today was the first day and went great.

i cant wait to be done 'cause its the last step in the process of getting my license!! after this i just gotta wait 2 months after this.

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Paddle faster! I hear banjo music!

Congrats to you and be careful out there.

What happened to the days you took drivers ed then went to dmv and took the test and got your license? Now days there waiting periods, limits on times when you can drive, passenger age limits, provisionals, does it realy do anything or just more sound good laws.
Use to be if you were over 18 you did not even need drivers ed you just went and took the test. At 16 you could take the course in school for free. And you got a half credit for it.

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The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.

Thomas Jefferson

I do well over 60k a year mileage and have done for the last 20 years. There are a few things you should bare in mind when you get behind the wheel TRG. I know I'm in a different country where everyone drives on the correct side of the road , but I think their applicable the world over.

1 Having a liscence doesnt mean you can drive. It means you can get behind the wheel on the road. It doesnt mean you are experienced for every situation. The common way of thinking here is that you can claim to be experienced till you've cracked 100k (about 2 weeks after passing your test then . I jest). Until then your still learning, but teaching yourself.

2 Get ready to have a bump early on. Do everything you possibly can to avoid it, by all means. But it stands a good chance of happening, especialy when you see the amount of traffic on the roads. Pray your inner city at the time and not in the country. It stands much more chance of being slower in built up areas. Speed = increased damage in a car. It will be the best and most expensive driving lesson you ever have, if you choose to look at it in a balanced way and learn from it.

An ex girlfriend of mine drove for years without having an accident. When she finaly pranged her car she was in shock for weeks. It took her a month to get behind the wheel again.

Like they used to say on Hill street blues, be careful out there.

Enjoy yourself and good luck.

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No no and no

The current process for Virginia:

go to the DMV and take a 10 question sign test and a 25 common knowledge test to get you Learner's permit. (hold for 9 months)

pass a in school drivers ed class that last a semester

pass a week long behind the wheel class.

turn in a 45 hour driving log (10 hours at night)

-after all that, you can your driver's license 180TDL (180 temporary licesnse)
it is really a license, just a temporary one. The court notifies you after 120-180 days at which point you have to appear before a judge and listen to his speech for an hour i think before he hands YOUR PARENTS your hard copy license. Its up to your parents as to whether they give it to you or not.

its a really lengthy process which is coming to an end for me. Of course after all that you gotta but a car...and insurance...and gas

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Paddle faster! I hear banjo music!

Yeah, two summers ago i had to spend $520 for drivers ed. They are very strict here in MA. If you are under 18 you have to be careful, if your in your first 6 months of driving you must be extremely careful

and after that, what... you don't have to be careful any more???

just kidding... i know that's not what you meant... but i couldn't help myself ;)

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Congrats; as a new driver, just make sure to reduce distractions to a minimum;
no phone use, no car full of your buddies...drive safe.

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Current Gear: Ron Kirn Barnbuster Tele,
Marshall: 1971 SuperLead 100>1997 1960-TV, bunch of pedals
and a 1987 Porsche 911 Carrera coupe named Veronica

In Maryland in does not matter how old you are when you get your first license its a probational for six months before you get the real one. If you are under 18 you can not have teens in your car with you while on the probational unless the are related to you. Also probational under 18 can not drive between 12:00 midnight and 6:00AM. If you do anything wrong in that 6 month period not matter the age it starts over again.
They even state that if you move to Maryland and have had your license less then 6 months and you change it to a MD one it will be a probational untill you reach the time frame.
Crazy is it not and the biggest joke is until a few months back illegal aliens were allowed to get licenses and get to register to vote at the same time. Motor Voter law

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The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.

Thomas Jefferson

Back when I did it........you didn't need to take a course at all. Usually it as just your father teaching you. If you went to DMV, and you could pass a test.....you got a license. Also......you could drive a motorcycle on a learners permit (auto), which only required passing a multiple choice written test.

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"I won't be wronged, I won't be insulted, I won't be laid a hand on. I don't do these things to other people, and I require the same from them."-John Wayne

My grandfather said he had to drive highway 1 near Big Sur the first day he got his license... we live in VA now but when i lived out in Aptos (maybe you've heard...about an hour away form SF) i remember that being a nasty road

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Paddle faster! I hear banjo music!

This is all good advice. I'd add to it; try and have your first crash at the wheel of someone else's car.

That's what I did: drove my friend's beloved red BMW convertible too fast round a corner, spun on ice and smashed the back end up badly on a parked car. The back end, because after the spin I was now travelling backwards at some speed...

I leant good lessons about driving on ice that day, so a very constructive experience.

- C