Starting with IAM
Discussion
Afternoon,
I've just started to do my observed drives so thought I'd share my experience and reflections in case it is of interest.
I've been considering doing this since i passed my test 10 years ago, however insurance stipulations on my company car have provided the catalyst to get on with it. IAM = A sportier car.
My observation begun with the a brief introduction and some general chit chat and then a 10 minute drive during which my observer (we'll call him Mike) took a look at my driving. We then stopped for a bit of theory namely cock pit drills and seat & mirror positioning. For the most part these made complete sense and were good points, particularly revisiting how my mirrors were set up and adjusting my seat to a more upright position.
My mirrors were showing too much car body and not enough road, after adjusting these to perhaps the other extreme I've found a happy medium were just the tips of my door handles are visible. Further than this and I actually was getting a bigger blind spot, I think due to the design of my mirrors in particular. I would have described my seating position as normal (not laid back gangster but not bolt upright), having adjusted it i'm now more upright than feels natural but visibility is improved so I will preserve with it.
After going through these settings along with associated rationale we set off once more however this time i was asked to commentate on hazards, both active and potential (IYSWIM). I found this quite difficult and a little bit distracting, however it did highlight some things I saw but didn't really observe as potential hazards in my normal driving. I definitely need to practice this element and learn concise ways of conveying what my brain is processing.
A debrief and some further points on hazard perception concluded our session and we've agreed to meet again, in the mean time i need to get use to my new mirror and seat position and most of all practice my commentary.
There are two points that have been niggling me though and I wondered what others view on these were...
a) Confirming with a passenger that their door is shut. This is pretty minor however its not really something i would ever think of doing, firstly because I can tell by the sound if its shut and secondly because my car would scream blue murder if i moved off and a door wasn't shut.
b) Not belting up until after the engine has started. The reason given was that injectors used to blow up therefore a swift exit after starting the engine maybe required. That may have been true once upon a time but i struggle to see the relevance in most peoples cars now. I have never known or heard of such a thing. I do however know of parked cars that have been hit with the engine off...
Current thoughts, I'm very pleased to be doing it and hope further drives will continue to be informative and improve my driving. However Mike
pointed out that the numbers of the next generation getting involved are small and dwindling, so far I can't say it surprises me. The content and delivery (as a package not Mike's personal style) just don't fit with modern priorities (however wrong those maybe).
I've just started to do my observed drives so thought I'd share my experience and reflections in case it is of interest.
I've been considering doing this since i passed my test 10 years ago, however insurance stipulations on my company car have provided the catalyst to get on with it. IAM = A sportier car.
My observation begun with the a brief introduction and some general chit chat and then a 10 minute drive during which my observer (we'll call him Mike) took a look at my driving. We then stopped for a bit of theory namely cock pit drills and seat & mirror positioning. For the most part these made complete sense and were good points, particularly revisiting how my mirrors were set up and adjusting my seat to a more upright position.
My mirrors were showing too much car body and not enough road, after adjusting these to perhaps the other extreme I've found a happy medium were just the tips of my door handles are visible. Further than this and I actually was getting a bigger blind spot, I think due to the design of my mirrors in particular. I would have described my seating position as normal (not laid back gangster but not bolt upright), having adjusted it i'm now more upright than feels natural but visibility is improved so I will preserve with it.
After going through these settings along with associated rationale we set off once more however this time i was asked to commentate on hazards, both active and potential (IYSWIM). I found this quite difficult and a little bit distracting, however it did highlight some things I saw but didn't really observe as potential hazards in my normal driving. I definitely need to practice this element and learn concise ways of conveying what my brain is processing.
A debrief and some further points on hazard perception concluded our session and we've agreed to meet again, in the mean time i need to get use to my new mirror and seat position and most of all practice my commentary.
There are two points that have been niggling me though and I wondered what others view on these were...
a) Confirming with a passenger that their door is shut. This is pretty minor however its not really something i would ever think of doing, firstly because I can tell by the sound if its shut and secondly because my car would scream blue murder if i moved off and a door wasn't shut.
b) Not belting up until after the engine has started. The reason given was that injectors used to blow up therefore a swift exit after starting the engine maybe required. That may have been true once upon a time but i struggle to see the relevance in most peoples cars now. I have never known or heard of such a thing. I do however know of parked cars that have been hit with the engine off...
Current thoughts, I'm very pleased to be doing it and hope further drives will continue to be informative and improve my driving. However Mike
pointed out that the numbers of the next generation getting involved are small and dwindling, so far I can't say it surprises me. The content and delivery (as a package not Mike's personal style) just don't fit with modern priorities (however wrong those maybe).
Edited by waterwonder on Monday 8th September 17:39
Thanks for the responses. I'd made a small promise to myself just to go with along with everything (obviously not if it was dangerous) on my first meet.
I'll question more and revisit earlier points as time goes on.
ROG I'd rather not say in the interests of keeping this and any subsequent updates impartial.
I'll question more and revisit earlier points as time goes on.
ROG I'd rather not say in the interests of keeping this and any subsequent updates impartial.
otolith said:
The thing I find amusing - and it applies more widely than the order in which the driver does up their seatbelt and starts their engine - is that a particular way of doing something is specified as a standard, because a standard is required if you are going to teach and assess it. It's one way of doing things which is known to work. It's often not the only way, or necessarily the best way, but it's consistently reproducible.
The problem is when the pupil can't decipher what are standards and what are personal preferences. It is clear in the responses above there can be a good deal of both in IAM instruction, I'll ask Mike to be clearer on which is which in future. 25NAD90TUL said:
There seems to be a big fear of being 'forced' into these things, nothing was compulsory IIRC, it isn't compulsory to pass. On the force thing, I think some observers might struggle to force a fart out, never mind anything else
Personally I think further training should be compulsory in some form, but that is another matter.
In a way I see the point though, a 'you must do it this way or fail' when it comes to a minor point is misleading. However with something as subjective as AD the candidate is always going to be subjected to the observers' pet techniques and ideas. From what I recall the observers' ideas may differ dramatically from the examiners'.
I think some of this feeds my slightly wider point about the relevance and appeal of IAM to the younger generation of drivers (say <35). Whether you (we) like it or not the common perception is that its a waste of time and that a lot of it is concerned with old fashioned ideals and systems. It struck me as odd that Mike made the observation about the next generation shortly after spending 20 minutes telling me about positions and cock pit drills etc.Personally I think further training should be compulsory in some form, but that is another matter.
In a way I see the point though, a 'you must do it this way or fail' when it comes to a minor point is misleading. However with something as subjective as AD the candidate is always going to be subjected to the observers' pet techniques and ideas. From what I recall the observers' ideas may differ dramatically from the examiners'.
Another day, another drive.
This morning I had my second rive. We started off with a some more pre-flight checks (POWER?), the point was laboured slightly despite me only 'missing' windscreen wipers when asked what i would check before a long journey. Anyway i think we're done with that now.
This time we spent a lot more time driving. I'm starting to get the hang of commentary now and we built up the granularity of it over the course of the session. I'm now bringing in hazards, what's behind, road signage, road positioning as i go. The only bit i do find a bit difficult is knowing when to commentate as we fit in conversation and other instructions along the way.
I did ask about whether it was necessary to commentate during the tests, Mike's opinion is that although not mandatory doing so throughout, will maintain concentration, keep the standard high and demonstrate what one is taking in. (maybe a discussion point for here, on this i'm inclined to agree with Mike i think).
Overall I enjoyed a today's lesson a lot more. We covered a lot, and a lot of the comments about road positioning, composition/position of signage and street furniture were great. I think in general terms I am a competent and diligent driver, however it does make me realise how much of the time i'm on autopilot and how it is possible to read the road a lot more than I am doing.
We did have a minor disagreement about indicating on a roundabout which i'm still unsure about. Having entered a roundabout at 6 o'clock i indicated right until i had passed the exit at 12 o'clock. I then began indicating left to exit at about 2 o'clock. All exits/entrances were two lanes so it is quite a big'un.
Mike's observation was that i begun indicating left too early, and that I should only be indicating left once i'd passed traffic coming onto the roundabout. In other words in this instance indicating left should only be for the traffic coming on at 2 o'clock.
I would agree with this in general but my rationale was that the traffic entering at 12 o'clock were creepers, therefore having past the exit at 12 o'clock i was trying to make it clear that i would be 'cutting' across the creepers path to make my exit. Had i continued to indicate right for longer i think they would have crept more increasing the chance of collision.
Anyway it matters not but it was good to discuss our contrasting points of view. I think we agreed to disagree in the end
.
Looking forward to the next one, a evening drive.
This morning I had my second rive. We started off with a some more pre-flight checks (POWER?), the point was laboured slightly despite me only 'missing' windscreen wipers when asked what i would check before a long journey. Anyway i think we're done with that now.
This time we spent a lot more time driving. I'm starting to get the hang of commentary now and we built up the granularity of it over the course of the session. I'm now bringing in hazards, what's behind, road signage, road positioning as i go. The only bit i do find a bit difficult is knowing when to commentate as we fit in conversation and other instructions along the way.
I did ask about whether it was necessary to commentate during the tests, Mike's opinion is that although not mandatory doing so throughout, will maintain concentration, keep the standard high and demonstrate what one is taking in. (maybe a discussion point for here, on this i'm inclined to agree with Mike i think).
Overall I enjoyed a today's lesson a lot more. We covered a lot, and a lot of the comments about road positioning, composition/position of signage and street furniture were great. I think in general terms I am a competent and diligent driver, however it does make me realise how much of the time i'm on autopilot and how it is possible to read the road a lot more than I am doing.
We did have a minor disagreement about indicating on a roundabout which i'm still unsure about. Having entered a roundabout at 6 o'clock i indicated right until i had passed the exit at 12 o'clock. I then began indicating left to exit at about 2 o'clock. All exits/entrances were two lanes so it is quite a big'un.
Mike's observation was that i begun indicating left too early, and that I should only be indicating left once i'd passed traffic coming onto the roundabout. In other words in this instance indicating left should only be for the traffic coming on at 2 o'clock.
I would agree with this in general but my rationale was that the traffic entering at 12 o'clock were creepers, therefore having past the exit at 12 o'clock i was trying to make it clear that i would be 'cutting' across the creepers path to make my exit. Had i continued to indicate right for longer i think they would have crept more increasing the chance of collision.
Anyway it matters not but it was good to discuss our contrasting points of view. I think we agreed to disagree in the end
.Looking forward to the next one, a evening drive.
Edited by waterwonder on Saturday 20th September 19:11
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