I taught my girlfriend one year to drive stick shift on the sand dunes of the
Mojave Desert in my friend's sand rail! It had a souped up VW engine with
4-speed stick, full roll cage, and five point racing harnesses! Even if she
could get out of control, we could just jump out, roll it back on it's
wheels, and take off again! We practiced in a sandy wash, start and stop
driving for a while before trying hill starts on a sand dune.
I felt she got a very good idea of the feel of the gas and clutch, until I
let her drive my MGB the first time. She must have laid a twenty foot length
of rubber from the right wheel! After that, though, she never got the idea
of being "gentle" on the gas and clutch. In fact she bought a Ford Mustang
5-speed after we broke up, and proceeded to leave double skid marks all over
town! Hmmmm!
Steve Sanchez
1977 MGB
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