# Frustrated



## caprine crazy (Jun 12, 2012)

Okay, so I've been in Driver's Ed since June. Completed the class portion at the end of June and I am working on completing the driving part. So, I've been parallel parking with my instructors and I just did at home with dad. I can do just about everything perfectly....except backing up. I can parallel park but I can't back out of the drive way!!!!  Now, when I'm with an instructor, I can back just fine because it's a parking space and they tell me what way to turn. See, in our driveway I have to either turn or go around a car (depends on what vehicle I'm driving). I feel like such a blonde though...Which I am naturally blonde.


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

I bet with practice you will do fine.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

I agree


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## Little-Bits-N-Pieces (Apr 7, 2013)

:laugh: can't be worse than the people I know or grew up with! Practice makes perfect, you'll get the hang of it in no time! Just keep trying, one day when you go to practice it will just "click" with you and it will be so easy.


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## NyGoatMom (Jan 26, 2013)

Take a deep breath....relax....and keep practicing  You can do it!! 

If it makes you feel any better...I am 42 and cannot parallel park to save my life


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## Little-Bits-N-Pieces (Apr 7, 2013)

I can park, but I drive with a lead foot!


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## caprine crazy (Jun 12, 2012)

I used to be pretty good when dad had me out practicing every night. But then we stopped practicing every night because of his work. So, i got out of sync I guess. Little Bits, that's how controlling my speed was. I couldn't do it to save my life, but then one day i could just do it! 

I suck at parking our truck too! I always get it in two spaces! So dad usually has me park way out when we go to like Walmart or whatever. lol Now with dad's little oldsmobile aurora, I can park perfectly. In the truck, forget it.


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## OwnedByTheGoats (Mar 7, 2013)

If it makes you feel better, no one parrallel parks unless you want to show off.  lol So don't sweat it.


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## emilieanne (Oct 15, 2012)

When you back up, this is a trick I figured out cause I feel like I'm dyslexic lol so I had troubles too. 
When you back up and want to go <---- think to yourself "I want the butt of the car the opposite way I'm going so I will turn the wheel the opposite way of the way I need to go" 
I hope that makes sense. 
Say you want to go <---- turn the wheel ---->  
Does that make sense? Lol 
Hope I helped!!


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## OwnedByTheGoats (Mar 7, 2013)

I can't parellel park for the life of me. And I STILL have trouble backing up sometimes. lol


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## caprine crazy (Jun 12, 2012)

Lol I always have to ask my dad which way to turn the wheel. My instructor told me to pretend that the back of the car turns into the front of the car, but that didn't really help. I do feel dyslexic at times! lol


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## Little-Bits-N-Pieces (Apr 7, 2013)

emilieanne said:


> When you back up, this is a trick I figured out cause I feel like I'm dyslexic lol so I had troubles too.
> When you back up and want to go <---- think to yourself "I want the butt of the car the opposite way I'm going so I will turn the wheel the opposite way of the way I need to go"
> I hope that makes sense.
> Say you want to go <---- turn the wheel ---->
> ...


How I remembered it was, driving backwards is literally the opposite of driving forward! :ROFL:


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## Axykatt (Feb 1, 2013)

I am old enough to have a 15 y/o son and I still don't have a license! Every so often I get a learner's permit, but I chicken out when it comes to the driving test. The funny thing is that I've driven cross-country while towing a trailer-twice! Also, on those rare occasions that I drive everyone says I'm the best driver they know.


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## OwnedByTheGoats (Mar 7, 2013)

Well, my 80 year old aunt doesn't have a driver's liscense, never did. She's the exact opposite when it comes to driving... you do NOT want to be in the car with her! lol


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## MsScamp (Feb 1, 2010)

caprine crazy said:


> ....except backing up.


Don't feel like a blonde, backing up can be very confusing - especially if one does not do it a lot. My mother is 80 years old and she cannot back up to save her life - never could! If you want to back to the right, turn the steering wheel to the right. If you want to back to the left, turn the steering wheel to the left. If you want to back out of the drive-way, keep the front wheels straight (assuming they were straight to begin with) until you clear the curb (or the end of the driveway if you don't have a curb) with the back tires, then turn the steering wheel either right or left depending on which way you want to go. If you head off in a direction you don't want to go, simply stop, shift into drive, pull up far enough to get the wheels straight, and try again.

For me, it's easier to use the mirrors than it is to try to turn around and look behind me. I work on a farm, my little Kubota RTV croaked last summer, and I had to use a car or pick-up to irrigate with. I learned to back-up long distances (1/2 mile or better) using my mirrors. I learned to do it at about 35 -45 mph by the time the summer was over. You can, too, it just takes some practice.


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## LaZyAcres (Aug 25, 2010)

Now when you've got that mastered, hook up a trailer and do the opposite of all that again...talk about frustrating!


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## imissthesun (Jul 28, 2013)

I know you will get it. It's one of those things that just "clicks" all of a sudden. It's kinda like when you are trying to learn a new concept in algebra and you don't get it, the teacher explains again and you still don't get it, the teacher explains again and you still don't get it, the teacher explains again and all of a sudden it clicks and you get it. The more you do it, the sooner you'll have that epiphany. Hang in there


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## ptgoats45 (Nov 28, 2011)

GoatCrazy said:


> If you head off in a direction you don't want to go, simply stop, shift into drive, pull up far enough to get the wheels straight, and try again.


This ^^^^ is so important to remember. I have seen so many people trying to back up a crooked trailer that just gets more and more crooked. It is so much easier to back up straight, weather you have a trailer or not, than it is to try to straighten the vehicle/trailer while going backwards.

Is there space at your house that you could set up some cones to back between or around? Pretend like the cones are another vehicle or the curb and practice just going straight between them first, then add in backing straight then turning one way or the other, then you could make it more difficult like backing out around another vehicle. If you have cones out that it won't matter if they get hit you might be a little less nervous and be able to do it better. I know I hate backing up near other vehicles. I always park as far away from other vehicles as I can. lol Once you get backing your car down then you can tackle backing with a trailer 

Backing with a trailer is pretty confusing since the trailer will go in the opposite direction that you turn the wheel. Plus the shorter the trailer the shorter and quicker it turns when you turn the wheel. It helps to learn if you have someone teach you who is very good at it. My step dad used to be a truck driver and can back up anything anywhere so I at least had someone who knows what they are doing teach me. lol He always says once you get the trailer going where you want to just follow it on back, if it gets too crooked just pull forward, straighten it out and try again. He made me back around the house several times then park the trailer between two of our other trailers.

I'm kind of the opposite of you, I can't back up to save my life if someone is telling me which way to turn the wheel or is outside directing me. Do it on my own and I have no problems. lol

I can say I have NEVER parallel parked.


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## caprine crazy (Jun 12, 2012)

imissthesun said:


> I know you will get it. It's one of those things that just "clicks" all of a sudden. It's kinda like when you are trying to learn a new concept in algebra and you don't get it, the teacher explains again and you still don't get it, the teacher explains again and you still don't get it, the teacher explains again and all of a sudden it clicks and you get it. The more you do it, the sooner you'll have that epiphany. Hang in there


Algebra comes quite easy to me. Now geometry, not so much. LOL!


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## caprine crazy (Jun 12, 2012)

ptgoats45 said:


> This ^^^^ is so important to remember. I have seen so many people trying to back up a crooked trailer that just gets more and more crooked. It is so much easier to back up straight, weather you have a trailer or not, than it is to try to straighten the vehicle/trailer while going backwards.
> 
> Is there space at your house that you could set up some cones to back between or around? Pretend like the cones are another vehicle or the curb and practice just going straight between them first, then add in backing straight then turning one way or the other, then you could make it more difficult like backing out around another vehicle. If you have cones out that it won't matter if they get hit you might be a little less nervous and be able to do it better. I know I hate backing up near other vehicles. I always park as far away from other vehicles as I can. lol Once you get backing your car down then you can tackle backing with a trailer
> 
> ...


Our driveway is just big enough to park two cars next two each other. Not sure how that would work. I think I'm nervous because the driveway is landscaped and my mom yells at me whenever I run over the landscape timbers. She's also bopped me upside the head a couple of times when I've drove with her. So let's just say I try to drive with her as least as possible. I second guess myself alot too. I don't have to back a trailer because we don't have one! Have no need for one. We've only got one goat (has Cl and won't get along with other goats. wasn't raised with other goats) and I don't show or anything because of the CL and her being a meanie. So I don't have to worry about that...until I get my own farm with 100 goats and going to shows every weekend.


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## ptgoats45 (Nov 28, 2011)

Hmmm... Do you have any older friends that could help you? It's not easy to learn to drive when you are getting yelled at or are worried about running over something. When your dad has days off would you be able to go somewhere, like a mostly empty parking lot so you can practice driving in a more neutral setting? Are you in contact with your driver's ed instructor? Would he/she be able to spend some time with you a couple days a week to work on backing up?

I learned how to drive out in the country and I can say I HATE traffic. It makes me nervous to drive around in the city and I avoid it if I can, which typically I don't have to drive around in the "big" city.


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