Practice, practice North Smithfield drivers! Only the stalwart will survive

Thursday, March 17, 2005

The residents of North Smithfield may be prudent to spend a little time becoming familiar with the type of driving skills needed to drive around our lovely town if the proposed “Dowling Village” is realized.

A Saturday afternoon drive on RT 2 Warwick, Mineral Spring Ave. North Providence, or RT 1 South Attleboro would be worth the time. You may want to go on successive Saturdays to really sharpen your driving skills. You’ll need to practice your gas pedal, brake pedal footwork to build stamina, gas brake, gas brake, gas brake. A standard transmission will require extra work. Judging the acceptable distance between your car and the car in front of you can be tricky. You don’t want to promote road rage but you also don’t want to allow those pesty drivers to your right and left to cut in.

You’ll also need to practice your straight ahead stare as you block that person to your side and especially if you are stopped under a traffic light that is changed to the other direction. Do not let the horns break your stare. Judging the yellow to red traffic light change is all about timing and practice. A few critical seconds is the difference between a nice afternoon and tow trucks and police reports. Nosing in to break the traffic chain is an art form. Practice, practice!

Which leads to another area of expertise, hand signals. You may want to work on these at home in a mirror to quicken your delivery. Practicing now will also help with time management. You’ll need to plan accordingly when the ten minute drive becomes the thirty minute drive. North Smithfield residents get out there and practice, it never hurts to be prepared!

Jeff Delasanta
Old Smithfield Road
North Smithfield