From the Toronto Sun recently, “A 15-year-old was behind the wheel of a car involved in a horrific crash which has left his young buddy clinging to life. The horrific single-car rollover is believed to have been caused by an inexperienced driver’s attempt to “drift” around a corner while travelling at a high speed.”

The story had 54 comments, and not one mentioned how to begin to solve the problem. They are all focused on who’s to blame. So, like usual, I am here to give it to you straight, yes, me, from a guy who put two friends and myself in hospital back in 1978 while out in his dad’s car. Every time I hear a story like this, and it has to be a bad one to make the news, it just makes me cringe, and then it makes me mad.

These accidents are not the kids fault, not the parents fault, not society as a whole’s fault, not the driving instruction level in the country’s fault, not the car manufacturer’s fault, not the game or movie maker’s fault, but a combination of all these put together…we are all at fault for not acting before it comes to this.

In short, there is a big shortage of common sense in this country when it comes to driving.

Look, it’s very simple, so please take the time to understand this very, very important issue, and what each of us as Canadian’s should do about it.

Driving is a very serious task. It is a very dangerous task. Not being able to do it can kill you…and your friends…and you can kill others in the blink of an eye.

Most of us drive every day, and that makes it even more important that we have some degree of aptitude for driving and it demands that when we drive, we have more than a healthy dose of respect for a vehicle and what it is capable of.

That last sentence needs to be ingrained into every young person…period.

Parents, whether you like it or not, that is your job as a parent. I wish I had a nickel for every parent that tells me, “My kid is a good driver.”

Trust me, no he or she isn’t.

They may be a mediocre driver at best when you are in the car with them, after all that is what you based your opinion on. But trust me, when your little one is out with his friends or by himself (or herself these days) and another little dude or dudette pulls up beside them at a traffic light, it is on as soon as the light goes green. They simply become the hormone enraged hooligans that they are…it’s as simple as that because, few have any respect for the 1500kg weapon they are supposed to be in control of.

Listen, parents, I don’t mean to call you out, but you have the most to lose here – your kid – so clearly it is up to you to lay the ground work for every kid that gets behind the wheel of a car to have a fighting chance.

You can’t leave it up to the government, and the laws of the land to keep your kids safe…it just won’t happen. The level of driving instruction in this country is dismal, and if you are counting on that to keep your kid safe, you are setting yourself up for a potentially fatal letdown.

Parents, you have to be proactive. Those of you who have kids in the 12-18 years old range have to make it a number one priority to get all the driving instruction and understanding of motor vehicle dynamics engrained into your youngsters head BEFORE they head out on the roads.

So, how do you do that?

All across Canada there is an untapped resource in karting (yes, go-karting) tracks, most of which offer decent training for youngsters (just google it in your area, call and ask). It is the ideal place for any kid to learn about vehicle dynamics.

In Ontario, there are numerous karting facilities; one is called the (CKL) Canadian Karting League (www.canadiankartingleague.com) which I happen to be involved in where the head instructor is Mike Goodyear, brother of former Champcar star Scott Goodyear.

Yes, it is a racing league, but Goodyear makes a point that shouldn’t be lost on parents. “We start with kids eight years old,” Goodyear said. “We spend hours training them in the class room and on the track in controlled conditions before we let them compete. We teach them how vehicles act when you do certain things with your hands and feet. We teach them what happens when you go too fast into a corner, and it’s much better to learn about that here with us in a kart, than it is to learn by going too fast in your parent’s car on an off-ramp – we know how that normally ends.”

Good point.

Some of you are now saying, “My kid doesn’t want to race, they aren’t interested.” Goodyear has a good answer for that to. “Of the about 100 kids we have enrolled in our program this year, one or two might stay in racing after our program, but that is not why we do this. We do this because 100% will drive on the streets with us at some point, and all we want is for them to have the respect they need for any motorized vehicle before they hit the highways. That is what we teach them here.”

Parents, do the right thing for your kids, do all you can to prepare them for driving, trust me, it will be worth it.

“Certainly speed was a causal factor in this collision, as well as driver inexperience,” Staff-Sgt. Steve Reynolds, of Toronto Police Traffic Services. “Whether he’s 15 or 16, he hasn’t spent much time behind the wheel.”

Let’s see if we can change that last part.

Photo cutline – Ben Andela is 8 years old, by the time he gets his driving licence, he could have 8 years’ experience driving motorized vehicles.  Photo courtesy of www.canadiankartingleague.com