Better safe than sorry

Apr 25 2008 by Rebecca Edwards, Chester Chronicle

A DRIVERS club is encouraging young petrolheads to lift off the gas and stay focused on the road ahead.

A Young Drivers Network has been set up for 17- to 30-year-old members of the Institute of Advanced Motorists.

Track days, skid pan training and go-kart racing are being offered to young drivers who undertake advanced driving courses with the institute.

The idea is to teach them the safe way to use their car on the roads, while letting them enjoy their cars in controlled settings.

Branches in Wirral and North East Wales have also offered some young drivers the chance to have the course fee refunded when they pass their test.

IAM Young Drivers Network development manager Ben Devlin gives talks to Cheshire students at the county’s emergency services Drive Survive road safety courses.

Ben, 25, tells Drive Survive participants about his exploits as a reformed boy racer and says the institute has a lot to offer young drivers.

He said: “I was a boy racer myself and I used to be that person who said ‘I’ve passed my test now, I don’t need more lessons’. The thing these drivers lack is hazard perception and the ability to react accordingly.

“The IAM is 20% driving change and 80% attitude. Everyone can benefit from that – Nigel Mansell and his two sons who are Indy car drivers have taken the advanced course and they say it has improved their perception on and off the track.

“That is something we can all benefit from, whether we have just passed our test or have been driving for 20 years.”

He added that driving-related social events are designed to satisfy a youthful need for speed in a controlled environment.

“Track days give them an outlet to have right-foot-heavy sessions when they get the adrenalin rush but if something goes wrong they just go off the track into a gravel trap without hurting anyone or damaging anything.

“When you do that it gives you enough of a shock to realise that when you are on the public roads you can’t take chances.”

For details on the course, visit http://www.wirraliam.co.uk or call Tony Stopforth of the Wirral IAM branch on 07921 663 220, or e-mail info@wirraliam.co.uk. The course costs £79 for under 25s and £99 for others.