Getting a driver’s licence is an important step in a young person’s life; it’s one step closer to independence. If you find yourself newly licenced, congratulations! We bet you can’t wait to get out on the roads.
However, as you’re well aware (and as driver’s ed has no doubt repeated over and over), no matter how freeing driving a car on your own can be, safety remains paramount. As a new driver fresh out of driver’s school, you probably feel like you know everything you need to, but it never hurts to review—especially with winter coming up!
Winter driving, as any Minnesotan will tell you, is a whole different ball game than skating over clear summer roads. Ice and snow both will drastically change the way your car handles, regarding a change in your driving technique. Below, Unparalleled Parking, a transportation company and Minneapolis valet service, has some tips. Who better to teach you about safe driving than those who do it for a living?
Slowing Down and Thinking Ahead: The Keys to Safe Winter Driving
As experts in driving unfamiliar vehicles, any valet parking service will tell you that slow speeds are the key to safely navigating winter streets. It becomes a lot easier to brake in slippery patches, after all, if you’re not flying over them at top speed! Of course, slowing down requires that you, as a driver, think ahead and anticipate where those icy patches might be hiding; not all of them are obvious.
Anticipation is a skill that can only be garnered through experience, but there are a few ways you can hone that skill before hitting the open roads:
● Practice driving and braking in quieter areas first. For the uninitiated, feeling your car skid out from underneath you can be so startling that it’s easy to become paralyzed. Work with your car on a quiet drive, feeling how the wheels accelerate underneath you, and how the brakes react to the given conditions. This will give you the confidence to tackle bigger roads!
● Don’t be afraid to take a parent with you. Though you may be legally allowed to drive by yourself, there’s no shame in having a parent or other experienced driver in the passenger seat for a while. They can teach you practical wintertime driving skills that driver’s ed might not have covered.
● Get your tires replaced before winter starts. Bald tires make handling in the snow all the harder. Check in with your parents and make sure your car is set to go, maintenance-wise, before snow and cold temperatures set in.
Looking for a Winter-Savvy Valet Company? Contact Unparalleled Parking Today
We know winter driving and parking; after all, we just told you all about it! Call us at 651-300-1515 to discover what our valet and lockout services can do for you.