Classroom Session January 2023

Published on 21st January 2023

We hold our Associate classroom sessions approximately every six weeks, our most recent one was on 21st January.

These sessions form an important part of our Associates journey to passing their Advanced Driving test. It is a chance to learn the theory of advanced driving techniques in the safe classroom environment – with tea and biscuits!

Each classroom session seems to throw up different discussions, and this one was no exception. This time there was a good discussion on overtaking, especially with regard to cyclists and horses.
We covered the issue of overtaking on narrow country roads where there was little opportunity to be able to pass with at least 1.5m clear space. The issues of staying behind the cyclist for potentially miles were raised such as how to deal with the angry/impatient driver behind you. Conversely, coming up behind a peloton of cyclists on a major road also has its issues, as although the Highway Code says cyclists “can ride two abreast” there is no law regarding this and the cyclists could be two or three abreast in a large group! The answer is to treat them like one large vehicle and overtake all in one manoeuvre.

Driving an electric vehicle raises another aspect that impacts overtaking cyclists and horses, and that is thee silent approach. For cyclists a short friendly beep may be appropriate so they know you are there, however we may need to show more restraint with horses as any sort of beep would be inappropriate.

Other topics and weird facts that came up during the session included if you double your speed, you are quadrupling its kinetic energy.

If you are desperate for the toilet, the effect on your driving is the same as being over the drink/drive level.