My son is now officially an L driver

[WA 2 FST]

...and I believe he will do just fine. I have never been in a vehicle with a more cautious and careful driver. Seriously. He's just like I was when I was 16, with the attitude of taking things slow and building confidence to learn the limits, rather than being over-aggressive. He's also been around hot-rods since he was a little kid, so he has a respect for it.

Over the past 12 months of spending countless hours with him driving his truck (for those that don't remember, I stored it for him when he was 14, and he had $9500 of his own $$ to put down as a down payment to me), he's witnessed a lot of dumb-arse drivers doing stupid things, and has developed a healthy respect for the privilege it is to operate a vehicle on a public road. It also takes us an extra 5-10 mins to get where we are going when he's driving vs. when I drive due to his driving style. :icon_wink:

I will say this, he passed his test with the DPS officer really easily, and he can parallel park that thing a lot better than I could. LOL

None of this means he won't get in a wreck, I know. But he understands if he wrecks it, then he will have no transportation, and I still own the title. There is no chance of me buying him a replacement vehicle. He's got one shot.

A parent's heart skips a beat when their kid takes off by themselves for the first time, but I also know some kids (I had plenty of friends like this) can get into trouble driving a Yugo. We'll just pray the Lord watches over him, and he continues to make good choices in life. So far, he has, and was rewarded for those choices.

If you pull up and want to race him, he will not take the bait, so don't bother. :icon_cool:

[Mark #2]

I love your confidence in him, and I am sure you are correct in your evaluation, but remember your testosterone levels at 16.
I hope everything goes well.:tu:

[WA 2 FST]

The Terry "child-proof" tune comes in real handy, too... forgot to add that. :)

He's not going to be doing a lot of driving to be honest. To and from school (3 miles) ... 6am for off-season baseball, then home after classes... and to and from church.

I do know kids can get into trouble...but, it's been a process to get to this point. So far he's passed all the "tests." I am aware of the potential risk involved, and some would disagree with our decision. I've chosen to accentuate the positive attributes in this case, which is not always my MO.

[99bolt]

Tell him congratulations Wes. I had mixed feelings when giving my nephew the L. I'm happy to say that it is still in one piece after over a year.

[Shiner1]

If you pull up and want to race him, he will not take the bait, so don't bother. :icon_cool:


What if I tell him Gen 2's are slow and his grandmama wears combat boots??:evil:rll::evil

Gongrats!!! That's a nice first ride fo sho!!

[Moonshine]

Sounds like you've prepared him well for responsibility. Congrats to both of you. :tu:

[dboat]

Wes, this is a positive testament to you and your son. You have done well on your parenting and he is showing maturity beyond his years.
There is no way I could have handled that kind of responsibility when I was his age, heck, I dont do that well now.. well, at times I do..

Merry Christmas,

Dana

[jmlay]

We all hope we can trust that our children are responsible. My oldest will be 18 i March, I have let him drive my truck at various times over the last 2 years & have never had a concern. He is well aware of the consequences. My youngest may be a problem, he acts like me...

Mike