Let me get right to the point: there’s a gift you can give someone that might literally keep them alive.
A few weeks ago, I took a 500-hp Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 for a few hot laps at Thompson Speedway. Absolute blast. Engine screaming, instructor yelling “Brake! More brake! HARD BRAKE!” I behaved… mostly. Didn’t get to ride the berms or squeal the tires the way I wanted, but hey — it was their $250k car, not mine.
Fast-forward three weeks and I’m in a Honda sedan taking the In Control Crash Prevention course. Let me tell you: the Honda was a far bigger wake-up call than the Porsche. Two hours of class, two hours of slalom, panic stops, texting drills, and emergency avoidance. When I say, “hard braking,” picture the kind that eats through a set of tires every seven days. I’m pretty sure I hit 4 G’s and my stomach confirms that.
On my first run, my phone launched out of my pocket. Didn’t notice. Death grip on the wheel. Rain, 65 mph, 125 feet to stop — humbling doesn’t begin to cover it. I’m slower than I thought… and the statistics say the younger, faster-reacting crowd dies more frequently…go figure.
Many insurers offer a discount on the course and on the insurance premium. I’m with Safety, so the class cost me $75 for 4½ hours of training. I donated $350 because In Control saves lives. Their instructors love what that do – teach. And it shows.
The 3rd-party research is solid:
- 70% crash reduction for new drivers
- Comparable results for experienced drivers
I’ve been behind the wheel for decades, even raced in my early years, and I STILL learned things that could save me — or someone else — on the road. Talking about safety is rhetoric, drilling it is what matters.
So, here’s my pitch:
Give someone this course for the holidays.
It might be received with the same enthusiasm as socks and underwear… at first. But after they take it? You’ll get a bear hug. And it’s fun!
Be safe and go home alive.
If you have a need to drive like a lunatic; 100mph+, trailing off a rear bumper by 3’ and passing on the right, do it on a track with people who signed up for the same lunacy. Not on a highway with families who didn’t sign up. Killing yourself is bad, killing someone who wasn’t part of your game is a homicide!
To learn more, or register for a course, visit www.driveincontrol.org
No one asked, just my opinion.
Steve Ryan
Claims Risk Manager
