What I learned at driving school
Posted: Sun Nov 10, 2013 5:25 pmMy lessons were from the RV Driving School. There are several instructors and they taylor the lessons to your level of experience and your goals. They are at the Escapee boot camps for the week before and after. I had a total of 8 hrs behind the wheel (4 on Sat and 4 on Sun) along with 3 hrs of discussion and questions and then additional reading. The instructor, Glen, drove greyhound buses for 10 years, then commercial truck driver for many years. Has bee a full timer for 5 yrs in a large 5er pulled by a mid size truck (looked like a big rig truck to me 
).
My goal was to lean how to back into my driveway, RV spots, down a street. I wanted to gain confidence driving through town, negotiating and parking at Walmart. Also wanted to learn about all the gizmos, gadgets and button on the dash. The first night he told me to turn on the dash and look at the dials all lite up. He said most RVers don't drive at night, but looking at the dash all lit up helps you learn where things are and you can memorize their locations.
So we spent a lot of time in a huge vacant lot with hard earth/gravel. He put orange cones down and I learned how to do 45 degree turns forward, backward, forward, backward, right and left. Then learned how to parallel park.
Paced off how many feet from my line of vision from the drivers seat to the item I can see in front of me. it is 15 feet in front that I can't see. A lot of space that makes me think I'm gonna hit that pole or bush. However, I now have a clue about how much room is really there. Did the same to learn about that back swing out range.
We then hit the highway (2 and 4 lane). Made U turns, moved on to the shoulder to stop for emergency. Drove through busy little town and changed lanes. Drove through and parked at the Lowes and them the Walmart. Went down a country road that dead ended and had to back up a long way dodging trees into a driveway to turn around. Turned to go over train tracks and found the other side was a ver steep incline. Learned how to go down at an angle to avoid get hung up, even if I had to use both lanes of the road and block traffic
I am not an expert, but I have confidence in trying and I don't freak out as easily. I am a bit more relaxed driving on the freeways and highways. I don't have to remind myself to "just breathe" as often .
Some of the pointers:
Tire and Brake Safety. Rest stop check. He had one of those infrared thermometer laser pointer guns. He suggested I get one. You point it at the tire and check the temp. Check all the tires. If one tire is hotter by approx 10 degrees, the pressure is too low. If there is a 20-30 degree difference, there's a problem. With dual rear tire the inside tire will be warmer by 10-15 degrees. But if more than 15-20 degrees, there's a problem.
Also pointed the beam at the disc of the disc brakes. They should all be with in 10-15 degrees of each other. If it's cold, not working. Too hot, working too hard. Problem.
Another tool he recommended was an extending visual inspection mirror. Every coupe weeks when you are traveling a long trip, inspect the tires at each stop. He explained that it is hard to see all of the tire. So at each stop, look at the tread and watch for abnormalities that lead to blowouts.
). My goal was to lean how to back into my driveway, RV spots, down a street. I wanted to gain confidence driving through town, negotiating and parking at Walmart. Also wanted to learn about all the gizmos, gadgets and button on the dash. The first night he told me to turn on the dash and look at the dials all lite up. He said most RVers don't drive at night, but looking at the dash all lit up helps you learn where things are and you can memorize their locations.
So we spent a lot of time in a huge vacant lot with hard earth/gravel. He put orange cones down and I learned how to do 45 degree turns forward, backward, forward, backward, right and left. Then learned how to parallel park.
Paced off how many feet from my line of vision from the drivers seat to the item I can see in front of me. it is 15 feet in front that I can't see. A lot of space that makes me think I'm gonna hit that pole or bush. However, I now have a clue about how much room is really there. Did the same to learn about that back swing out range.
We then hit the highway (2 and 4 lane). Made U turns, moved on to the shoulder to stop for emergency. Drove through busy little town and changed lanes. Drove through and parked at the Lowes and them the Walmart. Went down a country road that dead ended and had to back up a long way dodging trees into a driveway to turn around. Turned to go over train tracks and found the other side was a ver steep incline. Learned how to go down at an angle to avoid get hung up, even if I had to use both lanes of the road and block traffic
I am not an expert, but I have confidence in trying and I don't freak out as easily. I am a bit more relaxed driving on the freeways and highways. I don't have to remind myself to "just breathe" as often
.Some of the pointers:
Tire and Brake Safety. Rest stop check. He had one of those infrared thermometer laser pointer guns. He suggested I get one. You point it at the tire and check the temp. Check all the tires. If one tire is hotter by approx 10 degrees, the pressure is too low. If there is a 20-30 degree difference, there's a problem. With dual rear tire the inside tire will be warmer by 10-15 degrees. But if more than 15-20 degrees, there's a problem.
Also pointed the beam at the disc of the disc brakes. They should all be with in 10-15 degrees of each other. If it's cold, not working. Too hot, working too hard. Problem.
Another tool he recommended was an extending visual inspection mirror. Every coupe weeks when you are traveling a long trip, inspect the tires at each stop. He explained that it is hard to see all of the tire. So at each stop, look at the tread and watch for abnormalities that lead to blowouts.
I appreciate how many actual hours they guide you with you behind the wheel. The more you drive the more of the judgment skills become second nature....