HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR DRIVING

NZ Truth, Issue 1061, 25 March 1926, Page 17

HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR DRIVING

You Can Always Ledrn from Others on the Road • SOME THOUGHTS ON A WEEK-END RUN A week or so ago we chanced to be at Otaki beach when a motor-cycle sports meeting was being held. Our observations on that occasion and on^he run to and from Otaki to Wellington afforded us much food for thought,- and the Results we have embodied m one or two\of the articles which appear this week. f! : :

)HE thoughtful' andC observant driver find, many things of interest during a single day's run, especially if , it includes a fairly stiff hill, some narrow roads and one or two incidental matters such as a ford through a river, a stretch of sand or

something of that kind. By carefully noting the method . adopted by other motorists, most 'i drivers can improve the handling of their own cars, if only by avoiding the mistakes which they see others making. • This is the nearest we .can reach to "seeing ourselves as others see us," and it is better than any amount of driving theory. Watch others on the i-oad and learn from their mistakes. BE SLOW BUT SURE Those who are acquainted with ' Otaki beach will remember that a small river runs into the sea about half a mile from the point at which the road comes down to the sand, and this must be crossed, m order to reach the section which is used as a motor-cycle track. . After watching a few motorists crossing this stream, we were very surprised to note how few'seemed to know the best way of "Taking to the water." ■ Everyone rushed m at speed, throwing up water like a motor launch, and getting the car thoroughly drenched with spray m the process. ' The danger of this> method is that water may be splashed up on to the ignition gear, distributor or plugs, and so put the car out of • action. This only happened m one case on this occasion, but there was no need to get the car even damp, as we proved

3 rf—. — — — — < by taking; | our own car through -the water, slowest possible speed, lowest gear. . . ■..'.■..•.■.•' l Qh the other side, our running boards were 'perfectly" dry! Moral: Take water as slowly as possible, with the engine revving as fast as possible. • If the water is very deep, It is a good plan to cover the magneto or battery ignition gear with some rags and put an old coat or a sack over the radiator. Sometimes it may also be worth while to take off the fan belt. The fan*is a great culprit for drawing water through the radiator and flinging it about over the engine. DON'T BALK OTHERS Perhaps no hill m New Zealand, has such an undeservedly bad' name as Paekak. . ■ It is probably on account of this that the experienced driver so frequently finds himself balked by timid motorists on this hill. This usually happens when overtaking one of those cars whose top gear performances are the pride of their owners. ' Although there is plenty of room to pass on almost any part of the hill, they hang on m top gear on the crown of the road, because their owners know that if they attempt to manoeuvre to' the side of the road they will be forced to change down because their engines arc. not sufficiently flexible at such a slow speed to enable them to slow down and pick up again. Nobody will suggest that a novice should drive at a higher speed than he feels to lie safe, but he certainly should remember that the car will be easier to handle m a lower gear because of the increased flexibility and he will then be able to make way for faster drivers if required. . ■ As we mentioned at the beginning: of

y ■ ___ this series of week-end thoughts, we happened to run into ■ a .. motor-cycle sports meeting at Otaki. -.■'.. We could say a great deal about this particular meeting, but we will' content ourselves with some general observations anent this sport m New Zealand. Mptor-cycjing :as a sport needs more publicity, more organization and better. facilities. > , . . t ' There is ,no doubt about the public interest m the matter. The little meeting to which we. refer attracted quite a- crowd, of motorists, most of whom, like 'ourselves, had "just happened." / . . ... • ■ '- . ■ . The most important consideration is, of course, the question'of a suitable track near the- various.centres. r If. this could be provided, and properly organized meetings held, there is no doubt that the sport would become very popular; nor do we think that there would be any lack of competitors. The trouble with natural tracks such. as sand is that they are liable to be spoilt by other traffic before they are used by the competitors. This is what happened at Otaki, the beach being cut up badly by visitors' motor-cars arid cycles before the races began. „„ ' . There is also the difficulty of erecting the signposts, finishing post and other paraphernalia of the racecourse afresh for each meeting; This alone delayed the races for nearly an.. hour on this occasion and made the spectators impatient and lose their interest. . The Whole -thing 'is probably a ' matter "of finding the necessary capital,, but surely if the motorcycle fans and. the concerns behind the motor-cycle business got to- ■ gether they could do something. Now then, you Eiouglas, Harley, Indian, 8.5.A., A.'J.S.'and all the other motor-cycle fanciers, what about it?