Road Test Skills: You need em’; we got em’!

October 27, 2014

I once thought that putting people on the spot by forcing them to pass a required test was an irrational and redundant exercise. After passing a number of tests in both my professional and personal life, I’ve come to realize that we learn valuable skills from being tested.

For most unfortunately, these high stress situation are usually avoided at all costs. Even in light of the negative side effects, these tests should be viewed as opportunities to grow, develop, and acquire valuable skills that will be used throughout the rest of your life.

First and foremost, we discover how we react to stress; we learn about our abilities to function and produce results in high-pressure situations. For most drivers, the ability to function in stressful situations translates to the everyday demands of driving (congestion, incompetent drivers, and most of all the frustration that leads to “road rage”).

If you are unable to drive safely during a test, how are you going to adequately cope during a potentially life-threatening situation on the road?

What to do:

Different people experience stress differently: some have butterflies in their stomach, while other shake uncontrollably or are physically ill. There are techniques however, that may not help with stress, but will assist you to be successful.

Breath, focus & visualize.

  • In the moments before the road test stop and breath: pull the breath into your abdomen and hold it there; lower your shoulders; and then exhale slowly.
  • Focus on the task at hand – don’t be thinking about the mistakes that you made during the warm-up drive. Mistakes you made in the past are only distraction to what has to be done in the present.
  • Visualize success – see that authorities handing you your licence – know that failing is simply not an option.

Practice, practice and practice.

When in a stressful situation, we produce what we’ve practiced and if you haven’t adequately prepared, your results will reflect the amount of practice.

Be informed.

Know the details of what is required of you during the road test. What manoeuvres will you be required to execute? What knowledge will you be required to know? What area of the city will you drive – residential, urban, commercial or industrial? Will your vehicle meet the standards required for a government road test? This is only some of the information that you will need to know to be successful on your road test.

Get professional training and assistance.

In other words – get professional driver training. A government-administered driver’s tests is subjective, objective and prescribed. Importantly, it is very different from the way most people drive day-to-day. During a road test drivers are expected to demonstrate the following:

  • Knowledge of road rules
  • Care & control of the vehicle
  • Turning
  • Lane changes
  • Merging
  • Slow-speed manoeuvres
  • Right-of-way
  • And safety.

Driving, like sports, is a dynamic & fluid activity. Both of these activities can be read about in books, but often the theory doesn’t immediately apply to the situation of driving. Therefore, like having a coach or team captain, a professional driving instructor can prove invaluable in preparing you for your driving test, because preparing drivers for a road test is their job.

Use a running commentary while practicing.

Studies have shown that if you are describing what you are doing and doing it at the same time, you will retain 90% of the information.

Go through the steps in your mind.

For example, see & practice the steps of a ‘U’ turn, parallel park, or left-hand turn in your mind – often the shower, sitting on the toilet, or walking are a good places for this visualization exercise.

Reflect on your mistakes.

If we did everything perfectly, there wouldn’t be any learning. In other words, “there isn’t any learning in winning”. Why, for example, are “shoulder checks” required every time the vehicle is moved laterally? Every vehicle has “blind spots” and shoulder checking is a technique that compensates for a driver’s blind spots. And by checking these blind spots, it greatly reduces the risk of a crash.

When you show up for your road test, it is your job to ‘take away the right of the examiner’ to fail you. If you are informed about the parameters of the test, what it entails, and have practiced and prepared, then the stress of test day will only make your victory that much sweeter.

By Ildar Sagdejev (Specious) (Own work) [GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons