If you had a young driver-in-training, and a snow / ice storm hit, when it was over, would you take your young driver-in-training to a large, empty parking lot and teach them to do donuts on the ice?

Oh absolutely. I did it too! I had a standard pick-up truck, threw my 16 year old into the passenger side, and took her to the marina. The parking lot there is huge! She learned control, avoidance, foresight, and spacial awareness.

Hell yes. All young drivers need to be let loose and understand what happens when you loose control.

I agree with both of the above, my point would be to learn to not be afraid of, get familiar with and to confidently correct (not overcorrect) an out-of-control car.

Absolutely. I have done exactly that with each of my kids. At some point I make them take the wheel. We make donuts for a while, but then I make them floor it, and hit the brakes. See how long it takes to stop. What happens when they make sharp turns too fast, all that sort of thing.

It’s helpful to have some traffic cones too.

Yes.

10–4! For all the reasons above. I knew I could count on you guys to think outside the concept! It’s fun too…especially when you’re doing the demo (totally having fun and going “wheeeeee!!!” because you know the control part already!) and your know-it-all teens are looking at you with wide, disbelieving eyes. “That’s not the boring old mom I know! Well, OK. She may know doughnuts, but…I bet she never smoked weed!”

Absolutely. Both of my sons learned a lot.

Except with the last driver, we could not find a “clear” parking lot. Either it was too small, or it had those parking bumpers, or trees, or something. So we did a controlled version of the above.

w00t!

@worriedguy… but mebee not enough. After he got his driver’s license my son borrowed my car one frozen day. Later on I got in to drive it and it was like, “WTH IS WRONG WITH MY CAR??!!” Driving down the street it was like the back end was trying to come around and pass the front end!! Very scary. Turns out he had miscalculated on a turn and slid and bashed the back tire on a curb. Jacked up the rear axle. Figured if he didn’t say anything I wouldn’t notice!!

If my parents approved of me using Fluther (They only believe that it’s “sketchy” because of the “naughty language,” which in general means no), I would show them this.

@Fred931 Sketchy is as sketchy can find…...

@Dutchess_III hahaha…

Seriously…if your parents don’t approve of you using fluther then YOU SHOULDN’T USE IT!! Go to your room!!

But MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMM

Actually, no.

I did with my kids what my dad did with me. That was to take me to the large open parking lot or the country road with good visibility and little traffic and teach me not to do donuts, skids and slides – but how also to recover from them when they happen, and to teach me how to keep going up a hill despite slipping, and to come down the hill in good control, and able to stop when I needed to.

The last thing you need to do with a young driver is “teach them how to lose control”. Jeez, that’s like teaching a baby to suck a nipple. The thing is to teach them how to retain (or regain) control.

I did it on my own for the fun of it and learned some of the best lessons on driving in snow and ice ever. I also learned don’t let anyone get your plate number or you’ll end up in court.

@Adirondackwannabe ell oh ell!

@CyanoticWasp But…how can you teach the how to “regain” control if they’ve never experienced “loosing” control?