The Victoria Napolitano Bookstore THE DRIVING COMPANY WORKBOOK | Page 16

SURMOUNTING OBSTACLES
When you encounter a large rock or tree branch
down in the trail that you must drive over, use
your left foot on the brake and increase your
RPMs. Use the brake to maintain a controlled,
constant, creeping speed. This will keep you
from hitting the obstacle too fast and from
slamming the rocker panels when you come
down the other side. If possible, take the obsta-
cle one wheel at a time. Take it slowly and use
a spotter (spotting is discussed later) to ensure
you have enough clearance. For a manual trans-
mission, put it in 4WD, low-range, 1st gear.
You will climb up, over, and down the other
side at a controlled and constant speed. With a
manual transmission, the vehicle will crawl over
with little difficulty.
THROTTLE CONTROL
The best way to finesse the throttle is to brace your foot against
the hump to the right of the pedal and twist your foot onto the
accelerator. This will give you fine control of your speed. Trying to
control speed using the usual heel-on-the-floor method often results
in jerky forward progress and unnecessary lunging. Driving on a
bumpy road will cause uneven throttle if you don’t brace your foot.
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