. Did extremely well in them actually.

I'm sure you did great on the written part...

 

[Locut0s]

Exactly. Now is the worst time to quit. You have the resources (both time and money) right now to do the course, so do it! Don't let a couple hiccups get in the way - it's all part of the path to success.

Spend part of your time studying for the YD course and practicing to be a better driver, and some time job-hunting. Once you land a job and get your license, those are 2 accomplishments that will dramatically boost your self-confidence and help you face your other challenges.

Thanks I'm likely to be doing just this. Once I get back from the family holiday which starts on the 10th.

I gave my father $1300 today and $200 to my mother who paid for the first batch of lessons and the taxi ride home. Father accepted the money, well sort of he doesn't really want it still, mother still refuses to accept it.

 

[skace]

No accidents, tickets, or anything resulting in any kind of damage so far.

No tickets? Then you aren't driving fast enough.

 

[Locut0s]

I'm sure you did great on the written part...

There was no written part. The written test is to get your learners license. These were all road lessons. Yes I did do fairly well but I only had 5 or 6 lessons and perhaps the guy I had wasn't the best?

 

[InflatableBuddha]

I think I average about 3,000 km per year. :hmm:

KT

I'm pretty sure that's a record around here!

 

[Locut0s]

I'm pretty sure that's a record around here!

My mother used to average something like that. She would only drive to and from work, a short distance, and rarely anywhere else. She now drives much more than she used to though.

 

[InflatableBuddha]

white rock to burnaby monday through friday. im fast and furious on hwy 91

Oh, so YOU'RE one of those asshole BMW SUV drivers I see around here all the time .

Where in Burnaby do you work? I'm near City Hall/Deer Lake.

 

[InflatableBuddha]

There was no written part. The written test is to get your learners license. These were all road lessons. Yes I did do fairly well but I only had 5 or 6 lessons and perhaps the guy I had wasn't the best?

You'll find with the Young Drivers program that they teach you to look for things while you're driving that most people don't pay attention to (ground-scanning parked cars, anticipating other vehicles making lane changes, always keeping space around your vehicle, etc). Being proactive rather than reactive.

This is all classroom instruction, BEFORE you even get into the car. Theory first, then practice in the field.

 

[MJinZ]

You'll find with the Young Drivers program that they teach you to look for things while you're driving that most people don't pay attention to (ground-scanning parked cars, anticipating other vehicles making lane changes, always keeping space around your vehicle, etc). Being proactive rather than reactive.

This is all classroom instruction, BEFORE you even get into the car. Theory first, then practice in the field.

Never took classroom classes. That shit is all common sense. If you lack it, you'll probably fail in life regardless of what they try to teach you anyway.

 

[InflatableBuddha]

Never took classroom classes. That shit is all common sense. If you lack it, you'll probably fail in life regardless of what they try to teach you anyway.

It's a learned skill like anything else, and there is underlying theory.

Just the other day I proactively avoided an incident.

Approaching a stale green light at 55 km/h, I saw a bus on the opposite side of the street, waiting. I saw a pedestrian talking to another person. He was standing in the curb lane in front of some cones and tape (part of the lane was closed for construction).

I saw him try to turn (assumed he would try to dash for the bus), then turn back, so I knew he was trying to say goodbye before running across the street on a red light.

I hovered on the brake and put my finger on the horn, and I gave him a blast just as I came into the crosswalk to alert him. He was less than a metre away from running into the side of my car as I coasted along.

Having checked my rear and side mirrors seconds earlier, I also knew that there were no cars behind me, so I would have been ok to swerve to avoid him if necessary and not get hit by another vehicle.