EXPERT DRIVING.

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20623, 12 August 1932, Page 6

EXPERT DRIVING.

AN ACQUIRED ART.

PRECISION IN STEERING. It has been asserted that good ear drivers, like poets and horsemen, are born and not made, but sucli an opinion should not deter the inexperienced motorist from striving to better his skill at the wheel and to obtain such a mastery over his car that even in the worst emergency he will instinctive take the right action. A certain degree of proficiency is, of course, demanded before a driving license can bo obtained; but it is a mistake tor the novice to feel satisfied that because he has been granted a license he becomes a thoroughly competent driver. Lt is wisely insisted that every driver must, exhibit a reasonable amount of skill before he is licensed to control a car on the public streets, but the man who values his own safety and comfort will not rest content with that qualification, and will continue to school himself in the art of driving. Parking Difficulties. Many motorists appear to find great difficulty in parking their cars in. confined spaces, and in steering them accurately when reversing; but a little quiet practice in a secluded spot will soon enable any person of ordinary aptitude to overcome such troubles. Then, too, there is the question of precision of steering, which calls for good judgment as well as a straight eye. From the driving position on the offside it is generally impossible to see the actual position of the near-side front wheel, and when it is necessary to drive as far as is safe to the left of the road or to steer the car through a narrow space, an instinctive calculation must be made as to how far the steering should be turned. Practice Brings Judgment.

Only practice will bring perfect judgment. The enthusiast who really desires to become adept will make rapid progress if he takes his car to some open space where he can try his hand at driving in reverse, piloting the car between two marks or sticks set' up to represent a narrow gateway, and trying in how short a marked distance he can park the vehicle close and parallel to an imaginary kerb. He can also make the experiment of driving fast at a mark which represents an obstacle in the road and swerving to avoid it, so that after a little practice he will feel at ease with the steering gear, and will learn to estimate how rapidly and severely it will respond. Much good will also result if he makes a habit of concentrating intently when driving over different types of road, notino; at what speed it is safe to take various types of cornel's and how to cuide the over rough pitches so as to avoid irregularities nnd fa strike gutters and ridged obliquely, thereby lessening the shock and jar to the vehicle.