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It is possible to significantly reduce the blind-spot area by adding stick-on convex mirrors to the side view mirrors of any vehicle. The most important lapse in a regular shoulder check can mean serious injury and possible death to an innocent cyclist or pedestrian.
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Importance of Shoulder Check in Preventing Accidents Two hands are required for other reverse manoeuvres. It is permissible to use one hand while backing in a straight line on a driving test. This completes a 360-degree circular observation of the vehicle. The parallel, reverse stall and straight-line backing action all need a mandatory offside shoulder check, before beginning the back-up move.Īn offside shoulder check is the act of looking over the left shoulder first before doing a scan left to right, and looking between the seats, out the back window of the vehicle. There are three skill-related driving tasks that involve reverse gear and are required on a driving road test. Offside Shoulder Check in Reverse Driving Tasks The omission of this simple head turn is responsible for a great number of crashes and is often a major factor in failures on the provincial driver’s road test. It is imperative that every driver glance left over the shoulder in the intended direction of travel, before making any lateral driving manoeuvre. No matter how well drivers set up their rear-view and side-view mirrors, there will always be a gap. It will identify other miscellaneous traffic hidden in the blind spot, when turning, changing lanes, leaving or parking at the curb. The shoulder check is one of the most important checks, not only on a driving test, but also in everyday driving. I was in the habit of checking the relevant shoulder after the student had done so, as opposed to doing it at a pivotal time.
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The instructors who were ride-checking me said my check was somewhat delayed. It is the only way to see if there is someone or something not normally visible in the side-view mirrors. One of these exercises is a ride-check of another driving instructor seated in the back seat during in a typical driving lesson.Ī simple shoulder check, in the area commonly referred to as a blind spot, is very important. Most conscientious driving instructors take part in several professional-development exercises. Only by doing a proper shoulder check can drivers ensure there is no traffic in the way when changing lanes. Relying on side or rear-view mirrors alone will leave drivers with a considerable blind spot.
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