Well, I just scraped my car against a post by accident.

[Ross PK]

When I made a turning on a main road, for some reason my concentration must have drifted, maybe the music was distracting, but I turned or slowed down way too late.

 

As I was turning I knew I was really close to the concrete post that was outside the car park that I was turning into, I thought I may just about make it. I would've stopped there and then and reversed a little, but I wasn't sure if I could do that on a main road with traffic behind me, so I carried on and the front corner of my car scraped against it and has left really big scrape marks on the corner of my front bumper.

 

I knew something stupid like this would end up happening even befroe I passed my test. It's the kind of thing that happens to me.

 

I mean, I wouldn't mind if it was something understandable, like a car pulling out at a junction that you didn't see and you crashed into it. Or trying to do a tricky manouvere in a car pak and you just slightly bump someone. But this? Wtf? I'm so glad there weren't any people around otherwise I would've felt like a complete ****.

 

What next, I'm traveling at a really slow speed, don't turn enough and end up going onto the pavement and running someone over?

 

Now I feel totally put off from driving again.

[Taramere]

Reading stories like this doesn't give me a great sense of confidence and wellbeing when I set out in the car. I think a course of advanced driving lessons might be a good plan for you, Ross.

[carhill]

Ross, shyte happens. Don't beat yourself up. No one was harmed and just a bit of paint was displaced. Look around. See all those cars that are smashed in and beat up? Yeah, those are driven by "competent" drivers. LOL

 

Keep practicing. You'll get better

[laRubiaBonita]

well, if it makes you feel any better i saw a lady do this exact thing yesterday morning!! (are you sure you are in the UK? )

 

she turned left off of a side street onto the main road, and i guess had a brain fart- cause she didn't turn at all until she was one wheel the curb... then the grass and she nearly missed the light pole.....

[Trialbyfire]

It's just a matter of practice, Ross. You're gauging speed v. trajectory, all in a split second. The human mind is pretty amazing, if you think about it. So you effed up a little. No big deal. Chin up and keep at it. The more you drive, the more it becomes second nature, the easier it gets. For the interim, slow down a bit.

[Ross PK]

Ross, shyte happens. Don't beat yourself up. No one was harmed and just a bit of paint was displaced. Look around. See all those cars that are smashed in and beat up? Yeah, those are driven by "competent" drivers. LOL

 

Yeah but it's the way it happened that bothers me. I bet most of those accidents that those people were in were a lot more understandable. What happened with me just shouldn't have happened.

 

I'm quite gutted about the car as well. It was in good condition and I paid a lot of money for it, now there's really big scrapes (or gouges) going right across the corner of the bumper. It's stupid that I've spent so much money on a first car, I should've got a piece of crap for a few hundred because then it wouldn't be so bad if anything happens to it.

[laRubiaBonita]

just think... all those beater cars DID start out as nice cars at one point..... and better the car than you or anyone else....

 

my sister was not allowed to drive and chew gum and listen to the radio initially..... she was singing one day and the gum somehow got caught in her hair and she almost went over the curve into someones yard while she was turning- my mother was in the car at the time too....

 

it happens, you get over it- yeah it sucks about the car, mine has a bent hood... but i just think positive thoughts "someone will rearend into another car someday- lightly of course- and i will be able to get ot fixed"

[Ross PK]

just think... all those beater cars DID start out as nice cars at one point..... and better the car than you or anyone else....

 

my sister was not allowed to drive and chew gum and listen to the radio initially..... she was singing one day and the gum somehow got caught in her hair and she almost went over the curve into someones yard while she was turning- my mother was in the car at the time too....

 

it happens, you get over it- yeah it sucks about the car, mine has a bent hood... but i just think positive thoughts "someone will rearend into another car someday- lightly of course- and i will be able to get ot fixed"

 

It's funny you should mention that, but I was chewing gum too, as well as listening to music. Not sure if the gum was partly to blame, but I was actually chewing the gum because I thought it might help me concentrate more. Maybe I got it mixed up with the fact that it's supposed to help your nerves or stress.

[2sure]

I think it happened because you were distracted, like you said. But not by the music..by the crooked tree shaped air freshener dancing around off of your rear view mirror.

[Ross PK]

I think it happened because you were distracted, like you said. But not by the music..by the crooked tree shaped air freshener dancing around off of your rear view mirror.

 

It didn't feel like it was distracting me at all.

 

But it was actual distraction which caused the incident, I think maybe I was thinking about something, maybe it was the music too, I dunno.

[Art_Critic]

Ross.. cut yourself some slack.. accidents happen and yours was very minor.. learn from this and just get better at driving..

 

We all make mistakes...

 

When I got my license at the ripe age of 16 I took my brothers 6 week old Elcamino (which he had just decked out with dual exhaust and mag wheels) out for a ride to the store..

 

I wrapped it around a telephone pole and thru a brick pump house...

I totaled his brand new truck and I only had my license less than 2 weeks...

 

or my best friend who when he was in his 20's just bought a new 280-Z.. he picked it up from the dealership and pulled out onto the highway in front of the dealership and he got T-boned..

He totaled his brand new car and only got to drive it less than 300 feet.

 

Stop thinking you effd up so bad.. in a few months you will look upon this accident and realize how your reaction didn't need to be so life ending..

 

Good Luck...

[Ross PK]

(are you sure you are in the UK? )

 

Yup. Why do you ask?

[wuggle]

Ross PLEASE listen to Carhil and others, this stuff happens to ALL of us , honest. I have been driving 15 years now and still do this sort of stuff. It is NOT just you.

 

Really it is just a fact of life. You will do this again, and it will p*ss you off, you will do it again after that , and it will p*ss you off again. slowly over the years you do it less and less, but you will still cock up , even after driving for 20 years.

 

Cars are just tools to help you enjoy life. at the end of the day it is ONLY that, a tool to be used and enjoyed.

 

The best carpenters have the most knackered hammers

 

Keep getting out there, and enjoy.

 

As Carhil says , sh*t happens.

[Sibyl Vane]

I think it happened because you were distracted, like you said. But not by the music..by the crooked tree shaped air freshener dancing around off of your rear view mirror.

 

Damn you beat me to it.

[Ross PK]

Ross PLEASE listen to Carhil and others, this stuff happens to ALL of us , honest. I have been driving 15 years now and still do this sort of stuff. It is NOT just you.

 

Really it is just a fact of life. You will do this again, and it will p*ss you off, you will do it again after that , and it will p*ss you off again. slowly over the years you do it less and less, but you will still cock up , even after driving for 20 years.

 

Cars are just tools to help you enjoy life. at the end of the day it is ONLY that, a tool to be used and enjoyed.

 

The best carpenters have the most knackered hammers

 

Keep getting out there, and enjoy.

 

As Carhil says , sh*t happens.

 

Did you ever make any really dumb mistakes like I did?

[anne1707]

Did you ever make any really dumb mistakes like I did?

 

Yes he did - the week after he passed his test, he bumped into another car. He also dented his brother's car when he had lent it to us for us to go away for a week. He's gone into the back of a car at a roundabout. He's.... hang on, I had better stop now to avoid a domestic.

 

Ross - stop beating yourself up so much on this. You feel daft but at the end of the day it was just an accident. These things happen.

[wuggle]

I also knackered my wifes alloys the other week but don't tell her, she hasn't noticed yet ...

[anne1707]

I also knackered my wifes alloys the other week but don't tell her, she hasn't noticed yet ...

 

 

Now he tells me!!!

[Taramere]

It's all very well to comfort someone after they've had the kind of prang that anyone could have, but...

 

I would've stopped there and then and reversed a little, but I wasn't sure if I could do that on a main road with traffic behind me

 

For the avoidance of doubt, Ross, don't reverse onto main roads with traffic behind you. I know a lot of drivers do it, but

 

a) they're probably far more experienced than you, and

b) they're not supposed to do it.

 

Getting yourself better acquainted with the Highway Code would be a really good idea. I appreciate that people are trying to help you build up your confidence to drive...but that has to be balanced against the interests and safety of other road users. I saw in another post that you passed your test several months back, then didn't drive for ages afterwards because you were nervous.

 

I think being nervous about driving is pretty normal and realistic, given the serious damage a car is capable of doing, but a seriously nervous and hesitant driver can be a danger and a menace to others on the road. There are responsible ways you can tackle the nervousness problem. For example, booking a few refresher lessons with a driving school to build up your confidence while having safeguards (eg dual control car - instructor next to you) in place.

[wuggle]

Getting yourself better acquainted with the Highway Code would be a really good idea.

 

Generally good advice apart from the above statement. Given that Ross is a fairly new driver I would be willing to bet that his knowledge of the Highway Code is a lot better than mine and probably 99% of people on the UK roads at present.

 

I agree with TBF, it is not about the highway code, it is about gaining experience in spatial awareness and handling etc, this can only be done through experience.

 

If someone's first attempt at writing thier name was a little shakey and difficult to read it hardly seems appropriate to tell them off for not reading the dictionary enough, you would tell them to practice.

 

Ross, keep driving, you will keep learning your whole life.

[Taramere]

If someone's first attempt at writing thier name was a little shakey and difficult to read it hardly seems appropriate to tell them off for not reading the dictionary enough, you would tell them to practice.

 

Someone learning to write neatly on a piece of paper does not compare with someone learning to drive a whacking great piece of machinery. I used to work in a job that required me to read tons of medical evidence on people who had been the victims of RTAs...so call me fussy and pedantic, but I take the notion of "duty of care to others on the road" seriously.

 

And no, I won't claim to know the highway code from cover to cover - but a great deal of it is common sense. It follows that one of its main purposes is to assist those who might be challenged in that department.

 

Things Ross has asked of the people on this forum.

 

Should I get a battery recharger for my car?

Should I try to stop my car from getting rust?

Do I need a registration certificate to sell my car?

How do I hang an air freshener in my car?

 

He needs to read the highway code and get some refresher lessons. Or he needs to stay off the road altogether. God knows, there are enough incompetent drivers endangering other people out there.

[The Collector]

I did practically the same thing in the supermarket car-park recently. Annoying, makes you nervous when you drive for a bit, but it's not the end of the world.

[wuggle]

but I take the notion of "duty of care to others on the road" seriously.

 

So do I, and never once did I state or hint at anything different, which might be why I started my previous post with "Generally good advice", so I do think it a bit 'off' for you to 'imply' otherwise on my part. Do not confuse 'reading the highway code' with 'a duty of care' I never have.

 

I still stand by my comments, I don't think Ross needs to read the highway code (again) I think he needs experience, the only way to get that is by actually driving, and Ross himself has already demonstrated a willingness for advance driving lessons etc.

 

Why is it important to you what other questions Ross has asked this forum ? lots of people ask lots of different questions about all sorts of things, some may seem daft or obvious to you but maybe not to the person asking them or others.

 

This is an Advice type website isn't it ? If Ross needs more advice than some or advice on things that you consider mundane or stupid then why not simply ignore his requests ?

 

Agreed there are enough incompetant people on the roads, but again your advice to Ross to stay off the roads altogether is very silly and immature. Would you advise all learners to stay off the road ? how would anyone get better, by staying in and re-reading the highway code repeatedly for 30 years before getting in a car ?

 

Ross, keep driving, keep learning, keep enjoying and do all you can to be a safe driver, but do NOT stop because you make one little mistake after driving for a week. That is no way to live.

[carhill]

My take is that Ross really cares, on a lot of levels, and wants to do the right thing. So unlike many people I know these days

[Taramere]

Would you advise all learners to stay off the road ?

 

Nope. Just Ross!

 

I'm kidding Ross - but see end of my post for the not kidding part.

 

Why is it important to you what other questions Ross has asked this forum?

 

His questions aren't so much important to me as astonishing and quite funny.

 

lots of people ask lots of different questions about all sorts of things, some may seem daft or obvious to you but maybe not to the person asking them or others.

 

Thanks for those sage words, Uncle Wuggle.

 

This is an Advice type website isn't it ? If Ross needs more advice than some or advice on things that you consider mundane or stupid then why not simply ignore his requests ?

 

Because I would like to add my tuppence worth?

 

Agreed there are enough incompetant people on the roads, but again your advice to Ross to stay off the roads altogether is very silly and immature.

 

My serious advice to him was that he take refresher lessons in a dual controlled car if he's this much of a nervous wreck on the roads. I think that, rather than a few people giving touchy feely support on a message board, would be more geared to his safety and that of other road users.