Only this time it was with customs and rules that are just a bit foreign to me, and I had to do it on the opposite side of the road.
No pressure!
One cannot schedule a practical test until they have the passing certification number from their Theory Test. So no hope in getting a 1-2 punch and taking the test same day or even the same week.
After passing the Theory Test, I immediately went to the cottage and scheduled my practical. It turns out I could take it next week, but that meant no training (very highly recommended and strongly encouraged that your instructor attend with you at the test).
So I call Phil Wilson, a local instructor (lots of licensing requirements for them to be an instructor, while a bit of a distraction, it looked like getting a private flying license would be easier). He's available the following week and the week after. Hmm, I'm not due to work conflicts, but he convinces me that since I do drive a stick here I should do okay. So I schedule training for 2 hours with him and also schedule the test with him included.
Did I mention to Phil that the test was the next day? No I didn't…
In the meantime I find out the 10 day waiting period between practical tests (if you fail) is working days not calendar days. Yikes! That means that if I fail the first time, it'll be 3 days into my "no driving" period before I can take it again. I HAVE to pass it the first time. There is not an opening for failure now.
Practice day comes and Phil drives me around the test route. I will have to do 1 of 3 maneuvers (parallel part, 3 point turn around, or back into a side street). I will have to do some independent driving (follow signs to Whitehaven or wherever).
I am allowed 15 minor infractions, and zero safety infractions. If a safety infraction happens the test is over and I lose my fee.
I tend to slip the clutch too much. I like to coast into a turn, shift to lower gear and then ease out the clutch as I come out of the turn, accelerating out. No…UK rules are to quickly shift into the lower gear as you near the turn and then slow down and drive through the turn in gear, then accelerate out. That'll be 40 years of driving to undo…
I tend to drive with only one hand on the wheel, the other on the stick shift.
I use my peripheral vision too much, and my mirrors, and my situational awareness (I know what's going on around me). For the test, I have to put my head on a swivel even if I know there is nothing there. And do it often. Rule of thumb: mirrors, signal, maneuver.
Oh, and don't signal unless other cars are present, that's a no-no.
After 2 hours Phil says I'm probably ready but a couple of more hours of practice would be good. "When's my test?" he asks…tomorrow morning at 820am. What?!
Okay, we'll meet at 7am and run through it all one more time.
Did I mention the weather has been very windy (gale force since October with very few breaks) and lots of rain? Very abnormal, but I'm expected to take the test in all that anyway, less visibility, etc.
Test day! Kevin, my tester, is a very large and burly gentleman. He squeezes into the car and off we go. He is a very gentle speaker, no excitement in his voice at all. I end up doing the backing maneuver, which is actually harder than it sounds. Lots of round-a-bouts and driving at speed (not too fast of course and not too slow) and we finally get back to the finish.
Infraction 1: I checked my blind spot after moving away from the curb.
Infraction 2: I used only one hand on the wheel to maneuver through the very last round-a-bout and as a result jogged a bit when I had to transition from the inside lane to the outside lane so that I could exit.
Other than that, I passed!
Okay, it was almost a let down. Admittedly I was cocky as I approached that last round-a-bout, I knew it was only a few hundred feet to the finish! That first one I don't remember…
So now I have my license, I'm good to drive in the UK for 5 more years.
I don't plan to stay here that long!
Until next time…
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