EVERY teen NEEDS this course! DO NOT SKIP THIS!!!! I think anyone with a teen driver with access to this program is INSANE if you don't attend this class. It's a $99 sign up fee, which is returned to you if you sign up with a paper check (yes, you can mail it in). But honestly, the $99 donation to attend this is a steal and INFINITELY VALUABLE if you value your kiddo's life! We did the course 2 years ago for our older teen (pre-covid) & now just completed for the younger teen (post-covid). I wouldn't care if I had to wear a mask the whole day to do this class - I PROMISE you it's PRICELESS to give your teen driver some REAL experience and some good education about driving hazards. Driver training is just not the same as it used to be (and people drive larger cars and faster speeds than 20-30-40 years ago when we all learned!), and even with a year of permit-driving your kid won't get what they can at this course. Hazard/avoidance skills, ABS steering skills, SKID skills (yes, really skidding, like control out of a 360-spin), and drop-curb (tire off road in gravel) experience, curve control, even a simulated drunk-driving (affectionately called "drunk goggles") experience. There's probably even more in there that I forgot! Instructors are AWESOME and really give the full-experience to every kid. YOU DO NOT NEED A VEHICLE to do this - so even if you have to Uber to the program that's fine! An adult does need to attend with the teen, 30 hours on permit driving to attend (yes, they can go before full-license). Don't be put off by the ONE presentation by a Kia Dealer/Rep - Kia (in Charlotte anyway) sponsors and provides the vehicles for this program - it's why the cost is still $99 after years of the program running! Let Kia get their little 'schpeal' in & be patient, again this is abut preparing your kid for REAL driving scenarios that you will never be able to provide in a SAFE environment! Are there some wait times, yes on occasion - let's all be ADULTS here and understand things are sometimes beyond control and 'crap' happens. The program is SMOOTHLY RUN and you'll get all your info by email of what to do, when to go, number to call for issues, etc. (just READ the emails peeps!). Again - I promise you will not regret the skills your teen (and even YOU, you'll get to drive a little also!) will get from this experience. https://putonthebrakes.org read more

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Every driver should take this course! Great experience for situations that show up that you just can't practice for in a normal driving experience. read more

Our teen took the B.R.A.K.E.S. training in April 2018 at Cal State San Marcos. This by far, the BEST teen defensive driving program in the country! His older sibling completed a similar all-day defensive drivers training with the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department costing $250! The B.R.A.K.E.S. program was only a half day and either $99 or free (if you can't donate to this non-profit or didn't think it was worth the training or information learned). B.R.A.K.E.S. was 10 times better than the training our other son received. The instructor to student ratio is amazing, the brand new Kia vehicles was awesome, there's zero down time (your teens are either learning "hands on" behind the wheel or learning as an observer in the back seat while the instructor teaches the teen driving at the time, and the accompanying parent(s) are also learning things during the training as well. Your teen driver will both improve on their driving techniques which they do well, as well as increase their skills and confidence in the things they previously did not do well at. They will experience oversteer (rear wheels spinning out) and how to correct their loss of control, distracted driving, get a sense of feel driving on two different road surfaces at the same time (like on the highway shoulder), simulated DUI driving through traffic cone setup course while wearing impaired goggles, sudden lane changes, slow speed precision driving (parking, backing, etc.), and learn how to properly position their seat, steering whee & mirror settings. They even brought out a semi-truck to the lot so the teens can see what an 18-wheeler truck driver sees (and more importantly, what they do NOT see) if they cut off a semi-truck to occupy the gap immediately in front of the semi-truck and how dangerous that can be if traffic stopped or slowed considerably and abruptly. The hands-on experience combined with the classroom lecture before and after their driving lessons, and the positive and encouraging demeanor of all the instructors make this the BEST teen defensive driver program in the country! We believe this should be mandatory for all teen drivers who wish to obtain their drivers license before they turn 18. If you want to reduce your teen's chance of being involved in a preventable vehicular accident by 66% within the first 5 years of obtaining their license, enroll them in this training when it comes to your city, or state! It's well worth their time and yours! You'll thank yourself afterwards, and be happy you did. It's THAT GOOD! We feel fortunate that our youngest one completed the B.R.A.K.E.S. training. It's the best $99 we've spent! read more

BRAKES - Graduates - Driving Schools Near Me - Concord, North Carolina

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You need to take your child here! This should be a mandatory class before receiving your license! read more

BRAKES - Driving Schools Near Me - Concord, North Carolina

An outstanding advanced teen driver training program that addresses the top car crash factors that injure or kill our kids and those riding with them. This class teaches new drivers how to avoid bad decisions while providing advanced skills in car control and personal safety. A must for any new teen driver. Best of all it's a free program!! Check out their web site at www.PutOnTheBRAKES.org for class dates!! read more

I was a student in the program. I was very nervous at first. The team got the students more comfortable with driving. I feel a lot more confident driving now. I learned a lot from this program! Definitely recommend :) read more

I attended the BRAKES Teen Advanced Driving School with my daughter at the Atlanta Motor Speedway. I was completely blown away by the mission of the group which is to make teen driving safe. The skills the teens and their parents learned including people like me who thought they knew everything was invaluable. This program should be mandatory for every new teen driver in the country. I cannot recommend it highly enough. read more

Incredible lessons, incredible volunteers and extremely organized. Teenagers all get basic"driver's ed" in school, but this is DRIVING FOR LIFE - even the parents get behind the wheel and practice a couple of the exercises. The kids are given maximum repetition on closed course exercises such as : hard stopping, how to get out of a skid, changing lanes in emergency situation, how to control car if goes onto soft should at higher speeds. It really does impart skill and judgement into each student - whether the teenager or the parent. read more

Please have your teen go to this driving class if you want them to survive the first years of driving. This is not an ordinary driving class. It is definitely not Drivers Ed where the kids barely get taught anything. This class will take your kids through real life scenarios through stations set up so they can drive the provided cars by the school. In each station they learn Accident Avoidance, Drop Wheel/Off Road Recovery, Distraction Exercise, Panic Stop Exercise, and Car Control and Recovery Exercise on a wet road. The parents get taught a lot too. A lot of us learned, we have a lot of bad driving habits that we were passing down to our kids (embarrassing :) but so happy I know now). Go to their website for an explanation on each of these stations they go through http://putonthebrakes.org/courses. Payment is a deposit for $99 that you get back at the end of the course. BUT PLEASE do not get this back if you are not hurting for money. I chose to donate it. If everyone keeps going and not paying, eventually I believe they will have to close down and then our kids will not have anything like this around Concord, NC. Plus, all of these teachers are professionals with much experience in driving, race car driving, etc... You are not getting your office administrator chosen to teach a drivers ed class. These guys know what they are doing. They will teach your kid and you something. Also, some may not be able to pay, so if my donation pays for at least one family that cannot pay, then that is awesome. God Bless Doug Herbert for starting this class after he lost his 2 sons in a car accident. Instead of crawling behind a rock and never coming out, he decided to do something about it. He is now helping other people's kids so they will not be lost to a tragedy so young. read more

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