Vantai24h – Date 09/15/2015 - When I drive to transport goods from Ha Noi to Thai Nguyen, I always recall memories of my first driving over long distance. It used to take about three hours to drive from Hanoi to Thai Nguyen, but now with the same period of time, I can complete two two-way journeys.
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I started learning how to drive a car in 2010. A full course including the examination took me two months to complete, but with only ten days for real driving practice. It was very fortunate for me to pass the exam for the first time. Holding the driving license of level B2, I could not help but feel honored.
When I signed in for the course, I knew nothing about driving and had never been on driving chair. I experienced two weeks of academic learning. Before learning how to drive a car, I had to familiarize myself with the car controls and basic functions. This is known as the cockpit drill and usually completed by a driving instructor on your driving lesson and includes seat adjustments, use of foot pedals, hand controls including steering techniques and mirror adjustment. Once I gained a sufficient knowledge and understanding of the cars controls, I could begin learning how to drive a car. I learned driving a car on a quiet and sparse area and started on a straight road. The first thing I did was to press the clutch carefully to the floor using the ball of my left foot and put the gears into 1st. Then, I attempted to move the care gently, slowly and ideally without stalling. I have still remembered exactly what my instructor told me: “Very gently and slightly press the accelerator pedal using the ball of your right foot to increase the engine revs. Look at the rev counter and press the accelerator until the revs reach approximately 1500 rpm. This will provide the engine with power enabling the car to move. Hold the accelerator in this position while we find the clutch biting point.”
Safe observation is an essential part of learning how to drive a car. Before releasing the handbrake and moving the car, take a look around to see if it is safe. At the very minimum, you should check your internal and right mirror, followed by the right side blind spot. If taking a driving test, failure to check the blind spot before driving off is highly likely to result in a failure.
If drivers only control cars on smooth and straight roads, it is not a big risk. The more difficult thing is that skills and experiences to control and deal with unexpected situations need to be accumulated over journeys. When I had to be in the real driving test, looking at the beautiful and small driving road, I just thought it was very different from big roads outside and I would experience long journeys after getting the license of level B2. Leaving the driving school, a new door opens to me with many surprising and exciting but also very difficult things that I need to get over./.
