Most people have their side mirrors set to look down the side of the car. This allows you to only see a slightly expanded view of what you already see in the rear view center mirror. Here is a better way.
Turn your mirrors out so that you see your blind spots. It takes a bit of adjusting while on the road bit here's how you do it. As a car is passing (or in my case, I pass them), you should see the car first in your rear view center mirror. As they pass out of view of the center mirror, they should come into view of the side mirror. Then as they pass out of view of the side mirror, you should see them in your periferal vision.
This seem a little wierd at first as your side mirrors will seem like they are not helping you at all and just showing you a blur of scenery. What you're actually seeing is what's NOT there; a car in your blind spot. Once you get the hang of it, and learn to trust the setup, you will become a much safer driver. This is because you won't have to turn your head around and take you eyes off the road to change lanes. If there's nothing in your mirror or periferal vision, the lane is clear.
The only drawback to this is multi-lane freeway traffic. You won't see someone who happens to be changing lanes and trying to occupy the same space as you. This is becuase they will be coming from too far off the side of your mirror view. Having the mirrors facing all the way back wouldn't help that either, but I find sometimes I trust the my mirror setup too much and don't always take a quick glance off to the side. That's really all it takes and is still far safer than what most drivers do.
That's all for now. See you in the fast lane, and for a brief moment in my side mirror.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
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