Driving ambition

THE Audi Driving Experience course taught me better driving skills. As a reward, I got to to drive some cars fast around a racetrack.

The Audis go through their paces at the Melbourne track.

I PRIDE myself on being a good driver. I know there are people out there who don't agree - I know this because they've told me so - but the fact is, I have been driving for almost 30 years and I have a virtually unblemished driving record.

About 20 years ago I got hit by a car that went through a red light and which was not only uninsured but also unregistered and being driven by an unlicensed driver who was also - you can't make this stuff up - living in Australia on an expired visa. So in other words, that blemish was not my fault even if it was a nightmare for my insurance company. I can count the number of parking tickets I've received on two hands and I've had a grand total of two speeding fines. I abide by the rules, which is not to say that I don't make mistakes or that I am a model citizen; I simply don't want to have to pay the fine.

As I write this, I am watching a television current affairs program (believe me I would never attempt to multi-task while I'm behind the wheel of a car) which is airing a story about parking officers picking on unsuspecting drivers near a primary school who are just trying to pick their kids up. "It's just revenue raising," explained an angry parent about the issuing of fines for parking in a no-stopping zone outside the school at pick-up and drop-off times. Hang on, did he say no stopping? No stopping means no stopping and I'm sure it's usually for a good reason.

Some years ago I was attempting to park outside my apartment building to quickly run upstairs and collect something I'd forgotten. The space I found was in a no-parking zone and as I jumped out of the car a parking officer looked at me and I said 'I'm just going to be a minute." His response was "the sign says no parking, not I'm-just-going-to-be-a-minute parking". Annoyingly, he had a point and every time time I've done it since I've heard his voice in my head telling me not to.

Although I pride myself on being an exemplary driver I have to admit that when I got my driver's licence at the age of 17 I didn't really know how to drive. Driver education then was just about passing the driving test - doing mechanical things such as changing lanes, reverse parking, hill starts and three-point turns. Until I got my licence, all the driving I had done was as part of a lesson with an instructor and by the time I was legally allowed to drive a car on my own I barely knew what I was doing. As a result I was nervous and hated driving. That changed as I got more experience and I have learnt to actually enjoy being behind the wheel of a car.

So when Audi invited me to attend a one-day Driving Experience course I jumped at the opportunity. The course promised to break bad habits, teach me better driving skills and, as a reward, I would have the opportunity to drive some cars around a racetrack - fast. The fast bit was certainly fun but it was the advanced driver skills that I was excited about. Courses such as this are offered by several car manufacturers and other providers and, having done one, I think it's something every driver should do at least once. You can read more about what the course involved at the link below, "Wheels on fire". This is our annual motoring issue and it's not all about the boring subject of obeying road rules. John Connolly previews some of the incredible supercars about to hit our streets and we take some amazing vehicles on the road in Italy, China and California.