why driving courses are a GOOD thing

[punkin]

Just after New Years we (F6Tornado, step-son & myself) were driving home from northern NSW heading back to Brisbane. We were in my xmas pressie (63 Chevy Impala - left hand drive) and I was driving, it was about 10:30pm, weather was pretty ikky, we'd been having rain on and off the whole way since we crossed the border.

Cruising along at just under 70mph (I was in a 110km zone), we had the wheel studs shear off the rear driver (left hand side) tyre.

We were in the far left hand lane. I heard the bang as they all sheared off, felt the car go (she weighs over 2 tonne) and instinct cut in. When I got her stopped we were across 3 lanes of traffic (with 4 lanes of lights heading towards the side of the car). F6Tornado got her into park to re-start her - I couldn't get her to re-start in neutral, to get her off the road and along the side of the median strip. So basically I crossed 4 lanes of traffic (at night & in intermittent weather). F6Tornado measured the skid while waiting for the tow truck - from when the wheel let go to when I stopped the car it was just under 50m diagonally across the 4 lanes of traffic.

Not a mark to the outside of the car, a bit of damage inside the mags (no damage to the rubber) & a bit of minor damage under the car. No other cars were damaged (or involved), though a few that learnt all about their ABS.

Not a scratch on any of us, just a bit of shock - F6Tornado's step-son was buckled in and asleep in the back when it happened, he woke up when I got the car stopped.

When we purchased our last 2 FPVs (Tornados), I went to the drive day (we had a BA & a BF). If it wasn't for these two days of driving (first day was totally without traction control as the BA didn't have it), then I probably wouldn't be here to tell you about it all.

Steve @ RDP said that what I did was the right thing (I've got no idea what I did, that is a total blank, which I'm told is a good thing because I acted on pure instinct), that most people would have slammed on the brakes and that would have rolled the car and we wouldn't have walked away. He also now knows of 3 people who have had this happen to them (himself & me being two of them). I believe if we'd been in any of our modern cars, then we wouldn't have walked away either.

Thing was, nobody stopped to see if we were ok, including the boys in blue - 4 cars and 2 bikes went past. The only people who stopped were friends of ours, who drive a Chevy BellAire, and that was about 30 mins after the incident, we'd already called the tow truck by this stage. They drove me home so I could pick up our FPV to go meet hubby when he got up to RDP.

If you all do nothing for yourselves this year, go and do a defensive driving day, one that you actually do theory and practical.