Tony Brewer View

My sister asked me to help teach her son, Jason, to drive.  I can’t say that I blame her because her hubby is a terrible back seat driver, and my sister is a big chicken!  I have to say that in a way I’m flattered that they asked me to help out with this rite of passage for Jason.  Of course my first step in this endeavor is to get Jason a DMV study guide and review all of the driving information that I think he is going to need before we even hit the road together.

Once I’m sure that he’s read and understood the study guides, then I’ll take him out to Mom’s place in the country and let him practice driving in the fields behind her house.  That’s where I first learned to drive a car – and I have to say that it built up a lot of confidence and helped me to understand exactly how the car handled before I ever took it on the road.  My father had a Saab that he let me use to learn to drive – it had a feature in it that he called “free-wheeling” that let the driver learn how to drive a standard transmission without grinding the gears.  I wish I had that old car; it was perfect for teaching someone how to drive a standard transmission!  I like the idea that everyone should learn how to drive a standard.  It’s too bad that every kid doesn’t have a standard transmission and a big field or parking lot that they can practice on!