We look at crash statistics very carefully before deciding our skills programme. We live in an area of very low rainfall and in the past year only two crashes of all crashes in the district have been caused by rain. Both of these have been vehicles that have hit rocks that have fallen after heavy rain. Most of our crashes are in our summer months of Feb (18%) and March (17 %). With our young drivers, 35% of crashes are attributed to driving skills and the majority of these are drivers who loose control of their vehicle when they get distracted and their wheels get into the gravel shoulders of the road. Many of these crashes would not be serious injury crashes if teh young drivers were in a 5 star safety rated vehicle that had ABS brakes, electronic stability and good airbags. If we teach them the value of the safe vehicle and get them to practice their driving skills in a safe environment we are teaching them a skill they can apply for the rest of their lives.