hey thanks guys

 

What did ya get good for the truck for your birthday?

 

yo....he got a CB. a COBRA 19DX. nice little unit, should be quite enough for what we need it for.

 

"Woot, 10-4 Joe-Dawg, .... HEY, WATCH OUT FOR THAT DROP................. FHEWWWW!" LOL.

NICE B-day gift!(present to self? Not sure, but either way, WOOT! lol)

 

no. he wanted one so we made it happen.

today is supposed to be the day I take him for his Learner's permit....but it's snowing pretty much so not sure that's gonna happen. have to weigh the risk-benefit of that trip since it's kinda not real close (up by Brandon) and getting off this mountain is always a challenge in the snow. wife is working today (yeh, we are in the wrong professions...she's a nurse too) so I'd have to stuff Joe and my youngest in my truck and make it down there. tried to do it the other day and like an idiot, I forgot the checkbook....so with great disappointment to myself and Joe, it did not happen.


Chef...as usual, thanks for the support.....Brandon, you are always there as well. terry.....I'd like to meet ya someday...you and I seem to think quite alike.


Joe has to log 65 hours of road time practice. 10 hours of night-time and 5 hours of inclement weather time. today would be a great day for that. want him to get the feel for it quite a bit before he gets turned loose.

 

little late but happy b-day joe, sounds like the best part is yet to come.

 

Yeah, Jerry, get Joe out there in the snow. Does he have to do the behind the wheel time in the vehicle he will be taking the test on? If not, I'd say leave the inclement weather out as far as his 4runner goes. With it being a manual, it will be kinda too tricky for him. Of course, I don't know how well he knows how to drive that stick. Maybe he's better then me?

Call ahead of time up there. They might not even be open.

Not sure how much snow we got here. Haven't measured yet. But if I had to take a guess it's about 4.5".

 

Confirmed, 4.5" of light fluffy stuff. And still lightly falling. My street isn't even plowed yet. But it's pretty much a back alley anyway.

 

as lame as it sounds, I let him drive up the driveway for the newspaper. I ran him through 2wd, 4wd and 4LO just for him to feel the differences. i also let him drive us down to the Lake road and back allowing him to stomp on the gas and brakes to see what happens.

as far as driving his 4runner.....NO. although I'm sure I could maneuver his around, that's just waaaaaay too much busy work behind the wheel for right now. and besides that, it's all nice and clean and sparkly sitting in the garage......mine, of course, looks like hell.

 

Another good thing to do is have him stomp on the brakes and the gas in 2wd. Too bad you didn't have a bigger lot for him to do some drifting. Sounds like a fun thing, but gives someone the feel of how to recover from a spin.

 

indeed.

 

Nice gift, Pops! Hope he does well in 'all weather' and gets it down, quick. He seems to be a very responsible and respectful young man.... and that's GREAT to have going for ya!

My pleasure, btw, completely

 

Thanks Jerry, Im sure I would enjoy meeting you. I have met 4 guys on here from Yotatech and they have been some great guys. Just to bad we are all border to border and coast to coast.

I know you see Brandon quite a bit and he seems like a great guy to meet as well.

When I had to let my step son start driving that was nerve racking. We spent alot of time with him driving before he ever got to drive by himself and then it was only short distances for some time. I am sure that is how I got some of my gray hair. Hang in there.

 

well. permit obtained.

ordered some pizza and wings from a bar about 6 miles away so we went on a little journey. the roads turned to poo very quickly 9within about 2 miles the roads had started icing over) so this was a very good lesson for him. in dark and icy / snowy conditions. did well. only let him drive about a total of 6 miles or so and then i drove the rest of the way....roads were just too tricky for 1st time out.


thanks again guys.

 

well....haven't had Joe out since Sunday morning when I let him drive for about an hour while the little guy was at sunday school. again, some mixed driving because living out in the sticks means the roads were still like crap the day after it snowed. so he's gotten some good "adverse" driving logged already. rather him learn when it's crappy and he's extra nervous, than dry and sunny and get too comfy.


practice some parking and some other essential skills....such as: I had him pull up to a wall "i want you to be about 6 inches away" from the wall so he gets a feel for the depth perception thing. also did some hard braking on ice just so he would get the feel for the sliding and spinning that happens so he understands not to jam on the brakes.

wife let him drive her 4runner yesterday 'dad, that's totally different", since it's bigger and faster and the brakes are more responsive (ie:"they grab" and "it goes fast")....yes indeed, mommy has the "hot-rod" of all of our vehicles.

cadillac...well, it's just sitting in the yard with a for sale sign on it. yanked the insurance on it a while back so there's no driving that. and it needs rear brakes anyways. maybe in the spring i will insure it again and do the brakes. unless Brandon buys it before then becuz his frame turns to dust.

 

Jerry really glad to see a parent work with there kid teaching them, to many parents toss em the keys and say have at it. I remember teaching my girls how to dive a stick, scarry.

 

requirements are waaaay more strict than they were when i was learning. we only had to have the in-school sessions and a few hours actual driving with an instructor.

Pennsylvania has a 65 hour requirement (of which we have 2.5hrs done) and he cannot get a license until 6 months after the permit....so that makes it July. there are also other rules etc etc etc as far as who can be in the car with a junior license....ya know, common sense stuff for people who need rules to take the place of common sense.

learning to drive the 5-speed will be an entirely different animal...and will come in due time. for now the 4runner is moth-balled and CLEAN.

 

Check with the school and driving Classes. Connor (my almost son) took classes in school and took the test with the school instructor so it was a lot less pressure. And since he took the in-school test and the road course in the school we got a nice discount on the insurance.

 

teaching my girls to drive a manual was a memoriable exsperiance, and not in a good way. I'm sure Joe will do great.

 

costed you a clutch? lol