Experienced by Kimatni and MiKaiya Rawlins

Parents spend countless financial resources and extended hours escorting their kids to sports, music, and dance practices every week to enhance their extracurricular skill sets. Of course, we endeavor to make them the next Simone Biles, Steph Curry, or Travis Hunter. Yet, we rarely invest in their driving aptitude, which can be a life-or-death scenario anytime they hit the roads!

Well, I have a solution for you. Presented by Kia, make sure to enroll your son or daughter in Doug Herbert’s B.R.A.K.E.S. (Be Responsible and Keep Everyone Safe). This pro-active and defensive driving school provides teens with situational awareness behind the wheel. Sadly, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for 15 to 18-year-olds in the United States. Though, according to an independent study conducted by the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, graduates of B.R.A.K.E.S. are 64% less likely to become involved in a crash within their first three years of driving. Rightfully, why wouldn’t you take a few hours on the weekend to ensure your daughter or son receives the requisite defensive driving tutelage from pro instructors?

“These are lifesaving skills,” said Brendon Short, B.R.A.K.E.S. West Coast Regional Manager. “To learn how the vehicle operates and to understand how weight transfer plays a large role in braking or skid recovery is what we’re here to teach.”

Cars, trucks, and SUVs can become deadly weapons at speed, and first-time drivers have no clue of the detrimental consequences of bad habits. That’s why Doug, a Top Fuel drag racing champion, established B.R.A.K.E.S. But unfortunately, his vision came to fruition after his two teen sons, Jon and James, were killed in a wreck in 2008. Since the unthinkable tragedy, more than 140,000 teens and parents have been trained over the past 16 years. The free national teen defensive driving school is hosted around the country for anyone to participate in. With that in mind, my daughter MiKaiya Rawlins and I headed to the American Center For Mobility Willow Run in the Ypsilanti Township of Michigan for her to experience one of the sessions.

The three-hour program includes in-class tutelage to reinforce the basics, such as proper steering wheel hand position, seat and mirror adjustments; proper braking techniques (A.B.S. = antilock braking or ability to brake and steer); wearing seatbelts at all times; not driving impaired (alcohol, drugs, sleep-deprivation); never resting your foot on the dashboard since the passenger airbag is the largest in the vehicle and can cause significant bodily harm if your feet are propped up; practicing appropriate following distance (tailgating is a no-no); avoiding road rage situations; obeying the posted speed limit; and keeping eyes up and phones down.

Regrettably, 50% of all teens will be in a car crash before graduating high school. Learning corrective behaviors can mitigate physical car damage and reduce injuries. This is why new and seasoned drivers must be 100% engaged while eliminating the desire to multitask. One of MiKaiya’s biggest takeaways was learning that the “9 and 3” versus the “10 and 2” hand position is best because you have more range of motion to control your ride. Additionally, it gives airbags room to deploy since they burst out at 200 plus mph. She was also intrigued by simple visual techniques like checking the mirrors every 8 to 10 seconds and steering the car with her eyes by looking where she wanted the vehicle to go. Even local Detroit CBS news anchor Jack Springgate was impressed by the amount of information MiKaiya retained in just a few hours.

On the track, the instructors paired a set of students with one of the 66 sponsored Kia vehicles, whether a Kia Sportage, Kia Forte, or Kia Niro. Specific driving modules at the teen pro-active driving school included the following:

Car Control and Recovery (Teaching the skills necessary to maintain or regain control in wet or icy road conditions.)
Crash Avoidance/Slalom (Avoiding a crash by quickly steering into an open lane. Slalom teaches vehicle dynamics, smooth steering inputs, and visual techniques.)
Panic Braking (Giving teenagers safer and more controlled responses when braking in an emergency.)
Distracted Driving (Teaching increased focus and concentration.)
Drop Wheel Recovery (Teaching the proper method of retaining control when the vehicle drops a wheel off a highway shoulder.)

After completing the clinic, I have more confidence in MiKaiya behind the wheel because she is more confident in herself and better comprehends the mechanics of driving. Moreover, she now understands how a car is supposed to react in certain situations depending on speed, braking, and how it’s being operated.

To learn more about the B.R.A.K.E.S. driving program and to schedule your child’s free training session, visit www.PutOnTheBRAKES.org. The goal is to teach your teens as many defensive driving skills as possible to protect them on the road.