Drive Like A Cop
Courtesy AOL Autos
The FBI says police officers are about as likely to be killed in a vehicle crash as with a criminal's gun. Cops drive in a high-threat, workload-intensive environment: blaring sirens, flashing computers, screaming radios, civilian drivers seemingly bent on kamikaze attacks, and, at their destination, angry bad guys who don't particularly respect public servants. All reasons that cops take driving very seriously. With feedback from officers in the field, law enforcement driving instructors have compiled numerous tips to help their students avoid becoming a statistic. Here, we pass those along to you.
Watch Your Hands
Airbags save lives, but many a police officer has been unnecessarily injured because their hands were over the airbag when it went off. At the school for law enforcement driving instructors I recently attended, the story was told of an officer who was driving with his wrist draped over the top of the steering wheel. His attention was diverted by the in-car computer and he smashed into a car that suddenly pulled in front of him: the deploying airbag broke his lower arm and caused his own hand to break out his front teeth. While driving straight, police instructors say that your hands should be at 3 and 9 o'clock on the steering wheel. If you MUST be lazy, try 4 and 8 o'clock. Also, the police instructors say, learn the "shuffle steering" technique where the left hand never ventures to the right side of the wheel and vice versa. To turn right, first pull down with the right hand. Next release the right hand grip while pushing up with the left hand and raising the right hand up to grab more wheel. Repeat. With practice, it's possible to drive as fast as possible through the tightest course without your hands going above 10 and 2.
Airbags save lives, but many a police officer has been unnecessarily injured because their hands were over the airbag when it went off. At the school for law enforcement driving instructors I recently attended, the story was told of an officer who was driving with his wrist draped over the top of the steering wheel. His attention was diverted by the in-car computer and he smashed into a car that suddenly pulled in front of him: the deploying airbag broke his lower arm and caused his own hand to break out his front teeth. While driving straight, police instructors say that your hands should be at 3 and 9 o'clock on the steering wheel. If you MUST be lazy, try 4 and 8 o'clock. Also, the police instructors say, learn the "shuffle steering" technique where the left hand never ventures to the right side of the wheel and vice versa. To turn right, first pull down with the right hand. Next release the right hand grip while pushing up with the left hand and raising the right hand up to grab more wheel. Repeat. With practice, it's possible to drive as fast as possible through the tightest course without your hands going above 10 and 2.
Side Windows
Side windows should be all the way up or all the way down. Imagine a pane of glass, edge on, banging into your temple. Now picture a side-impact car crash that snaps your neck against a partially open side window. A guillotine is only slightly more efficient. Because few officers enjoy collecting dismembered body parts from the roadway, your side windows should be all the way up or all the way down. For vehicles with side windows that don't go below the top of the door, this means "all the way up all the time." Fully raised is preferable over fully lowered because it's far better to hit your head against the raised side glass than, say, the brush guard of the SUV that T-boned you in the door.
Preventing carjacking is but a side benefit of this tip. A closed car door will help keep your arms, legs and head inside the vehicle. Police driving instructors claim that a locked door is 10 times more likely to stay closed in a crash. The incredible forces in a wreck mean that even belted occupants can be partially ejected if the doors fly open. In secondary impacts, flopping heads can be smashed against the roadway and dangling limbs can be ripped off. Makes a carjacking seem like a desirable experience, no?
Back In
Since about one-third of driving incidents involving officers on duty occur when the cruiser is in reverse, cops are instructed to back into parking spaces when they're not under pressure. You should do the same thing. The main advantage for you is that it's much easier to see -- and avoid -- cross traffic when pulling forward out of a parking space. Ever park between two giant SUVs? As you backed blindly out, your car was perhaps two-thirds into the traffic lane before you could see around the behemoths. When responding to an emergency call, cops can't, or don't, take time to back out slowly. Crunch! Since police have no more right to leave the scene of an accident than you, if their brother officer was getting a butt kicking, he'll have to hope someone else responds to the call for backup.
Side windows should be all the way up or all the way down. Imagine a pane of glass, edge on, banging into your temple. Now picture a side-impact car crash that snaps your neck against a partially open side window. A guillotine is only slightly more efficient. Because few officers enjoy collecting dismembered body parts from the roadway, your side windows should be all the way up or all the way down. For vehicles with side windows that don't go below the top of the door, this means "all the way up all the time." Fully raised is preferable over fully lowered because it's far better to hit your head against the raised side glass than, say, the brush guard of the SUV that T-boned you in the door.
Preventing carjacking is but a side benefit of this tip. A closed car door will help keep your arms, legs and head inside the vehicle. Police driving instructors claim that a locked door is 10 times more likely to stay closed in a crash. The incredible forces in a wreck mean that even belted occupants can be partially ejected if the doors fly open. In secondary impacts, flopping heads can be smashed against the roadway and dangling limbs can be ripped off. Makes a carjacking seem like a desirable experience, no?
Back In
Since about one-third of driving incidents involving officers on duty occur when the cruiser is in reverse, cops are instructed to back into parking spaces when they're not under pressure. You should do the same thing. The main advantage for you is that it's much easier to see -- and avoid -- cross traffic when pulling forward out of a parking space. Ever park between two giant SUVs? As you backed blindly out, your car was perhaps two-thirds into the traffic lane before you could see around the behemoths. When responding to an emergency call, cops can't, or don't, take time to back out slowly. Crunch! Since police have no more right to leave the scene of an accident than you, if their brother officer was getting a butt kicking, he'll have to hope someone else responds to the call for backup.
Back Up
Since so many cop crashes occur while reversing, officers do a LOT of backing up in their driver-training courses. You should, too. Find an empty parking lot. Using traffic cones, PVC pipe, or soft drink cans, mark a 9-foot wide parking space that "T"s into an 8-foot-wide traffic lane. (Hint: Put a little extra fudge room opposite the parking space.) Practice backing down the lane and in and out of the parking space. Police driving courses add a backward slalom. In cop-driving-school, if you're moving backward, you must be looking backward: to check your car's nose or look through the outside mirrors, you must come to a complete stop. (Imagine having a highway patrolman inside your car assessing if all motion has ceased. Trust me, that's pressure.) Here's the technique: grasp the steering wheel between your thumb and forefinger at 12 o'clock (the airbag won't go off in reverse), grab the passenger's seatback with your right hand, and, in order to see well out the rear window, raise yourself up by pushing your left foot against the floorboard.
Since so many cop crashes occur while reversing, officers do a LOT of backing up in their driver-training courses. You should, too. Find an empty parking lot. Using traffic cones, PVC pipe, or soft drink cans, mark a 9-foot wide parking space that "T"s into an 8-foot-wide traffic lane. (Hint: Put a little extra fudge room opposite the parking space.) Practice backing down the lane and in and out of the parking space. Police driving courses add a backward slalom. In cop-driving-school, if you're moving backward, you must be looking backward: to check your car's nose or look through the outside mirrors, you must come to a complete stop. (Imagine having a highway patrolman inside your car assessing if all motion has ceased. Trust me, that's pressure.) Here's the technique: grasp the steering wheel between your thumb and forefinger at 12 o'clock (the airbag won't go off in reverse), grab the passenger's seatback with your right hand, and, in order to see well out the rear window, raise yourself up by pushing your left foot against the floorboard.
Right Foot Only
Police driving instructors, seeking ways to reduce the overload, insist that their students brake with only their right foot. The instructors also say that in a panic, some left-foot brakers push both the gas and the brake to the floor; not the optimum technique for a short stop. The other side of the coin is that a vast majority of race car drivers brake with their left foot. The police instructors and I found common ground: Left-foot braking is a legitimate advanced technique, but one that's far too advanced for the vast majority of Americans.
The Fog Line
Ever been driving down a two-lane road at night and the other driver failed to dim his brights? Here's what you do: switch on the blues, take-downs, and hi-lo siren, do a quick U-turn and bust the snap. But, if you lack the authority to do that, instead focus on the white "fog line" along the right side of the road. Keep track of the high-beam birdbrain with your peripheral vision. If you allow the bright lights to ruin your night vision, it will take between four and seven seconds for it to recover. By keeping your eyes averted to the right, you'll limit the damage to your night vision.
Police driving instructors, seeking ways to reduce the overload, insist that their students brake with only their right foot. The instructors also say that in a panic, some left-foot brakers push both the gas and the brake to the floor; not the optimum technique for a short stop. The other side of the coin is that a vast majority of race car drivers brake with their left foot. The police instructors and I found common ground: Left-foot braking is a legitimate advanced technique, but one that's far too advanced for the vast majority of Americans.
The Fog Line
Ever been driving down a two-lane road at night and the other driver failed to dim his brights? Here's what you do: switch on the blues, take-downs, and hi-lo siren, do a quick U-turn and bust the snap. But, if you lack the authority to do that, instead focus on the white "fog line" along the right side of the road. Keep track of the high-beam birdbrain with your peripheral vision. If you allow the bright lights to ruin your night vision, it will take between four and seven seconds for it to recover. By keeping your eyes averted to the right, you'll limit the damage to your night vision.
Lights Down
Preserve your night vision by turning down the dash lights to the minimum
required to safely read the speedometer. It's much more important to see
what's outside the car. Over-bright dash lights do nothing save hurt your
night vision.
Final Tip
Here's a final tip: if you see blue lights in your mirror, pull to the right
immediately. If they're for you, stop immediately. Turn on your interior
lights and place both hands on the wheel. Answer all questions with either
"Yes, officer." or "No, officer." Have a nice day.
