I have had my fair share of stupid "at fault" accidents all thru my first years of L's and P's.
Each accident was my fault. You dont know your limits untill you break them and with luck you will still be alive to have learned something from them.
I have exceeded all my limits AND the gone past the edge of the cars capabilities already and I know exactly where they are. I know to back off when its getting too dangerous, for myself and for others around me.
You say you are safe because you have never had an accident?
GTF away from me, your a timebomb with no fuse. It will happen one day and I dont want to be around you or especially inside the same vehicle with you when it does.
Now I'm not arguing that some of you dont know what the right things are, or how to drive well. But do you know what NOT to do?
For example, You know its not nice to squeeze in front of a Semi-trailer when coming up to a set of lights, but do you know WHY? Do you sit in the turning lane waiting for a gap in the traffic with your wheels pointing into the line of oncoming cars? Have you ever been caught in traffic tailgating someone at speed and suddenly realising that they have already hit the breaks and YOU wont be able to stop in time? Pop quiz hotshot, its too late to break it down and think about it because its already happened and I hope the damage is something that can be fixed at a panel beaters and that all parties were comprehensively insured.
Can YOU see all the hidden dangers and potential disasters waiting out there? Can you really?
I cant, and it scares the shit out of me when I think about the close calls I have had in the past 10 years.
Going to the track and open days will fast-track your growth for the better in regards to vehicle response and reaction. The best drivers out there are the ones who have had both the time AND the experience in the real world and who stay sharp and learn from everything that happens around them.
Because as soon as you stop learning and watching out for others as well as yourself then why bother anymore*.
*then you will be no better than my mom.
She has been driving for 40 years and hasnt learnt anything new with her driving for the last 30. Always speeding and not looking around, I remember she was being followed by the police for 10 mins with their lights on and flashing because she didnt look in the rear-view mirror unless the car was going backwards (she was speeding 20kph+ at the time).
We got her a new Subie Outback not too long ago and it WAS looking a little ruff around the edges. Dings and scrapes everywhere from carparks, bumping into parked cars, reversing into waist high bollards that she didnt see behind her. She dosent have an excuse, she dosent even accept what she's done, but she points the finger and blames everyone but herself.
I do mean "was", because last month she left the drivers door open and reversed out of the garage fast and took down the side corner of the garage and dropped the raised roller door onto the roof, Insurance covered everything and the car is in much better condition now. It still wasnt her fault it happened.