crash Archives - Comedy Defensive Driving®

A Force To Be Reckoned With – Women Drivers

Daun Thompson — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 18:40:00 +0000

Men always give women drivers a bad rap. Our driving is a form of entertainment for most guys out there. There are countless jokes and stories about women drivers. In fact, I just heard one today. This man is watching the news and the top breaking news story is about a car traveling down the wrong side of the freeway. This is the same freeway his wife takes home from work. Do you already see where this is going? So, worried for his wife’s well being, he calls to warn her about what he’d seen on the news. He says “Be careful, apparently there’s a car driving down the wrong side of the freeway.” She replies “I don’t know what part of the freeway you are referring to, but there are hundreds of them driving on the wrong side of the freeway where I am.”

I am told that women don’t take driving as seriously as men. So here’s a good argument to chew on, what about the female racing drivers of NASCAR? There are entirely too many of them to mention here, but how about Danica Patrick, Susie Stoddart and Deborah Parker. Oh, and let’s not forget about the Force sisters, Ashley and Courtney. Ashley Force is the first woman to ever win an NHRA event title in the funny car listing. A Force to be reckoned with (pun intended)…heck, she even beat her own father, John, in that very race. And he’s a 14-time Powerade Champion. I don’t even know what that means. I’m just an ordinary girl and an ordinary driver. And I don’t even like to drive. Some people love road trips, while I love planes and taxis. My parents will get in the car and drive from Chicago to Florida in one day. And they enjoy the trip every time. Not me. I’m exhausted just thinking about it.

What I have read about male v.s. women drivers is basically that, while women drivers do get their fair share of speeding tickets, the male drivers usually get ticketed at a higher speed. Men are considered more attentive and focused while driving than women drivers. Unless, of course, there is a girl within viewing range, then that theory goes right out the window.

I know a few women who are the drivers in their relationships. Like my parents’ neighbors. The husband lost his license when he got a DWI, so his wife has to drive him everywhere. She said he always complained that she drives him to drink…and now she has to. So, maybe she’s not only the driver in their relationship, but the designated driver as well.

Until next week…

Daun Thompson
Comedienne / Writer / Artist

Women Drivers – Comedy Defensive Driving

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TEXTING IS A TRIPLE THREAT

Daun Thompson — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 19:11:35 +0000

Of all the distractions while driving, texting is numero uno. It happens to be the one that’s raising the greatest rage among safety researchers, industry critics, auto companies and federal and state regulators. Texting is taking lives, and that is provoking national outrage which is resulting in new laws and safety campaigns nationwide.
I remember when Oprah Winfrey went to the emotional heart of the issue with the launch of her “No Phone Zone” campaign in 2010. None of her employees at Harpo were allowed to text while driving and were given contracts to sign that would hold them to it.
True, there are a mulititude of distractions in the car. Eating (driving with your knees while eating a Big Mac). Changing a CD or radio station is very distracting. Men complain that women applying makeup in the car is exceptionally distracting (come on, it’s not always just women). On the other hand, women complain that men shave while driving. GPS, talking on the phone, swinging at your kids while driving are just a few more distractions in the car.
But texting while driving has a particular power to distract because it’s an activity that has visual, manual and cognitive components. A triple threat! It requires drivers to look at something other than the road, do something other than handle the wheel and think about something other than driving the car. In other words, texting involves three categories that involve major driver distraction.
Another thing to consider, you have 3 seconds to respond as a driver in an emergency.

When you text, your eyes are off the road by 10 times that. And texting’s primary danger is that it is a visual distraction. You can’t drive without looking at the road regardless of how high or low the cognitive demand is (unless you’re Stevie Wonder).
Safety regulators and researchers say texting while driving is more of a concern than other in-car distractions. Texting is widespread, particularly among young drivers who lack experience. Texting is also more distracting than many other driver activities.
According to CTIA, The Wireless Association, people sent or received 5.9 billion text messages every day in 2010. Many of them from behind the wheel of a car. About one-eighth of all drivers reported texting while driving, according to a study on driver distraction conducted by the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA).
Some states are reacting by making texting illegal. As of June, 34 states had enacted texting bans for all drivers. An additional 7 states prohibit texting by new drivers.And, in a survey by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the majority of drivers who admitted texting were between 18 and 29. That means the biggest offenders were also less experienced drivers. My teenage daughter can text and not even look at the phone while she’s doing it. We’ll be having a conversation at the dinner table and she’ll be looking me right in the eyes while she’s texting someone. Her phone is under the table. She calls it multitasking. I call it grounded. It’s just rude. I don’t text and drive. Not because I’m smart enough to, I’m just not coordinated enough to. I have tried it and I could totally take out famillies so I don’t do it.

Texting video!

Until next week…don’t text and drive…or you could find yourself with a phone in one hand and a ticket in the other

Daun Thompson

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I AM A REFORMED NON-SIGNALER

Lisa — Tue, 03 May 2011 17:15:44 +0000

Ever have someone point out just how bad of a driver you are?I thought my driving skills were unsurpassed.Until one afternoon, I met up with my boyfriend to see a movie.Since we were both in separate cars, afterward, he followed me home.When we arrived, he said “Hey there, Cougar” (that’s his pet name for me … and I call him my Pool Boy).“You didn’t signal one time the entire drive to your house.”I said “You know where I live.You’ve been there a thousand times.”Not good enough, I suppose.He just shook his head.Wow!Is it true?I’m one of those people who don’t use their signal?Now, I don’t know about you.But, I get a little self-conscious when someone points out a blatent flaw.After that day, I must say, I over-signal.Now, I turn on my signal before I even pull out of my garage.And now that I’m a reformed signaler, I notice that, more often than not, most people don’t bother themselves to signal.In all fairness to them … maybe they’re trying to extend the life of the bulb … so the bulb lasts the life of the car.It’s a well-known fact that, to replace the bulb is about $2.25.But the labor to replace it is about $60.00.An easy enough task for a do-it-yourselfer.But with some foreign cars, it is difficult to get to the housing to replace the bulb.Sometimes you have to remove the entire engine block just to get at it (well, maybe that was a mistake … an expensive mistake … and I have learned a lesson from it … I really have). Any more, if you do signal, you’re a novelty. I saw a guy on the freeway, who had his signal on and was driving a bit under the speed limit.I was thinking to myself “That clown left his signal on.”And all-along, he probably just wanted to change lanes.Maybe some people are more private. They just don’t want anyone to know where they’re going.It’s no one’s damned business.Turn signals may be the most underutilized device in the car.Although signaling is one of the most important actions you can take as a driver.It’s all about warning other drivers (and stalking ex-boyfriends) of your next move to minimize surprises (potentially hazardous surprises at that).Failing to signal may be the cause of quite a few accidents, and is probably a big source of “road rage” as well.Some people don’t signal in heavy traffic because they claim, once they turn their signal on, it’s a guarantee that no one will let them over.People move forward and close up the space, they say.But don’t give up.There are still some good people out there that will gladly let you over if you turn on your signal and beg. Just give it a chance. I’ve been practicing it and it really works (sometimes).Just don’t forget to waive “thanks” to those people … or they get really mad and try to hurt you.Some people are so emotional … take some Prozac, dude. Thing is, they don’t know through a tinted window if you’re waiving at them with all five fingers or just one. So, there. You just won.

The law is, you must signal 100 feet before changing lanes or turning. The fine for failure to signal intent to turn is just shy of a $200 fine.Plus, it just plain makes people crazy if you’re in front of them and you don’t signal.Even if they, themselves are a professed non-signaler.If you’re not sure how to easily gauge 100 feet, just ask the guy you have the restaining order on. He’ll know.

Having my boyfriend point that non-signaling flaw out to me, may save me some grief in the long-run.So I really should thank him.I think when you’ve been driving a long time, like I have, you get a little cocky with your driving skills.Plus, I haven’t gotten a ticket in many years.And that’s not something you want to go bragging about.If you brag, the Karma Monkey will trip you up … and then you’ll get three tickets in a row.And it’s always in threes … like celebrity deaths.Weird, huh?

Remember … 100 feet.So, get that tape measure at Dollar Tree.You’re gonna need it.

Daun Thompson

( Daun Thompson is a Comedienne, Artist, Writer and Idea Mogul residing in Dallas, Texas )

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