Aim High in Steering

 The worst thing you can do when driving is to focus solely on what is directly in front of you. Good defensive drivers aim high. What does that mean? Any time you are underway, be aware of everything going on ahead of you, from your immediate front to up to a city block or 150 feet ahead in normal traffic. On the open highway, you want to be watching up to a quarter mile ahead. Why is this so important?

Recall that Defensive Driving is all about anticipating trouble. Anticipating means expecting and expecting means “in advance”.

When you aim high in steering, you can avoid potential risks by noticing and adjusting your driving for:

• Traffic that has come to a stop up ahead.
• A child or animal that has suddenly darted into the road.
• An object such as a mattress that has broken loose from a vehicle ahead of you.
• Another vehicle that has suddenly experienced mechanical trouble and is out of control.
• A large pothole, big enough to damage your wheels or knock your vehicle off course.
• Any number of other things that can go wrong for drivers out on the roads.

The more time you give yourself to take corrective action the better. If you watch far enough ahead, you have the best chance to keep your trip safe and uneventful. Tunnel vision or excess focus directly to your immediate front is a recipe for trouble. You rob yourself of any shot at recognizing a potential risk. Now that risk has become a real problem if not an imminent threat.