By KATH GANNAWAY
VCAL students from Healesville High School had a few driving myths busted on Wednesday when they took part in the Motorvation Greenlight Youth Driver Education program.
They also learnt some home truths about their own personality in terms of learning to drive and aspects of driving behaviour and tactics that Motorvation training manager Jennie Hill said were not covered through the usual learner process.
More than 30 students participated in the program which was sponsored by the Healesville Community Bank Branch of Bendigo Bank and held at the Healesville Football Club Rooms.
The program includes discussion and information sessions with in-car driving and driving simulators.
Ms Hill said while the 120 hours of compulsory driving training is a huge amount, it doesn’t touch on driver behaviour and attitude.
“We’re here to give you this information,” she said.
“Literally, every single thing we say to you today could save your life.”
She said it was about the ‘sheer terror’ moments.
“Most driving is pretty boring, routine stuff, but everyone has a few of those one-per-cent sheer-terror moments in their (driving) lives and it’s about how you handle those moments.”
She told the students that the most likely way anyone will die up until they are 34 years of age is in a car crash and that the Yarra Valley was the worst area in the state for young driver deaths after Bendigo.
A survey to establish whether the students fit a dominant or demure profile as drivers, was revealing – perhaps most of all to them.
Ms Hill spoke of the relationship between trainer (usually a parent) and learner and said the problems usually start when you have a different psychological match up of dominant and demure – whichever way it goes.
There were some candid admissions from the students around their driving experience and experience with other drivers, and a number raised their hands when asked if they had lost a friend or family member in a car crash.
Some of the myths busted were around tyres, cross-arm steering and how to handle a skid.
“You can have traction control, ABS steering, but if don’t have decent rubber on your car, they are useless,” Ms Hill said.
“Unfortunately most people don’t regard tyres as very important.”
“Who has been told if you cross your arms in licence test you will fail?” she asked.
“Well, it’s absolute rubbish,” she said and went on to explain why.
One of the biggest myths is around what to do in a skid.
One of the biggest myths ever is don’t brake in a skid, said trainer Geoff Fickling, who went on to explain why and provide tactics to handle one of the most common situations young drivers are confronted with.
Healesville High School principal George Perini said the Motorvation program had been a great opportunity for the students to understand that road safety is more than just driving a car.
“It’s about those one-percenters that can be the difference between life and death,” he said.
“The feedback from the students has been really positive.
“They saw it as worthwhile and few in particular saw the absolute relevance to where they are in their lives and how this will be useful to them.”
“The school was thrilled for our students to be able to participant in the program with the support of the Bendigo Bank,” he said.
Healesville Football/Netball Club president Felix Fraraccio spoke of the impact of the loss of young people in the community and told the students it was about looking after their mates.
He said the club was pleased to be able to assist the Healesville Community Bank, to bring such a potentially life-saving program to local young people.
Healesville Community Bank chairman Bruce Argyle said being able to deliver the Motorvation program to virtually the entire VCAL class was enormously rewarding.
The program is one of Bendigo Bank’s major youth initiatives through their Lead-On youth initiatives, made possible through CGU Insurance.
“This is a great example of what community can do when it works together and as a community bank it is a great example of what can be achieved through the support of our customers.
“Most importantly, if at some time in the future, a single life of one of these young people is saved by what they have heard or experienced today, it will be a high-return dividend to the whole community.”
