Road - Old People's Day

Depressed? Suicidal? Homicidal? This will cheer you up ... not!

Apparently, Tuesday the 1^st of October is the International Day of Older Persons. This is one of the United Nation’s brighter/dumber ideas - depending on your own personal age group I suppose!

Instigated in 1982 by the World Assembly on Ageing and endorsed by the UN General Assembly they are celebrating the life and times of all those coffin-dodgers who are 65 or over.

And looking around the current crop of rallying participants and followers in Scottish motor sport there is an awful lot of folk eligible to sign-up to the above.

However, taking motoring and motor sport as an example, some of the organisation’s aims are laudable. You only need to see what some of the insurance companies are up to, to realise that the ‘young at heart, but weak at the knees’ brigade are under serious threat with car insurance harder to get once you reach 75 years of age, and younger in some cases!

Plus there is the disdain and scorn to be suffered from those baseball hats who whizz past in a flurry of arm waving and two-fingered gestures – the very group who are most at risk of crashing. Toleration is a two way street.

Of course, there is a serious message to impart and older drivers should take extra care. Reactions may be slower, limbs weaker and senses dulled, so they need to be aware of any physical and mental deterioration.

If you are getting to that stage, help is on hand, Valerie Singleton is fronting a series of video films from the road safety group, GEM Motoring Assist. The ex-Blue Peter pin-up is advising ‘senior motorists’ to reflect on their ability, skill and attitude, and to consider getting their driving checked out in the same way they get their car serviced regularly, i.e. jacked up on a stair-lift and hose pipe shoved up your exhaust. Colonic irrigation for cars - and their drivers.

These films are freely available at: Stillsafetodrive.org.uk 

So if you are worried about your Maw or Paw behind the wheel, then get them behind the computer screen and dial in, or if you want to be nosey, just tune in yourself.

As for the UN, their campaign is on line too at: http://olderpeoplesday.co.uk/about/ 

Now where did I put my winter bunnet, my teeth and my driving slippers?