IF AT FIRST you don't succeed, then try, try again.
That maxim has never seemed more appropriate to me than yesterday, the day of my fifth driving test - and success at last.
After four failures in the months running up to Christmas 2009, I made it a resolution to pass as quickly as I could in the new year.
The snowy weather meant I had little practice over the holiday season and so I moved this attempt back from 13th January to two weeks' later.
The extra time was spent doing a few more hours of practice but, just like previously, I was still nervous when test day arrived.
A final practice on the morning of the test with instructor David Convery settled me down and I succeeded in tidying up my manoeuvres, most particularly the reverse parallel park.
The test itself began at 12.43 under leaden skies though the roads were dry.
From the Gateshead test centre on Wellington Road in Dunston, I went straight on to the A1 for four miles to the West Road roundabout.
I made my way down the West Road and turned left at the Co-operative store crossroads into an estate where I performed my first manoeuvre - reverse round a curved corner.
Just pulling into stop before the manoeuvre, I showed my first real sign of nerves when I clumsily clipped the kerb after coming over a speed hump. This earned me one of just four minors on my test sheet.
Nevertheless, the curved corner manoeuvre went well and after some more estate driving, I was soon heading back to the test centre via the same crossroads and the A1 again.
I took the Dunston turn-off having still not done a second manoeuvre.
But, straight after the slip road, my confusion disappeared as I pulled into Beech Drive to do a reverse parallel park.
The morning practice paid dividends and I parked behind a white van without a problem.
It was then just a case of holding my nerve to get round the final few corners to the test centre.
When I arrived, I pulled into the parking bays aware that I had made no major mistakes. But I could not let myself believe it until the examiner said: "Peter, I'm pleased to say you've passed."
At that moment, the pent-up adrenaline suddenly surged and I leapt from the front seat to give a bear hug to David, my thrilled instructor.
My persistence had finally paid off. I had done it at last. I had given Millie the Micra a worthy owner.
Diary of a learner driver
November 2005
Applied for and received a provisional licence
January 2006
Took six hours of tuition but decided against learning to drive after fast losing confidence from early struggles with control of the car.
2009:
March 13
Passed theory test with 50/50 on the questions and 56/75 on hazard perception.
June 12
First assessment drive for two hours with instructor David Convery.
June 15-16
First crisis of confidence, a result of struggling with control of the car and clutch control in particular. David encouraged me to persist.
June 23
Last lesson before a break before Glastonbury Festival. After gaining some control of the car, I was introduced to some major roads and roundabouts.
July 6
Belated first lesson for almost two weeks after hiatus for Glastonbury Festival where I lost my spectacles causing a further delay.
July 31
Second crisis of confidence, regarding roundabouts in particular. My lack of understanding about which traffic affected me almost caused an accident and David applied the dual controls. I doubted once again if I could ever become a driver.
August 26
A major improvement on roundabouts raised my standard to test level but my observations were still quite poor and, with just a few corners to go before the end of the test, I failed my first attempt when attempting to turn right at a crossroads despite the presence of oncoming traffic.
September 26
A holiday in Portugal followed the first failed test, lasting until September 7. The bad nature of the failure provoked a third crisis of confidence and I decided to avoid the subject of driving for a while. I stopped contacting David, my instructor, until he sent a thought-provoking email. It pointed out that I had already invested a lot of time and money into passing my test over the summer, and that I really was not that far away.
October 12
I decided to continue but my driving confidence needed to be rebuilt as this was my first time back in a car for over six weeks.
October 29
Confidence was quickly restored thanks to some excellent tuition and I took my second test. I failed surprisingly on a turn in the road, despite this being my best/the easiest manoeuvre. Once again, my observations let me down.
October 31
The disappointment of a second failure was eased by the purchase of my very own car - a 2003 Nissan Micra Tempest in metallic blue, christened Millie by the previous owners.
November 25
A third test but a fourth crisis of confidence which ultimately killed off any chance of success. I put a lot of pressure on myself as I thought that I really ought to pass having narrowly failed on the previous occasions. This self-imposed stress and a poor body clock combined to give me hardly any sleep and it was no surprise when my thought-process failed towards the end of the test, leading me to choose the wrong lane on a roundabout.
December 16
After a few sessions of practice, I took a fourth test in much-improved spirits after a decent night of sleep. Unfortunately, I failed to clear a roundabout quickly enough having chosen to move off, and my last chance of passing before the holiday season was gone.
2010:
January 12-13
January 13th was the original date for my first attempt in 2010 but the wintry conditions meant I had not done any practice and I moved the test back two weeks. In the meantime, I took a few more lessons including some experience of driving on what ice remained on January 12th.
January 27
A fifth test and, finally, success. Persistence paid off and at last I got to tear up the L-plates. Instead, I attached some 'new driver' P-plates and completed a first 'independent' drive, a short trip to pick up my mother from work.
Showing posts with label practical test. Show all posts
Showing posts with label practical test. Show all posts
Thursday, 28 January 2010
Thursday, 7 January 2010
Big freeze hits personal plans
HEAVY snow and weeks of freezing weather have paralysed Britain and put all sorts of best laid plans to waste, including my own.
Newcastle United's trip to Reading has been postponed along with matches at Preston, Sheffield Wednesday and Watford in The Championship.
Only a handful of lower league games and matches in Scotland remain on at the moment.
The cold snap could not have come at a more inopportune time for me from a football perspective as I had intended to go to the match at the Madejski Stadium.
It was going to be my first away trip following the Toon since a Kevin Keegan-led team surrendered meekly to a 3-0 defeat against Liverpool in March 2008.
But the postponement now means the match is likely to be moved to midweek, making it much less likely that I will be able to attend.
At least the decision was understandable, and indeed expected, given that ongoing reports from Berkshire have suggested even the main roads in the area are at times impassable.
The early call also ensured that there are not hundreds of wasted car journeys as up to 4,000 Newcastle fans had expected to pack out the away end.
Unfortunately, I had already booked train tickets and so I still intend to use them and visit a friend in the area... as long as I can get there tomorrow.
My continued use of public transport comes as a direct result of still not yet being able to drive after several practical test failures in the second half of 2009.
The desire to pass has made my New Year Resolution for 2010 easy enough.
But having seen experienced drivers struggle in the conditions, and with heavy snow showers on Tyneside expected to last until the middle of next week, I have chosen to delay my next attempt until the end of the month.
This has, of course, made me reliant on the service provided by Go North East buses - and I must take this opportunity to give the company some rare praise.
Go North East has done exactly what you want from a transport company in this weather, though its operations have not been helped by the councils inexplicably running short of grit.
Bus drivers have shown courage and endeavour in providing as many services as close to timetable as possible.
Best of all, information on route changes, delays and cancellations has been regularly updated on the company's Facebook page since the snow started to fall.
In Tyneside, that was way back on 16th December, and while the weather is not quite unprecedented, this amount of snow has not been seen in Britain for 30 years.
At its deepest in Aviemore in the Scottish Highlands, 44cm (17.3in) has fallen. Temperatures as low as -20 degrees Celsius have been recorded.
There have been reports of panic buying in supermarkets and fears of gas shortages. The weight of ice has pulled down power lines, cutting off electricity to thousands of homes.
Tragically, the freezing conditions and hazardous state of the roads have killed at least 22 people across the country.
It puts my disappointment over the postponed football into perspective.
Newcastle United's trip to Reading has been postponed along with matches at Preston, Sheffield Wednesday and Watford in The Championship.
Only a handful of lower league games and matches in Scotland remain on at the moment.
The cold snap could not have come at a more inopportune time for me from a football perspective as I had intended to go to the match at the Madejski Stadium.
It was going to be my first away trip following the Toon since a Kevin Keegan-led team surrendered meekly to a 3-0 defeat against Liverpool in March 2008.
But the postponement now means the match is likely to be moved to midweek, making it much less likely that I will be able to attend.
At least the decision was understandable, and indeed expected, given that ongoing reports from Berkshire have suggested even the main roads in the area are at times impassable.
The early call also ensured that there are not hundreds of wasted car journeys as up to 4,000 Newcastle fans had expected to pack out the away end.
Unfortunately, I had already booked train tickets and so I still intend to use them and visit a friend in the area... as long as I can get there tomorrow.
My continued use of public transport comes as a direct result of still not yet being able to drive after several practical test failures in the second half of 2009.
The desire to pass has made my New Year Resolution for 2010 easy enough.
But having seen experienced drivers struggle in the conditions, and with heavy snow showers on Tyneside expected to last until the middle of next week, I have chosen to delay my next attempt until the end of the month.
This has, of course, made me reliant on the service provided by Go North East buses - and I must take this opportunity to give the company some rare praise.
Go North East has done exactly what you want from a transport company in this weather, though its operations have not been helped by the councils inexplicably running short of grit.
Bus drivers have shown courage and endeavour in providing as many services as close to timetable as possible.
Best of all, information on route changes, delays and cancellations has been regularly updated on the company's Facebook page since the snow started to fall.
In Tyneside, that was way back on 16th December, and while the weather is not quite unprecedented, this amount of snow has not been seen in Britain for 30 years.
At its deepest in Aviemore in the Scottish Highlands, 44cm (17.3in) has fallen. Temperatures as low as -20 degrees Celsius have been recorded.
There have been reports of panic buying in supermarkets and fears of gas shortages. The weight of ice has pulled down power lines, cutting off electricity to thousands of homes.
Tragically, the freezing conditions and hazardous state of the roads have killed at least 22 people across the country.
It puts my disappointment over the postponed football into perspective.
Thursday, 17 December 2009
That familiar feeling
I HAD a less than four-midable outcome as a fourth driving test failure left me with a now familiar feeling.
Just like on my third attempt, my critical mistake was at a roundabout - this time, on the Team Valley.
But unlike last time when I used the wrong lane, it was my moving off which let me down.
Another major difference to my stressful third experience was the fact that I had a good night of sleep and felt alert rather than nervous.
And so, on approach to the roundabout, I realised there was traffic and I would not be able to go. I put the car into first gear and waited for a chance.
A couple of opportunities arose almost straightaway but I had not had enough time to notice them.
Sure enough, I spotted a third chance with a car from opposite blocking traffic from the right - and I decided to take it.
The gap was legitimate but I moved off so slowly that the car from opposite had gone and a truck from the right had begun to move.
I still managed to clear the junction in time but it was much tighter than it should have been and my lack of urgency caused the examiner to mark this as serious.
I had been assessed by this examiner previously - on my second effort when I failed on poor observation on a turn in the road.
The manoeuvre must be a favourite of his as he asked me to do it again but this time my concentration was much better and I completed it without any bother.
Having left the Gateshead test centre on Wellington Road in Dunston, I drove on the A189 to Bensham for the turn in the road before heading to Low Fell for my second manoeuvre, a reverse park.
Again, I overcame this task easily enough but elected to tidy up my straightening of the car by using first gear, costing me one of seven minors.
From there, I drove back to the test centre via the Waggon Team roundabout and a short trip on the A1 lasting just one junction.
While I realised at the time that I had made a mistake on the roundabout back on the Team Valley, I hoped the fact that I managed to clear the junction just in time would be considered in my favour.
But it was not to be, and the result left me once again scrambling for the positives.
As expected, the experience of three earlier tests made me less nervous and my manoeuvres passed off well in the test and in practice with my instructor David Convery.
The result, however, was another crushing blow and it means that Millie the Micra goes into 2010 still sitting outside the door without a fully-licensed owner.
Of course, I intend to continue into the new year until I pass but, after a fourth failure, I have also been left wondering if I will ever do enough to cross the finishing line.
Just like on my third attempt, my critical mistake was at a roundabout - this time, on the Team Valley.
But unlike last time when I used the wrong lane, it was my moving off which let me down.
Another major difference to my stressful third experience was the fact that I had a good night of sleep and felt alert rather than nervous.
And so, on approach to the roundabout, I realised there was traffic and I would not be able to go. I put the car into first gear and waited for a chance.
A couple of opportunities arose almost straightaway but I had not had enough time to notice them.
Sure enough, I spotted a third chance with a car from opposite blocking traffic from the right - and I decided to take it.
The gap was legitimate but I moved off so slowly that the car from opposite had gone and a truck from the right had begun to move.
I still managed to clear the junction in time but it was much tighter than it should have been and my lack of urgency caused the examiner to mark this as serious.
I had been assessed by this examiner previously - on my second effort when I failed on poor observation on a turn in the road.
The manoeuvre must be a favourite of his as he asked me to do it again but this time my concentration was much better and I completed it without any bother.
Having left the Gateshead test centre on Wellington Road in Dunston, I drove on the A189 to Bensham for the turn in the road before heading to Low Fell for my second manoeuvre, a reverse park.
Again, I overcame this task easily enough but elected to tidy up my straightening of the car by using first gear, costing me one of seven minors.
From there, I drove back to the test centre via the Waggon Team roundabout and a short trip on the A1 lasting just one junction.
While I realised at the time that I had made a mistake on the roundabout back on the Team Valley, I hoped the fact that I managed to clear the junction just in time would be considered in my favour.
But it was not to be, and the result left me once again scrambling for the positives.
As expected, the experience of three earlier tests made me less nervous and my manoeuvres passed off well in the test and in practice with my instructor David Convery.
The result, however, was another crushing blow and it means that Millie the Micra goes into 2010 still sitting outside the door without a fully-licensed owner.
Of course, I intend to continue into the new year until I pass but, after a fourth failure, I have also been left wondering if I will ever do enough to cross the finishing line.
Thursday, 26 November 2009
Under pressure
MY THIRD driving test failure was perhaps the most inevitable of them all in the end.
Despite the experience of two earlier attempts, this was the first time that I felt an unbearable pressure to pass.
After relatively close calls on my first two tries, I expected myself to pass in the run-up to this latest test but failed with four minors and a serious.
My big mouth had blurted the date to all and sundry and so I put myself under even more pressure. Ultimately, my biggest worry was disappointing people.
I had taken the evening before the test off work. This leave had been taken before the result of my second test as I intended to visit York City for the Minstermen's match against my home town, Gateshead in the Blue Square Premier.
But, having failed on the second attempt, I ditched my trip to York as I had arranged for my next attempt for what would be the following morning.
I kept the annual leave, expecting to use the day to relax. But the time off had the opposite effect, serving to extend the length of time in which the nerves could build up.
At midnight, I settled myself down for what I hoped would be a good night of sleep.
Instead, I tossed and turned in bed for a few hours before a full-scale panic attack which had me sweating from every pore.
My anxiety was so bad that no rational explanation could calm me down and, due to the resultant insomnia, I expected that I may even have to cancel.
Eventually, pure exhaustion from the stress got me a few hours of shut-eye and I awoke in a slightly more positive mindset.
I was not feeling as tired as I thought I would be and my morning practice drive with instructor David Convery was of a reasonable standard.
It seemed somewhat remarkable given my previous state but, by mid-morning, I had calmed down sufficiently to sit the test at Gateshead test centre on Wellington Road in Dunston.
Still, I was hardly nerveless and early jitters meant that I made an error at my point-of-turn on a bay park, which was the first exercise after the sight test and show me/tell me questions.
I was able to correct this when straightening up, though, and headed towards the Teams where I was asked to do my second manoeuvre, a turn-in-the-road.
The turn-in-the-road was the element upon which I had surprisingly failed on my previous attempt.
But I had been practising the manoeuvre since the start of this driving process in June and that fail proved to be the exception rather than the rule as I found no difficulties this time.
From there, I went across the Waggon Team roundabout towards Lobley Hill before driving down Dunston Bank and across the crossroads at the bottom onto the A1.
I drove for just a mile on the carriageway in pouring rain and high winds, leaving at the third exit, signposted for Blaydon/Consett.
The next part of the test was where I made my latest crucial error as my tired brain confused the lane arrangement at a roundabout after the slip road.
The slip road had put me in the middle lane of three with a road merging from the left for the same direction and a separate right-hand lane for turning right.
Instead of using the middle lane on the roundabout, I chose the right-hand lane and narrowly avoided an accident by swerving to the correct exit.
I had confused being in the right-hand lane turning right with being on the right-hand side of two lanes going left.
It was a fundamental error and, I assure you, not one which I would usually do.
But I knew straightaway that it had cost me a chance of passing and the final few roundabouts back to the test centre were a case of going through the motions.
Ultimately, it was my concentration which had given way, just like my nerve had on the previous night. The lack of sleep from the latter undoubtedly resulted in the former.
Yet the test had an oddly cathartic effect of convincing me once again that I was a competent driver. Despite another bad mistake, I had reduced the number of minor errors to just four.
I think I just need to believe in myself a bit more - and get a better night's sleep next time.
Despite the experience of two earlier attempts, this was the first time that I felt an unbearable pressure to pass.
After relatively close calls on my first two tries, I expected myself to pass in the run-up to this latest test but failed with four minors and a serious.
My big mouth had blurted the date to all and sundry and so I put myself under even more pressure. Ultimately, my biggest worry was disappointing people.
I had taken the evening before the test off work. This leave had been taken before the result of my second test as I intended to visit York City for the Minstermen's match against my home town, Gateshead in the Blue Square Premier.
But, having failed on the second attempt, I ditched my trip to York as I had arranged for my next attempt for what would be the following morning.
I kept the annual leave, expecting to use the day to relax. But the time off had the opposite effect, serving to extend the length of time in which the nerves could build up.
At midnight, I settled myself down for what I hoped would be a good night of sleep.
Instead, I tossed and turned in bed for a few hours before a full-scale panic attack which had me sweating from every pore.
My anxiety was so bad that no rational explanation could calm me down and, due to the resultant insomnia, I expected that I may even have to cancel.
Eventually, pure exhaustion from the stress got me a few hours of shut-eye and I awoke in a slightly more positive mindset.
I was not feeling as tired as I thought I would be and my morning practice drive with instructor David Convery was of a reasonable standard.
It seemed somewhat remarkable given my previous state but, by mid-morning, I had calmed down sufficiently to sit the test at Gateshead test centre on Wellington Road in Dunston.
Still, I was hardly nerveless and early jitters meant that I made an error at my point-of-turn on a bay park, which was the first exercise after the sight test and show me/tell me questions.
I was able to correct this when straightening up, though, and headed towards the Teams where I was asked to do my second manoeuvre, a turn-in-the-road.
The turn-in-the-road was the element upon which I had surprisingly failed on my previous attempt.
But I had been practising the manoeuvre since the start of this driving process in June and that fail proved to be the exception rather than the rule as I found no difficulties this time.
From there, I went across the Waggon Team roundabout towards Lobley Hill before driving down Dunston Bank and across the crossroads at the bottom onto the A1.
I drove for just a mile on the carriageway in pouring rain and high winds, leaving at the third exit, signposted for Blaydon/Consett.
The next part of the test was where I made my latest crucial error as my tired brain confused the lane arrangement at a roundabout after the slip road.
The slip road had put me in the middle lane of three with a road merging from the left for the same direction and a separate right-hand lane for turning right.
Instead of using the middle lane on the roundabout, I chose the right-hand lane and narrowly avoided an accident by swerving to the correct exit.
I had confused being in the right-hand lane turning right with being on the right-hand side of two lanes going left.
It was a fundamental error and, I assure you, not one which I would usually do.
But I knew straightaway that it had cost me a chance of passing and the final few roundabouts back to the test centre were a case of going through the motions.
Ultimately, it was my concentration which had given way, just like my nerve had on the previous night. The lack of sleep from the latter undoubtedly resulted in the former.
Yet the test had an oddly cathartic effect of convincing me once again that I was a competent driver. Despite another bad mistake, I had reduced the number of minor errors to just four.
I think I just need to believe in myself a bit more - and get a better night's sleep next time.
Friday, 30 October 2009
Third time lucky?
ANOTHER driving test and another failure - but at least I feel much more satisfied with my effort this time.
I know from the result that I am not that far away from passing. I just need the certificate to prove it.
The critical moment in this second test came as I was completing the turn-in-the-road manoeuvre.
It is a surprising fail, as this is something which I have been doing in lessons since June - and a much easier exercise than reversing on a curved corner which I did earlier in the test.
It was also a highly irritating and frustrating fail, given the circumstances.
Having done the first two parts of the turn-in-the-road without difficulty, all that I needed to do was put the car back into the normal driving position.
While reversing, I had noticed a blue van approach from the right and slow down to assess the situation.
Satisfied that he would pull up and let me finish the manoeuvre, I checked to my left and started to drive my car forward.
Unfortunately, the van driver had not pulled up and instead had decided to continue his journey by going around me.
It meant we were both heading for the same bit of road and required sharp action on the brakes, which was marked as a 'serious'.
Behind the van, a black car pulled up in the same position. This time, I waited for longer to ensure the mistake was not repeated.
Irritatingly, the driver of the black car did exactly what I expected the van driver to do and waited patiently.
More irritating was the fact that I would not have even been doing a turn-in-the-road manoeuvre if I had been able to do a reverse park earlier in the test.
But that went by the wayside when another driver pulled up behind the car which I was going to reverse around just before I got the chance to engage reverse gear.
The aftermath of this test has been different to the last one, though.
After the test in August, my bad error ultimately caused me to lose a lot of confidence. This goes some way to explaining why it has taken me until the end of October to sit another test.
Even though I only had a few hours lessons from instructor David Convery in the run up to this test, my driving has improved and I feel so much more relaxed behind the wheel.
This is demonstrated by the marks on my test sheet. I had just six minors and three of those were for hesitation, a result of me erring too much on the side of caution at junctions.
Noticeably, I received no minors for my control of the car, and none for judgement, positioning or speed - all of which is very encouraging for my next test, already booked for November 25.
Finally, as if I needed any more incentive, there was a surprise addition to the family on Thursday night - introducing Millie, my own metallic-blue Nissan Micra.
I know from the result that I am not that far away from passing. I just need the certificate to prove it.
The critical moment in this second test came as I was completing the turn-in-the-road manoeuvre.
It is a surprising fail, as this is something which I have been doing in lessons since June - and a much easier exercise than reversing on a curved corner which I did earlier in the test.
It was also a highly irritating and frustrating fail, given the circumstances.
Having done the first two parts of the turn-in-the-road without difficulty, all that I needed to do was put the car back into the normal driving position.
While reversing, I had noticed a blue van approach from the right and slow down to assess the situation.
Satisfied that he would pull up and let me finish the manoeuvre, I checked to my left and started to drive my car forward.
Unfortunately, the van driver had not pulled up and instead had decided to continue his journey by going around me.
It meant we were both heading for the same bit of road and required sharp action on the brakes, which was marked as a 'serious'.
Behind the van, a black car pulled up in the same position. This time, I waited for longer to ensure the mistake was not repeated.
Irritatingly, the driver of the black car did exactly what I expected the van driver to do and waited patiently.
More irritating was the fact that I would not have even been doing a turn-in-the-road manoeuvre if I had been able to do a reverse park earlier in the test.
But that went by the wayside when another driver pulled up behind the car which I was going to reverse around just before I got the chance to engage reverse gear.
The aftermath of this test has been different to the last one, though.
After the test in August, my bad error ultimately caused me to lose a lot of confidence. This goes some way to explaining why it has taken me until the end of October to sit another test.
Even though I only had a few hours lessons from instructor David Convery in the run up to this test, my driving has improved and I feel so much more relaxed behind the wheel.
This is demonstrated by the marks on my test sheet. I had just six minors and three of those were for hesitation, a result of me erring too much on the side of caution at junctions.
Noticeably, I received no minors for my control of the car, and none for judgement, positioning or speed - all of which is very encouraging for my next test, already booked for November 25.
Finally, as if I needed any more incentive, there was a surprise addition to the family on Thursday night - introducing Millie, my own metallic-blue Nissan Micra.
Thursday, 27 August 2009
A costly lapse
A SINGLE lapse of concentration was the difference between me being a driver this week and not being one as I failed my first practical driving test.
The critical moment came as I turned right on a light-controlled t-junction near the MetroCentre with around five minutes left on my way back to the Gateshead test centre on Wellington Road in Dunston.
Rather inexplicably, I had failed to take into account oncoming traffic and attempted to follow the car in front round the junction.
But, in doing so, I only narrowly avoided an accident as the examiner had to slam on the brakes and I got the shock of my life.
Unsurprisingly, this was marked down to be dangerous and completely spoiled a competent drive up until then during which my nerve had held out better than expected.
I had 'only' picked up eight minors but, obviously, I cannot argue with the result.
Indeed, I am satisfied in a way that I did not pass as it should hopefully stop me from doing something so stupid again when I am on the roads myself.
But I was also naturally gutted to have done such a stupid move at the end of one of my best drives.
The test started at the somewhat precise time of 10.24 in typical British summer weather - i.e. heavy rain.
After the standard eye-sight test and show-me, tell-me questions, I was asked to perform my first manoeuvre straightaway - a bay park at the test centre.
Fortunately, I had only just practiced this on the way in with my driving instructor, David Convery, and replicated it to make a strong start.
I then drove north on the A1 carriageway for four miles to Westerhope in Newcastle where I was asked to do my second manoeuvre, a reverse around a curved corner.
This was less successful as I went too fast to follow my reference properly and at one stage my tyres touched the kerb.
But I was able to correct the car successfully and quickly enough to avoid anything more than that being one of my eight minors.
After this, I headed back to Dunston via the West Road, Denton and Scotswood Bridge.
But then came the gut-wrenching feeling of failure after my horrific error with only a few junctions left.
As well as the cost of taking another test, another hugely disappointing factor is the unavoidable delay until my next go.
My second attempt will be on October 2nd, the gap of five weeks being caused by both myself and my instructor going away straight after one another in the meantime.
Hopefully, by then, I will have cut out the ridiculous mistakes and that good things indeed come to those who wait.
The critical moment came as I turned right on a light-controlled t-junction near the MetroCentre with around five minutes left on my way back to the Gateshead test centre on Wellington Road in Dunston.
Rather inexplicably, I had failed to take into account oncoming traffic and attempted to follow the car in front round the junction.
But, in doing so, I only narrowly avoided an accident as the examiner had to slam on the brakes and I got the shock of my life.
Unsurprisingly, this was marked down to be dangerous and completely spoiled a competent drive up until then during which my nerve had held out better than expected.
I had 'only' picked up eight minors but, obviously, I cannot argue with the result.
Indeed, I am satisfied in a way that I did not pass as it should hopefully stop me from doing something so stupid again when I am on the roads myself.
But I was also naturally gutted to have done such a stupid move at the end of one of my best drives.
The test started at the somewhat precise time of 10.24 in typical British summer weather - i.e. heavy rain.
After the standard eye-sight test and show-me, tell-me questions, I was asked to perform my first manoeuvre straightaway - a bay park at the test centre.
Fortunately, I had only just practiced this on the way in with my driving instructor, David Convery, and replicated it to make a strong start.
I then drove north on the A1 carriageway for four miles to Westerhope in Newcastle where I was asked to do my second manoeuvre, a reverse around a curved corner.
This was less successful as I went too fast to follow my reference properly and at one stage my tyres touched the kerb.
But I was able to correct the car successfully and quickly enough to avoid anything more than that being one of my eight minors.
After this, I headed back to Dunston via the West Road, Denton and Scotswood Bridge.
But then came the gut-wrenching feeling of failure after my horrific error with only a few junctions left.
As well as the cost of taking another test, another hugely disappointing factor is the unavoidable delay until my next go.
My second attempt will be on October 2nd, the gap of five weeks being caused by both myself and my instructor going away straight after one another in the meantime.
Hopefully, by then, I will have cut out the ridiculous mistakes and that good things indeed come to those who wait.
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