Time Peace in the Car

I recently went on a Speed Awareness course and was pleasantly surprised by the learning and consistency of the message with my own focus on 'time peace'.

I don’t remember if I was in a particular hurry when I was zapped for speeding.  (It was a Sunday morning on the A21 heading to my mother’s and I was doing ‘more than the 70 mph limit’.)  But generally I aim to squeeze the most into every minute and this has includes leaving insufficient time for journeys, treating the speed limit as a guide rather than an absolute and racing the satnav (to see if I can arrive a couple of minutes earlier!)  Whilst this approach can get the adrenaline pumping, it’s not consistent with my mission of experiencing time peace.  It means I’m sometimes late, I keep people waiting, they can’t rely on me and, as I learnt on the course, I’m less aware, less able to react in time if necessary and more of a risk to myself and others.  95% of crashes are due to driver/rider error.

There were a few ideas shared on the course I found particularly helpful….

- staying in 3^rd gear to aid keeping to 30mph

- looking out for signs when going into towns as the speed limit is likely to be reducing

- driving at 56 mph on motorways to be fuel efficient

- pulling over to let tailgaters pass

-identifying dual carriageways with fixed centres as the 70mph limit for cars (non fixed = 60)

-secure heavy objects including dogs and handbags to stop them becoming missiles in a crash

- advanced driving courses aren’t too expensive and give you cheaper insurance

However the main message was that speeding isn’t worth it.  As in life, rushing, stressing and pushing towards your destination, means you’re not conscious of your journey, you miss out on the full sensory experience.  On the road, less consciousness is dangerous.  In life, it can cause problems too- clumsiness, forgetfulness, losing things.  Being less aware of others journeying with you means you might not anticipate their moves on the road or, in life, you might not be so sensitive and read their situation well, you might miss opportunities to really connect.  Whilst being really busy often gets admiration in our society and looks like you’re living life to the full, actually I believe it's in the moments when you’re early with or when you’ve room to explore less efficient routes, that intuition and serendipity can really work their magic and give you the best life has to offer.