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S13.E1 ∙ It All Begins Now...

Sun, Oct 22, 2017

Host Andrew Younghusband talks about unlucky number thirteen, this season being being the thirteenth for the show, before he introduces the eight nominees for this season chosen from the approximately five hundred applications. They are: twenty-five year old Adam Bourre, who has been fearful of driving ever since he had an accident on an icy road and which belies the fact that he had dreams of being a driver or driving instructor as a career when he was younger; Ashley Dunne, as fearful and emotional behind the wheel as her nominator, season 11's Canada's Worst Driver Jillian Matthews, who professes now to be reformed in her lack of fear behind the wheel; Shayne Greer, an overly cautious driver due to being struck as a pedestrian when he was thirteen, that accident in which he sustained serious injuries including possibly a still problematic brain injury which may be affecting his cognitive skills; Melanie Lautard a single mother of four, two who have special needs, with her biggest driving issue being self-doubt; Travis Murray, a timid man, his timidity which translates into his driving as demonstrated by often waiting several minutes at intersections before entering; Joe Palozzi, a reckless driver who constantly flaunts rules to get a thrill, but who mistakenly believes his driving is not unsafe; nineteen year old Breanna Pratley, who has been paranoid about dying behind the wheel ever since she and some friends were T-boned in a serious accident several years ago, which has led to her refusing to drive on the highway; and Julie Wrzesien, who has had several accidents due to impatience, but who never feels the financial burden of her accidents as others in her life bail her out. With the exception of Travis who is provided an exemption due to needing to attend a previously agreed to engagement, the nominees have as their first task to drive the predetermined approximately ninety minute route with their nominator in the back seat to the Drivers' Rehabilitation Centre at Dunnville Airport. At the Centre, all eight nominees are then subjected to an assessment drive, consisting of a enclosed and slightly curvilinear reversing section, a tight maneuvering section through a concrete-barriered course, and a 50kph slalom. The car they will be using, a new 2017 Camaro, is equipped with a back-up camera - a first in the show's history - to provide use of the latest automobile technology and thus simulate real life driving in today's world. The eight then meet the expert panel for the first time, the panel who provide their initial thoughts.

7.2 /10

S13.E2 ∙ Look Here. Look There.

Sun, Oct 29, 2017

The first three challenges the nominees face this year are annual ones. The first is the head-to-head reversing challenge. What makes the challenge interesting this year is that many of the newer drivers in particular rely heavily on the use of back-up cameras in their own cars, and have never learned to reverse without one. Although the cars they will be driving in the challenge are equipped with such operable cameras, the nominees are given a lesson on proper reversing without cameras by Tim, this method the one which they are supposed to use in the challenge, especially as the back-up cameras do not take into account front end swing of a car in turns. Some may revert to old habits in using the functioning cameras. The second is riding the rails challenge, which tests if the drivers know where their wheels are when they are driving. The course this year is short and must be done both driving forward and in reverse. And the third is the shoulder check challenge, where the drivers are required to do both right and left shoulder checks to know which is the safe lane in which to merge. Philippe provides lessons to the nominees in the basics of shoulder checking before the challenge, the lesson including the concept of a blind spot which some drivers either did not ever know or understand. In the expert panel deliberation on how if anyone will graduate after these three challenges, they come to the true question mark of Joe, who they know they can teach little in actual driving skills. To graduate, he has to convince them that his attitude will change once back on public roads, especially with regard to his speeding. Andrew mentions another option which is to have Joe leave without graduating, especially if the panel believes his recklessness on the road is one they cannot rehabilitate.

0 /10

S13.E3 ∙ Threading the Needle...

Sun, Nov 05, 2017

With Joe Palozzi being named the first graduate of the season, seven nominees remain at the Centre. The three challenges which the seven will take this week are all annual challenges or variations thereof. The first is the figure eight reverse challenge, which each nominee will do in a stretch limousine with the other six nominees as passengers. While the challenge is designed to test if the nominees know how to use their side mirrors - they needing to focus on the mirror on the side of the inside of the turn - the drivers will have the extra pressure of doing the task in front of the gazing and often critical eyes of the other nominees. The second is the trough challenge, which is designed to show the drivers that rear wheels take a sharper path than front wheels in a turn, something Andrew demonstrates on the ground before the challenge. Thus, the drivers will have to take wider turns than they would expect for their rear wheels to remain in the trough on the turns. Despite Andrew's demonstration, he will find during the challenge that few of the contestants actually understood what he was trying to demonstrate to them. The third is the eye of the needle, which this year will be done on a gradually weaving course driven at 80kph. Philippe demonstrates the mantra "look where you want to go" to the nominees in not hitting the barriers of the course. Andrew, who admits that this challenge still freaks him out, finds, in his demonstration drive of the course, that he has troubles transitioning from eye four to eye five - which requires a sharp realignment of the car's trajectory - so there may be little hope that any of the nominees will be able to maneuver the course successfully. When the nominees face the experts just prior to their evaluation, only one feels ready to graduate at this week's ceremony. The question then becomes if the experts feel the same.

0 /10

S13.E4 ∙ Look Out!

Sun, Nov 12, 2017

With Julie Wrzesien being named the second graduate of the season, six nominees remain at the Centre. Before the three challenges, all annual ones, Andrew addresses the fact that the six remaining nominees all have some psychological issue which acts as a barrier to them being capable drivers. As such, Shyamala has sessions with each to discuss those issues hopefully to break through whatever that psychological barrier. The first challenge is the teeter-totter, where the nominees are required to balance their vehicle on a teeter-totter. This challenge is to test pedal control. The second challenge is the parallel parking one, the five step maneuver which is demonstrated to the nominees by Tim. The five steps apply to any type of vehicle, big or small. Although the nominees seem to be able to recite the steps, they seem to have problem carrying out one of those specific steps. And the third challenge is the swerve and avoid, the maneuver which Philippe demonstrates to the nominees beforehand. Philippe's demonstration shows the drivers that if they step on their brakes to try and avoid hitting something, their wheels will lock causing them to skid right into the object. Instead they must steer - "swerve" - away from the object without braking until the vehicle is back under control. The nominees will also find that a common cause of failure in this challenge is target fixation, namely fixating on the object that they are trying to avoid, which instead makes them drive right into it. In the expert panel deliberation, they ultimately decide to take an unprecedented move before determining the graduate for the week.

0 /10

S13.E5 ∙ All Wet!

Sun, Nov 19, 2017

With Breanna Pratley being named the latest graduate of the season, five nominees remain at the Centre. Before embarking on the three challenges for the week, Tim takes each of the five on an individual drive onto the highway, highway driving which may be one of if not the most problematic aspect of their day-to-day driving at home. One of the five seems not want to embrace the lesson, perhaps preferring the status quo at home as opposed to feeling comfortable enough to be able to hit the highway on his/her own. The first challenge is the longest straightaway reverse in the world - 1km - which gets progressively wider as the course progresses. Tim and Philippe have provided lesson after lesson on the different techniques to reverse, each of those techniques which should be applied on the the course, one more appropriate than another on each of the different sections. The second challenge, arguably the fans' favorite, is the water tank, this year's course which includes an acceleration/deceleration section leading into a sharp turn, a precision driving section, an enclosed maneuvering section, and a reverse slalom. This challenge is to test smooth driving and pedal control. The third challenge is the reverse flick within an enclosed area, which each of the nominees is taught how to do by Philippe beforehand. Despite never needing to do such a maneuver in regular driving situations - it against the law to do so on public roads - the nominees are taught the skill to show vehicle dynamics (i.e. why the car does what it does when one hits the brakes or turns the steering wheel, etc.) and to make the nominees more comfortable behind the wheel in general. The panel, in their deliberation, only have one person they are thinking of graduating this week. The question then becomes if that person feels ready to leave, and if not if they will let that person stay for at least another week.

0 /10

S13.E6 ∙ No Parking

Sun, Nov 26, 2017

As the expert panel at the last deliberation decided to honor Adam's request to stay in rehab, five nominees remain at the Centre in the running for this season's title. Andrew explains that beyond what is usually shown in the challenges, the nominees have regular lessons with Tim, who is designing each of the lessons to the individual real life needs of the nominees, which for most entails feeling more comfortable driving on the highway. The first challenge, the parking lot challenge, also touches most of the nominees in their real life driving in that most if not all have admitted to a hit and run in a parking lot at some time in their driving life. The challenge is made all the more difficult in that all the nominees will be driving full sized vehicles and are required to make it into whatever parking spot available in one maneuver, meaning no driving back and forth and back and forth and so on. The second challenge, the skills for which the nominees are taught by Tim beforehand, is to back a trailer into an enclosed garage. One nominee should be able to accomplish this challenge easily, while another admits to studying from what was shown by Tim on television the previous season. The third challenge, the skills for which the nominees are taught by Philippe beforehand, is another stunt maneuver, namely to do a J-turn, for the challenge within an enclosed space, with the added incentive of not hitting a life sized a photographic image their nominator in the center of the enclosure. This maneuver, which requires the use of the largely unnecessary emergency brake, is again to make the nominees feel more comfortable behind the wheel in a holistic sense. The expert panel deliberation is arguably one of the most contentious as three nominees are shortlisted for graduation, each nominee having his/her own supporter and detractor. What each nominee has to say to the panel may factor largely into who graduates. There is one nominee conspicuously absent from the final challenge, the panel deliberation and the graduation ceremony, that person's absence, for medical reasons, may be somewhat self-induced.

0 /10

S13.E7 ∙ Ice, Ice Baby

Sun, Dec 03, 2017

Four nominees are left in the running to be named Canada's Worst Driver Season 13 with the graduation of Travis Murray last week. The next graduate will avoid going into the final for the title. Beyond the three challenges for the week, the expert panel members are more determined to provide assistance catered to the specific needs of each individual, these tasks largely on the shoulders of Tim who takes the nominees on public drives, and Shyamala who has to get through some psychological barriers to the nominees being safe drivers. Shyamala's advice is misconstrued by one, while it leads to another getting conclusive evidence if there is a health/medical rationale for the bad driving. The first of the week's challenges is the know-your-limits slalom, where the nominees drive the slalom course, then decide if they can move the slalom markers closer together and by how much to drive it again successfully. The second is the cross, where the nominees must back a vehicle into each of the four spokes of an enclosed cross. This year, the challenge will be done in a school bus to show the nominees that what they've been taught in rehab applies to vehicles of any length. And the third is the icy corner challenge. The nominees are taught the specifics of doing the challenge successfully by Philippe beforehand. As a similar situation is the underlying cause for Adam's psychological issues behind the wheel, this challenge in particular may be a make or break for him. The choice of the final graduate of the season may come down as much to who is ready to graduate as it is to who would benefit the most from doing the final public drive.

0 /10

S13.E8 ∙ Drum Roll Please...

Sun, Dec 10, 2017

With Shayne Greer being named the latest graduate, there are three nominees remaining at the Centre who are in the finale for the running of Canada's Worst Driver: Adam Bourre, Ashley Dunne, and Melanie Lautard. Their first challenge, which they each have ten attempts and forty-five seconds per attempt to complete, is a forward and reverse slalom course. Andrew decides at the last second to implement something new to the challenge to help the drivers succeed. Their second challenge is the annual mega-challenge, where each is required to use all the knowledge learned at the Centre to maneuver through a set course. The sections on the course include a combined eye of the needle/slalom section, a forward and reverse precision driving section which includes a turnaround corral, a reverse flick section, and an icy corner section the approach to which has two more needles. Their final challenge is to drive through a preset route through the streets and highways around Hamilton, Ontario with Andrew as their passenger and adjudicator. The final challenge is altered this year to deal with specific issues of the three finalists and to keep them and Andrew as safe as possible. The person named Canada's Worst Driver may come down to one event during the public drives, and if the panel believes the seriousness of that event makes that driver the worst.

8.6 /10