The Newsletter of Chelmsford Advanced Motorists
Are you blind? www.iamchelmsford.org.uk Issue 105 April & May 2014 IAM Group 7223 Registered Charity No 1059372
Congratulations Here are some of our successful members receiving their certificate from our Chairman Scott Bannister Gary Wells Like most people I suppose that I considered myself to be a good driver, however, when I had my very first observed drive with Scott, I quickly realised that I was blissfully unaware of the majority of things going on around me. As we progressed on our weekly drives I found that I was much more observant and aware of my surroundings and the road ahead. I was also using my car much more efficiently. I would like to thank Scoot for his time and help, also thanks to Pat for her advice in my mock test and finally to Paula who took my test.
Observer Scott Bannister
Noel Mead ‘Secretly I knew that Scott Bannister was exaggerating when he said there might be a cliff-edge around every blind bend. I knew, because my father told me that the rolling Essex drunkard built the rolling Essex roads, and those drunkards survived to build lots of roads – we drove a good number of them – and lots of blind bends. Of course, I did learn to expect the unexpected and lots of other useful driving tips, at least well enough to gain approval from Pat Clements and from my IAM examiner. Many thanks to all concerned!
Observer Scott Bannister
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Forthcoming Group Meetings These are usually held on the 2nd Monday of each month at the Essex Police Sports and Social Club, Which is through the Police vehicle park at the very end of St. Margarets Road, Chelmsford. Group Meetings start promptly at 8pm, so please arrive at around 7.45pm.
CM2 6DS
http://www.essexexplorer.co.uk/cam.kmz
Associates, Full Members & Guests Welcome Date
Topic
Speaker
Monday 12th May
“One man’s horological collection”. See Page 15
Chris Papworth
Monday 9th June
Manoeuvring in the car park
Make a note in your diary and please be there! Disclaimer—Please note that the views and opinions expressed in this Newsletter are those of the individual writers and they do not necessarily reflect those of the Institute of Advanced Motorists, nor those of the Chelmsford and District Group of Advanced Motorists. Their accuracy has not been verified. Notice—Data Protection Act: records are held of members personal details submitted on their application form. The information will be used solely for the Group’s administration purposes and will not be passed to any third party.
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to our new Associate and Full Members. We look forward to seeing and talking to them at our monthly Group nights Trevor Wilson
Basildon
Charlotte Hooper Burnham-on-Crouch
Paul Richardson
Hullbridge
Jane Hay
Wickford
Robert Davison
Chelmsford
Brenda Dael
Brentwood
Sam Hollingsworth Chelmsford
We are a friendly bunch, so don’t be worried about coming to our Group nights if you are on your own. Make yourself known to John who will greet you at the desk, he will find one of us to come and talk to you. John will also try to get you to part with some money for the raffle. There will be Senior Observers, Observers and generally an Examiner at the evening and you will be able to get answers to any questions that you have. Please come along, we’ll even give you tea or coffee and there is a bar - for light refreshments obviously! Terry Joyce
Skidpan Skid pan – Saturday 18th October – 9.00am till 12.30 – Cost £45. Full training in how to control a skid (in their cars, not your own). Very educational, but mainly great fun. Guaranteed smile on face. Women get more out of this than men do. It has always been difficult to persuade women to go for this. They don’t like the sound of it at all, but it takes about 1 minute in the car and they start smiling. It’s also very good value. Try to arrange this kind of thing yourself and you’ll be double the cost. OK, we had no ice/snow this year, but think of the two years before !! – only got a few spaces left, but register your interest to get on the waiting list and get first crack at next year’s. Scott Bannister Page 4
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Congratulations to these latest Members of our Group who have Passed
‘The Test’. Roll No
Name
Test Date
Observer
1012
Noel Mead
11th February
Scott Bannister
1013
Josephine Hart
18th February
Scott Bannister
1014
Ken Richmond
23rd February
John Ockmore
1015
June Godfrey
28th February
Scott Bannister
1016
Anne Culverwell
5th March
Scott Bannister
1017
Paul Watkin
18th March
Scott Bannister
1018
Paul Addington
19th March
John Tullett
1019
Brian Chilton
24th March
Gaynor Manthorpe
1020
Ray Hockley
27th March
Scott Bannister
To all those people who have passed their test: It would be appreciated if you could write a few words thanking your Observer and maybe something about the process and your test, to give those New Associates an insight into the process of learning Advanced Driving. Please remember: Do telephone both your Observer and Scott Bannister ( Associates Co-ordinator ) immediately after your test. Page 5
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From the Chairman Well, Spring has well and truly sprung – and a young man’s thoughts turn to? It’s been so long I’ve forgotten, and in any case, I can’t claim to be young. So, instead, my thoughts turn to our events. I have mixed feelings on our days out. I really enjoy going along on the day. It’s always good to put a smile on people’s faces and I try to imagine they are laughing with me rather than at me. The organisational bit drives me nuts though. From the drumming up support to the inevitable late cancellations it’s enough to drive a man insane – and I’m already half way there - so dangerous territory. I always reckon the process is somewhat like childbirth. After going through it once you would think the mild discomfort would be sufficient to deter anybody from doing it again, but no, back they come for another go. Women seem to have a mental switch that makes them temporarily forget. Well that’s like me with the events. I’ll concede it’s not quite so traumatic but the underlying theory of selective amnesia is similar. Still, mustn’t grumble – but I will, it’s what everybody expects. It was good that the Autoglym chap turned up for the last Group Night (eventually) because it now means that I have a shiny car again. I have no idea why I polish my car. I don’t do it often, but I do do it. I reckon it’s a day out of my life and I also reckon it does nothing at all useful. Protecting the car? Protecting it from what? Cars don’t deteriorate from the outside to any marked degree. If rust takes place and it seldom does these days, it’s from underneath and in any case what finally kills a car is a potential garage bill that exceeds the value of the car. Have you ever heard anybody say “we had to scrap the car – hadn’t been polished for years – it’s now practically undriveable”? All this means there is not a single good reason to polish a car……………yet I can’t help doing it occasionally. It’s not just the free polishing material either. I have been known to buy the stuff. My only guess is that it’s in some way therapeutic, and many have said that I need therapy ! So, time to remove those Winter tyres (for those sad enough to have fitted them) and head for the open road with the top down. I realise for many of you, ‘top down’ is tricky, but use your imagination. Happy motoring and as they used to say in an old cop show “be careful out there”.
Scott Page 6
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~~~~~~~~ Editorial ~~~~~~~~ Hello, It was agreed at our last Committee meeting that all new members would receive their copy of Forward Vision electronically. This is because the cost of printing it and postage is our group’s largest expense. Existing members will continue to receive a hard copy unless they wish to receive it electronically. Thank you to those of you that have contributed to this edition. Please keep the letters and articles coming. Please check out page 15 for our group nights in 2014. There will be more information about them and any events that we are organising in the next edition. Many Thanks to Sue Sweetland for her patient and educated assistance in producing this Newsletter.
Terry Joyce
Please contact me by email at terry.joyce@iamchelmsford.org.uk Page 7
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Group contact information Our Group Enquiry number: - 07757 399897 Honorary Life Members
Mr Mike Corbett, Mr Glyn Jarrett, Mrs Ruth Jarrett, Mr Dave Travers, Mr Colin Snow.
Committee Chairman Associates Co-ordinator & Chief Observer
Scott Bannister
Secretary
Steve Wright
Treasurer
John Johnston
Membership Secretary
Ken Carrington
Website Editor
Jon Ward
Newsletter Editor
Terry Joyce
Events Organiser
Sally Langley
Publicity
John Stone
Group Contact
Susan Sweetland
External Events
Pat Clements
Committee Member
Dr Clifford Murira
Committee Member
John Ockmore
Committee Member
Anthony Marchant
Committee Member
Gary Silver
Committee Member
Ken Howard
Observer Examiner
Gaynor Manthorpe
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terry.joyce@iamchelmsford.org.uk
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Roadcraft Here is some more from the new edition of Roadcraft. Overlapping in some circumstances it may be helpful to overlap braking with the gear change by braking before the hazard but changing gear towards the end of the braking required to negotiate the hazard. Roadcraft states “If you use this technique, it must be part of a planned approach to a hazard. Begin applying the system at the same time and in the same place as you would normally. The system is not compressed”. Situations where the brake/gear overlap may be appropriate are at low speed turns into left and right junctions especially going downhill. This is more relevant when being followed closely by another vehicle. Incorrect use of the brake/gear overlap Brake/gear overlap has a bad reputation because it is frequently misused by drivers who approach a hazard too quickly. They key to negotiating the hazard correctly is to get the speed right. This can be achieved in some circumstances using acceleration sense but more often than not with braking. Most Associates don’t brake firmly enough on the approach to bends and therefore carry a little too much speed into the bend. Once you have started breaking lightly don’t be afraid to use quite a lot more braking, what this does is allow you to assess the severity of the bend more accurately, then reduce the braking in a controlled manner, not just taking your foot off the brake pedal and then in control take the required gear for the bend. An overlap that is not properly planned results in late, excessive braking and rushed gear changes. Braking late and rushing a gear change can destabilise your vehicle at exactly the point where you need greatest stability to negotiate the hazard. Terry Joyce Roadcraft is available from our Library or can be bought from most book or online stores, have a look at http://www.desktopdriving.co.uk/ and use police drivers handbook as the search.
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The recent hailstorms have ruined the flowers on my camellias and my beautiful dark pink magnolia but the birds are singing, the sun is shining and it's actually warm!! Now, I don't know how you feel but I do like to be able to park outside my house when I get home. Not many years ago, workers from a nearby office block started to park outside on a very regular basis. I presume that the building only had enough parking spaces for the bosses and the rest hadn't grasped the idea that if you run a car, paying to park it is part of the deal. We tried to dissuade them by putting notes (which became more impatient as time went on) under their windscreen wipers and, if there was any room, by parking so close that they had to work really hard to get out but they just enjoyed being a nuisance. Eventually the Borough Council, as it was then, gave in to our persistent nagging and put a Residents Only parking scheme in place and the problem went away - for a while at least. Anyone got any ideas on how to persuade mums from the school 150 yards away not to fiddle around for ten minutes strapping their children in while I sit in the car with the engine running and an indicator on waiting to park? Susan Sweetland
Our Observers Scott Bannister
Gaynor Manthorpe
Pat Clements
Dr Clifford Murira
Philip Cooper
John Ockmore
Paul Crosby
Roger Spall
Jamie Drummond
Lawrence Tattersall
Tony Hawes
John Tullett
Helen Jeffries
Mark Warbey
Terry Joyce
Brian Williams
Rob Laird
Rob Wise
George Locker Graham Lowe
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CHELMSFORD ADVANCED MOTORISTS LIBRARY LIST DVDs Drive Smarter, Essential know-how for your driving career (2 copies) By Gem Motoring Assist Roadcraft, The Police Driver’s Course on Advanced Driving By The Police Foundation
PC CD-ROMs The Interactive Highway Code HMSO/ Interactive Driving Systems Hazard Perception Test
HMSO/Oasis
BOOKS Roadcraft Human Aspects of Police Driving The Tyre Digest (2 copies)
TSO Scottish Police College Michelin
Driving Abroad
Robert Davies
The Official Highway Code Rev. 2007 Edition
HMSO
The Official Guide to Accompanying L-Drivers
DSA
Sideways to Victory
Roger Clark
The Myway Code
Ian Vince/Dan Kieran
Paul Ripley’s Expert Driving
Daily Telegraph
The Inner Game of Tennis
W Timothy Gallwey
Mind Driving
Stephen Haley
Older Drivers – Safe or Unsafe? Traffic– Why we drive the way we do Boreham, A History of the Racing Circuit
IAM Tom Vanderbilt Bryan Jones & John Frankland
CDs Awake, Driver Reviver
THINK
Advanced Road Craft
Bespoke Driving Training
The Driving Test – Your Licence to Drive
IAM/Safety on the Move
If you have any books etc from the Library can you please contact Scott Bannister Page 11
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Are you blind? I watched a television programme recently which had given a name to something I had witnessed as an observer with this group: Inattentional Blindness. Inattentional blindness is failing to notice something that you would expect to notice because your attention is focused on another task. Arien Mack of the Department of Psychology, New School for Social Research and and Irvin Rock of the Department of Psychology , University of California, Berkeley first coined this term in 1998. The motivation for their research came from the following paragraph: "What is the relationship between attention and perception? How much, if anything, of our visual world do we perceive when we are not attending to it? Are there only some kinds of things we see when we are not attending? If there are, do they fall into particular categories? Do we see them because they have captured our attention or because our perception of them is independent of our attention? Most people have the impression that they simply see what is there and do so merely by opening their eyes and looking. Of course, we may look more closely at some things than at others, which is what we ordinarily mean by "paying attention," but it probably seems to many people as if we see nearly everything in our field of view." On the programme they set up an experiment based on a true life story from America of a Policeman who was chasing a suspect and missed an assault that was taking place. They asked people to run a quarter of a mile route around a campus while chasing one of the researchers. The participants were told to stay about 30 feet behind the researcher who was running and to count the number of times he patted his head. Part-way through the route, they ran right past a staged fight about 25 feet off the route. The fight would have been visible for about 15 seconds and the fighters were making a bit of noise. After running the route, the participants were asked if they had seen the fight. Only 42% noticed the fight. Even in broad daylight, people can fail to notice a fight that occurs right beside their path if their attention is occupied. One personal example: my associate at the time was almost test ready, his observation, concentration level and commentary were good. He was driving through a sparsely populated Essex village and some distance ahead there was a van parked on the verge on our offside. The van had just become his primary hazard. There wasn't much other traffic about. As we moved towards it another large vehicle started to emerge from an entrance, also on our right and it was clear to me from his commentary that he had not seen it.
Continued on Page 13
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Are you blind? continued
I had to point out the second vehicle as it was starting to move out into the road. I have spent a lot of time training to be an advanced driver and continue to do so but even I can miss things from time to time. We believe that we are aware of the things that happen around us. Instead, we miss a lot. Things happen around us, and sometimes right in front of us, and we fail to become aware of the event. We believe we are aware and are doing fine because we are unaware of all the things we are missing. Laboratory demonstrations of inattentional blindness are reminiscent of the common experience of having arrived at work or school after driving for some time and having no recollection of having experienced any of the sights along the way. In the same way that this experience arouses one’s curiosity about what it means to “see” and to wonder how we can have no memory of seeing things along the way and yet have arrived safely, inattentional blindness highlights a number of important questions about perception, attention, and awareness. So as drivers, what can we do about it? I have read lots of articles on it and they do not seem to offer any solution only discuss further implications and theories. Part of learning to be an advanced driver is increasing our observation and actually seeing more and from further away, although this does not stop us having episodes of inattentional blindness. My answer is to work harder on my scanning process, to attempt to see more and to achieve this, sometimes we need to realise that in some situations slowing down is the answer and in particular in a busy environment like a high street. Going back to my earlier example in a fairly quiet country road, what can we do there? I have spoken about this in other articles, the key to seeing more is to keep your eyes moving from one thing to another and not concentrate too long on one particular hazard. So a typical scan for me is, what is in front of me, what is behind me, what is to both sides. That sounds a lot simpler than the actual scanning process that I use. A typical scan on a country road having just driven around a corner, check in front of the car (near view), then look as far as I can see, then scan back towards the car, check behind, look left (wide sweep, not just next to the car) and the same on the right. During this scan I will have identified primary and secondary hazards but in the next scan they may have changed. I view every scan as a picture and compare the pictures for any changes. You need to find a scanning method that suits you but your eyes shouldn't just wander as your eyes will only be able to spot something if they are still. Terry Joyce There is An Overview By Arien Mack & Irvin Rock here http://www.theassc.org/files/assc/2417.pdf Page 13
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Young Driver Scheme Do you know of anyone who is not 17 years of age, but wants to learn how to drive? Chelmsford IAM group supports this road safety scheme to give people the opportunity to learn basic car control skills in Driving School Dual Controlled cars on private land before they go on the public Highway. Lessons, lasting for one hour, are run on the third Sunday of most months at Earls Colne (near Coggeshall). There is an initial Registration Fee of ÂŁ30 which covers registration and the first one hour lesson. Subsequent lessons cost ÂŁ25. Lessons must be booked in advance. The scheme is intended primarily for 16 year-olds but, if vacancies permit, places may be offered to 15 year-olds or even to older people who are nervous about
getting behind the wheel (again, or for the first time). Full details of the scheme, a letter from Essex Police and a map may be viewed, and the application Form can be downloaded, from www.youngdriverscheme.org Alternatively, forms may be obtained from the YDS Organiser. Nicola Hyland, 67 Main Road, St Lawrence Bay, Southminster, CM0 7NA Dedicated Mobile number 07847 645632 or yds@iamchelmsford.org.uk
Notification of Events There has been a lot of positive feedback from events organised by the Group. If you would like to be kept informed of any up and coming events please make sure that l has your current email address.
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Group Nights & Events 2014 Please make a note in your diary Sunday 27th April
Driver Experience Day
See Page 16
Monday 12th May
“One man’s horological (clock & watch) collection”. Chris will happily look at any watches or clocks that people might like to bring along on the evening after we break for tea/coffee.
Chris Papworth from Kelvedon Clocks
Monday 9th June
Manoeuvring in the car park
Monday 14th July
Transport Research Laboratory Meeting will start at 7.30pm for this month only
Marcus Jones
Monday 11th August
A Magistrate talks
Peter Dowse
Monday 8th September
"Growing Old Disgracefully" (or into the bewilderness) which is a humorous look at maturing.
Chris Winter
Sunday 14th September
Driver Experience Day
See Page 16
Monday 13th October
Talking about her work as "Deputy Lieutenant of Essex" and her involvement in "The Pride of Essex Awards".
Susie Cornell MBE
Saturday 18th October
Skid pan 9.00am till 12.30 – Cost £45.
Monday 10th November
Editor of The Essex Family Historian
See Page 16 Fred Feather
These speakers have all been booked by Sally Langley. If you know of someone you think the group might like to hear, then please contact Sally on 07905 445249 or email her at sally147@catlover.com.
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Driver Experience Day The Driver Experience Days this year are on Sunday 27th April and Sunday 14th September. They take place at Ford’s test track at Dunton from 9.30am till approx 2.30. The cost is a minimum £10 donation to Essex Air Ambulance, you can donate more if you wish. The Driver Experience Days are a chance to push your own car just a little further than you normally do on public roads and you will end up with a much better understanding of what your car does and does not do at the end of it. Once again, it will put a smile on your face. As we go to press, I’m trying to organise an articulated lorry for us all to have a go at – nice to know what it’s like driving one of those beasts. As to cost – the skid pan will cost you £40 which is well under half what you would pay if you tried to go it alone, and Dunton will cost you £10 – which all goes to Essex Air Ambulance.
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Highway Code Changes in the New Highway Code (2007) Š Crown copyright 2007
The other bits Annexes Motor vehicle documentation and learner driver requirements Statutory Off-Road Notification (SORN). This is a notification to the DVLA that a motor vehicle is not being used on the road. If you are the vehicle keeper and want to keep a motor vehicle untaxed and off the public road you MUST declare SORN - it is an offence not to do so. You then won’t have to pay any road tax for that vehicle for a period of 12 months. You need to send a further declaration after that period if the vehicle is still off the public road. The SORN will end if you sell the vehicle and the new owner will become immediately responsible. If your vehicle is unused or off the road, it MUST have either a SORN declaration or valid insurance. Law RV(RL)R 2002, reg 26 sched 4
The road user and the law Road traffic law The number of references to road traffic law have increased significantly and are too long to list here, see page 124.
Penalties Penalty points and disqualification The penalty point system is intended to deter drivers and motorcyclists from following unsafe motoring practices. Certain non-motoring offences, e.g. failure to rectify vehicle defects, can also attract penalty points. The court MUST order points to be endorsed on the licence according to the fixed number or the range set by Parliament. The accumulation of penalty points acts as a warning to drivers and motorcyclists that they risk disqualification if further offences are committed. Law RTOA sects 44 & 45
SORN has been added, laws added and non motoring offences added to Penalties. Page 17
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Overtaking - some responses Terry Joyce’s piece on overtaking in the last newsletter reminded me of one of our Group nights a few years back where we talked about overtaking. In preparation for the discussion, I sat down with a piece of paper to note down ‘things to consider before overtaking’ I reckoned it would probably be three or four, but if I thought about it I could probably get up to seven or eight. Well, that was the theory. With just a bit of thought I managed to compile a list of 37 things to consider. No, that’s not a misprint, it had 37 items. As if that wasn’t enough, when we discussed it at the Group night, there were another few suggestions I hadn’t thought of, so we are looking at about 40 issues that need to be addressed before we go for an overtake. Does this mean we need to develop a checklist for the forty problems and check them off one at a time? Well, if we did it that way we would be home before completing it and there isn’t much benefit sitting in your driveway and saying “right, we’re good to go”. So what use is a list of 40 things to consider? To be honest, not much. That said, it does demonstrate that there is much more to consider beyond the obvious ‘is there an oncoming vehicle’, and the fact that there is such a long list should at the very least indicate we should be thinking a bit wider. You will be glad to know that I am not going to bore you with the list of 40 but I can distil it into 5 key questions. With just 5 boxes to be ticked, we are back in the realms of practicality. Is it worth it? Am I happy with what I am about to overtake? Is there sufficient clear road? What am I going back into after the overtake? Have I looked around for reasons not to overtake? Very often people get stuck on the very first point – is it worth it? And convince themselves the answer to that question is always going to be NO. This is unfortunate because it means that overtaking never happens for them. Unfortunately, if you don’t practice something, you lose the ability to do it. Whilst, in modern traffic conditions, overtakes are relatively uncommon, this unwillingness to practice means that most drivers are actually unable to execute a safe overtake. Apart from missing out on some occasional progress, there is a knock-on effect on people’s driving. The very act of actively thinking about overtakes, planning them and seeking them affects your driving and makes you sharper all round. The fact that you didn’t actually get the overtake matters little. The last point on the list is probably the most important even if it’s a somewhat vague statement. In order to overtake you have to be looking in all directions (including behind) for anything that makes you worry. As with most aspects of driving, anything that forces you to do some serious thinking is usually beneficial. Remember – you need to be 100% happy. 99% isn’t enough. Continued 0n Page 19
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Overtaking - some responses continued
Although overtakes are far less common than they used to be due to traffic volumes, you can still get some practice in. Bicycles, horses and parked cars all count. They may be easy, but it’s the same thought processes you should be going through. Scott Bannister Chief Observer ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hi Terry, Thanks as always for an interesting and thought-provoking February / March issue. I sympathise with your difficulty in finding new ideas for new articles - I had the same problem after far fewer issues than you have done! In case they prompt any thoughts, I've attached a couple of items from one of the many safety campaigns which I ran as a Safety Manager before I retired. One of the things which gives me great satisfaction is the huge reduction in road deaths during my life. I noticed that in the attached presentation I stated "about 3000" deaths per year (down from 7000 in the 1960's), yet now it is fewer than 2000. Many people in many professions have contributed to taming this beast and it's something that nostalgia forgets. But to my main point for this e-mail: Your article talks about the "How?" of overtaking, but very little is said about the "Why?" - which should always precede the "How?". A couple of times, you say "Do I need to?", but without any further guidance. Your choice of word is instructive (and correct). It's vitally important to distinguish between "NEED to" and "WANT to". Excluding those on blue-light duties, it's rare indeed for there to be a true need. You also emphasise in several places that it is an inherently dangerous manoeuvre, but then go on to say that for that reason, you need to practice it - how, without causing unnecessary danger to yourself and others? The maths is compelling: Apart from stationary and really slow-moving vehicles, overtaking on single-carriageway roads is almost never justified: How much clear road will there be beyond the vehicle in front before you come up behind another vehicle going at less than the speed limit? In this part of this country, it's probably less than one mile (usually much less) If the vehicle in front is doing 50mph, then 1 mile at 60mph instead of 50mph = 12 seconds saved. What will you do in those 12 seconds that justifies the risk to yourself and others who may be affected by your actions? "Making progress" is part of the IAM / Roadcraft ethos, but not by increasing the risk for no justifiable benefit. Regards, Tony Groves Page 19
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Letters & emails On all matters relating to motoring and the Chelmsford Group, this newsletter or your experiences in preparing for or taking your test are most welcome. I cannot thank my Observer, Scott Bannister enough for his encouragement and patience. Thanks too, to Paula, my Examiner who made me feel relaxed on test. It wasn’t nearly as scary as I’d imagined. I am so proud to be an advanced driver and would encourage anyone to do it. I’m so glad that I did. June Godfrey ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Hi Scott , My Drive Check 55 helped me recognise 40-years of accumulated habits. John Ockmore coached me over varied routes, at peak times, in darkness and rain. I enjoyed the challenge of improving my skills in a way that would benefit all experienced drivers. Many thanks.' Ken Richmond ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As I write this, I hold my head in shame. Me, who's passed the IAM driving test, me, who should know better, has been caught speeding. I knew I was speeding, I knew the camera was there and a momentary lapse of concentration, brought back into focus by 2 camera flashes. Or was it a momentary lapse in concentration? Was it more likely that I'd been lucky not to get caught earlier? For the last 15 years, I've driven around 40,000 miles per year & up till now had a clean licence. When I examine my driving style, I do know though that I had been lucky. What is rather paradoxical is that before I trained up for the IAM, I was a 60mph driver. Partly due to the car I drove but the IAM really did change my style of driving & 'make progression' although not meaning 'break the speed limit' has increased my overall average speed. It also made me much more observant and thoughtful about my driving style. Now please don't misunderstand me, I'm not blaming IAM for my speeding ticket. I only have myself to blame for that. Continued on Page 21
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Letters & emails
continued
I went to the speed awareness course expecting to be in a room with a group of young lads & their souped up Fiestas & Saxos. How wrong I was. Out of 28 attendees, there were just 2 youngsters. The rest were middle aged & elderly drivers of which one third were Ladies. All were 'hard done by' until it was pointed out that we had all broken the law. We wouldn't shop lift or assault another person but we were all prepared to treat the laws of the road with impunity whilst in control of a lethal weapon. In reality, we were more annoyed about being caught & having to pay for the course or a fine than the fact that we had broken the law. We learnt about stopping distances and the 3 things that you need to identify the correct road speed - Road signs, street lights & central reservations. There was a hard hitting video from a Mother who had lost her son to a speeding motorist. We learnt that digital cameras don't flash (note to self - remember that on the motorways with variable speed limits!) We also learnt (or were reminded) that when we passed our driving test, we signed a document promising to keep up to date with traffic laws. Not one person in the room was aware of that. Fortunately regular reading of the IAM magazine 'Forward Vision' allowed me to take some comfort in the fact that I had been doing this without realising it was a requirement of my licence. I saw my penance as an opportunity to revisit my driving. Look hard at my driving style and recognise it's probably time for another observed run in the company of a more highly trained driver than I. All in all, it was a very informative afternoon. I'm now back observing the speed limits and putting to good use this unplanned driving 'refresher'. Regards Robin Smith
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POLICE HELICOPTER VISIT I have had several requests for a return visit to the Metropolitan Police helicopter base at Lippetts Hill nr. Epping IG10 4AL. The entrance is opposite The Owl Pub.
A visit has now been booked for 18 members on Saturday May 10th at 9.30am Would you please phone me on 01245 223427 to book a place. There is no charge and photography is allowed. We will be there approx 2-3 hrs. Pat Clements
I have visited on a previous occasion and for any aviation or history enthusiasts it is a must do. Below is a link to some photos that I took. Terry Joyce https://www.flickr.com/photos/boxster986/sets/72157634726028828/with/9362956586/
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Look out for Toads and Newts. Seen in Great Bentley
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sent in by Pat Alexander, it was on the outskirts of Melrose.
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Extra bits With this the electronic version of Forward Vision I am not limited by the amount of pages that there are in the paper one, so I am taking this opportunity to add an extra section.
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The IAM is warning drivers about the dangers of distracted driving after research found that nearly one in ten (9%) of drivers admit to crashing their cars because they were distracted. Just under one in twenty drivers (4 per cent) say that someone was injured in the crash. The IAM/Vision Critical survey, which polled nearly 1500 regular UK drivers aged 18 years and over, also found that of the 500 divers who admitted to having a near miss, almost one in five (18 per cent) then went on have a crash. The most common distractions are: - Children in the car (29%) - Changing the radio channel (27%) - Back seat drivers (26%) - Mobile phone use (24%) - Sat nav (15%) - Attractive pedestrians, drivers or passengers (14%) Our most crash-prone drivers come from London and the South East, where 14 per cent of drivers admitted to distraction crashes. The lowest crash rates are in Wales (3%), Yorkshire and Humber (4%) and South West England (5%), Men are nearly twice as likely to crash because of a distraction than women (11% and 6%). IAM chief executive Simon Best said: “If you think you can multitask and drive then think again. Using mobile phones and other distractions were a factor in more than one hundred deaths on our roads last year, every one of them avoidable.�
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Transport road casualty statistics 06 February 2014 The latest Department for Transport road casualty statistics released today show a welcome decrease in the overall number of deaths and serious injuries in the year ending September 2013.1 However, despite the decrease, the IAM are concerned that two-wheeled road users are still a growing risk and must be given even greater priority for investment and education. ¡For reported road accidents in the year ending September 2013: 1,730 people were killed, a 2 per cent drop from 1,761 in the year ending September 2012. The number of killed or seriously injured casualties fell to 23,380, a 6 per cent decrease compared with the previous year. For the year ending September 2013, there were 184,010 reported road casualties of all severities, 7 per cent fewer than the 197,700 for the year ending September 2012. In the year ending September 2013 there were 1,730 reported road fatalities, a 2 per cent drop from 1,761 in the year ending September 2012. The number of killed or seriously injured (KSI) casualties fell by 6 per cent, to 23,380, and the total number of casualties fell by 7 per cent to 184,010. In comparison, motor vehicle traffic rose by 1.1 per cent over the same period. A total of 8,490 car user KSI casualties occurred in the year ending September 2013, a fall of 6 per cent from the previous 12-month period. KSI casualties for the vulnerable road user groups – pedestrians, pedal cyclists and motorcyclists – showed overall decreases of 10, 2 and 6 per cent respectively. IAM director of policy and research Neil Greig said: "It is reassuring to see an overall drop in the number of road casualties. But the fact remains that nearly a quarter of road deaths are a result for criminal driving acts such as dangerous driving, drink driving, careless driving and aggravated theft. Targeted action by the police to drive down the numbers of these criminal driving acts could potentially have huge societal benefits."
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The links below are to websites that you may have an interest in. Please let me know if any of them are not working. Email me if you think of any websites that may be of interest.
IAM DrivingAdvice & Tips http://www.iam.org.uk/media-and-research/media-centre/driving-and-riding-tips
Online Highway Code http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTransport/Highwaycode/index.htm
Know your traffic signs http://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/@motor/documents/digitalasset/dg_191955.pdf
Tyresafe http://www.tyresafe.org
Drive Alive http://www.drive-alive.co.uk
Heritage Motor Centre http://www.heritage-motor-centre.co.uk/
London Cyclist http://www.londoncyclist.co.uk/
My favourite part of the Essex Coast
www.iamchelmsford.org.uk