This is where I originally posted my blog but because there was so much interest, I gave it it’s own home. Come and visit at classfourdriver. Is it worth it to go to all that work to click yet another link? Well, there’s lots of really nice comments referring to the blog that was here, so take a look at those and then decide. Hope to see y’all over there…
Recently I found myself needing to upgrade my driver’s license to a (British Columbia) Class 4 Unrestricted Commercial License (for 15 passenger vans, small school buses, ambulances) and went through the 3 stage process:
- Knowledge test
- Pre-Trip
- Road Test.
I had heard that a lot of people fail the test and I really needed my license for work, so I couldn’t afford to fail. At each stage, I felt like a nervous 16 year old once again; I wanted to get it over with, but I also wanted to know that I could be a safe driver. Thanks to the guidance of a few good people (thank youuuu!), and a nice Examiner, I passed first try; whew!
Rather than just move on, I thought I would take the time to write down what I did and hopefully it will help someone else. I am sure there are a lot of men/women who are more “up” on vehicle terminology, but I am not, so consider this the “Class 4 For Dummies.” Keep in mind, this doesn’t come with any guarantees; just because I didn’t have to parallel park, for example, doesn’t mean you won’t have to (I did learn how to do this, by the way). I am just sharing my own experience with it.
KNOWLEDGE TEST
First, a note about the knowledge test: besides reading the manual, I also used the site http://www.yourlibrary.ca/driving/ to help test myself….oh wait! The new site has a bunch more suggestions. Did I mention you should head on over to
PRE TRIP
On to the pre-trip, which is the trickiest part. I will just walk through what I did and I will include the pieces I missed so that you won’t:
I parked the vehicle in the “truck inspection” area, about a foot away from the curb to give room for the pre-trip. I made sure my PARKING BRAKE was on. I UNLOCKED all the van doors. I kept the keys in my pocket and not in the van.
I made sure I had PAPER TOWEL ready to use (for checking the fluids) and I also brought a thin EXERCISE MAT (so I didn’t have to lie on the dirty pavement).
The Examiner arrived and told me that I had approximately 20 minutes to complete my pre-trip and that following the pre-trip I would have a form to fill out and then continue with my road test.
I said, “I am going to begin with the UPPER PART of the vehicle.” As you do your pretrip you are going to want to TOUCH as many parts of the vehicle as you can, and TALK about everything you are observing. Use words like “it looks normal” or “in good condition” and words like that which describe what you are seeing.
I began at the front of my van and checked my driver-side MIRROR for any damage. I opened and shut the DRIVER’S DOOR. I commented on the WINDOWS, that the windows were in good condition with no visible cracks. I commented that there did not appear to be any BODY DAMAGE anywhere. I opened the fuel door and checked the FUEL CAP to make sure it was on properly and tightly.
To be continued on the new site…
Come and find me at classfourdriver
OneBrownLeaf 