Re: London in the 1920's and the 1930's in colour
Posted: Mon Oct 11, 2021 6:37 pm
Chief wrote: ↑Mon Oct 11, 2021 10:30 amI found a video channel on YouTube a couple of months ago that would have interested you, however inspite of the channel looking official (logos, copyright information etc.) it appears to have been closed down for violating copyright by the real owners of all the content.
The channel contained all the videos for a Rank Organisation produced series "Look At Life" and the episode that would interest you (available on DVD from the actual content owners: https://networkonair.com/all-products/1 ... -transport) is called: Driving Test.
It ended (last two minutes or so) with the London Bus drivers doing their skid pan training.
So as you did it yourself, was it as scary as it looked because the 1960's bus they kept showing sure liked to lean wayyy over in skids !
The part of it about police driving, and IAM was pretty interesting too.
Hi Chief, thanks for your links, I'll have a look at those this evening.
As for the LT skid pan test. I'd had a week or so under instruction driving an RT under the watchful eye of my Chiswick instructor.
Many of these blokes were ex armed forces, and it was their way to put the driver trainee under pressure while driving around London.
Some of them had a long wooden pole that they would use to thump the back of your seat. While bellowing in your ear.
This of course was the old knock 'em down to build 'em up strategy, so that they could discover what sort of temperament you had behind the wheel.
As an Engineer, I had to drive a bus and adhere to the same standards that were expected of PSV drivers. In their eyes we were all the same, and they would shout, swear and holler for the slightest mistake.
On the skid pan day, I don't remember being scared or worried. My 'Skid instructor' Jock explained how this skid would be conducted and he asked me to drive as fast as I could, and just before the skid area jam the footbrake hard to the floor.
This of course was the straight line skid, and he also explained how I should 'feather the brake pedal' so that I could gain a little more control of the bus and stop safely.
The next skid was the 'uncontrolled skid'. Jock gave me precise instructions so that just before the bus entered the skid pan, he would squeeze himself through the window behind my driving seat, wrench the steering wheel hard on a lock, and pull the handbrake hard on.
Jock explained that as soon as he squeezed through the cab window, I had to fold my arms across my chest and tuck my left leg under the drivers seat.
My right leg was still on the throttle; hard down to give the bus it's momentum to make the skid. Jock would then holler "OFF GAS" and that was my cue to tuck my right leg, in front of the left leg already under my seat.
We did have a second go on the skid pan, but this time, Jock would explain the method of steering into the skid and hopefully regaining full control. It certainly was a good experience for me, and the funny thing is I can still recall those bellowing voices in my ear. Bless them all, the long the short and the tall.
Cheers Jonnie.