Class of 1976 30-Year Reunion President Shares Vivid Memories of Drivers Ed at AWHS

The following was written by Tony Procaccini in response to the previous article about drivers education classes during our days at Andrew Warde High School. Several new laws will go into effect later this year for 16- and 17-year-old drivers in Connecticut.

Your entry on "Drivers Ed" (that's what I called it back then) brought back vivid memories both of that class and my first solo drive, from the spring-summer of 1974, as we completed our sophomore year.

In my case, by the time we were 16, I had an important and frequent need to drive, for baseball games and for gigs I was playing with Benny Rae, the latter usually ending at very late hours.

Since I was born in January 1958 (i.e., early for those born in that year), I completed the course as early as I could, and began driving in June of 1974. The course was highlighted by Mr. Ambrose's dry sense of humor, no question about that. I recall Ginny Cunningham being my driving partner, since pairs went out together, for "on-the-road" training.

Well, since my father had given me lots of one-on-one training and parking lot experience driving the family car, I was very comfortable behind the wheel when the coursed started. And Mr. Ambrose knew this when we went out. Now and then I exceeded the posted speed limit, though not by much. His reaction, in every case, was to either verbally admonish me or to use his passenger-side brake pedal to slow down the car.

His famous word of admonishment was "Rinky-Dink," to anyone who wise-cracked or did something he didn't like. I heard "Watch out, Rinky-Dink!" more than once. My friend and classmate Joe O'Brien remembers this clearly, too. We were either in the same class or different classes in the same semester. (His birthday is right after mine, so we were in the same age group.)

OK, now for the story of my first solo drive. In late June of 1974, I passed my drivers exam, and got my license, at the old MVD office on East Main Street, Bridgeport. Yes, the same one that had very little parking, was on a street in which it was difficult to find parking, and always had long lines! Well, on that same evening, I had a Fairfield Senior Babe Ruth baseball game at Sturges Field and, since my parents didn't need the yellow two-door 1967 Chevelle, I said, "I'm taking the car to the game, Mom and Dad."

They were actually surprised, not thinking I would drive solo on the day I got my license, but I did. And I still vividly recall pulling out onto Edgewood Road and getting a rush from the solo experience, and even noticing that listening to the radio was almost a distraction, because I had to concentrate more, not having a chaperone.

OK, that's my Drivers Ed and first solo drive story, and I'm sticking to it!

Your class blog is great, keep up the fantastic work! We all appreciate it, Paul.

Tony Procaccini

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