F.A.I.L.

This post is only indirectly related to fishing so I apologize.  But that's because I can't go fishing yet, which I wrote about last weekend.

On Wednesday I gathered up the important documentation and headed to the DMV.  Even though I've been driving for 15 years now and have never been in an accident and never even had a speeding ticket, the great state of Oregon found it necessary to test my knowledge.  I sat down in front of a little computer touch-screen at the DMV and started a brief quiz on my extensive knowledge.  It was 35 questions and I could get as many as 7 wrong.  How hard could it be??  Driving tests are usually pretty much a test of common sense.  As long as you don't over think it you're fine.

This one is not.  Now before I get to far, no, I didn't fail the driving test.  But I didn't pass by much.  I don't recall the exact number, but I think I ended up getting 6 wrong and there may very well have been a couple others that I had to guess on.  What I was amazed about, though, was how difficult some of the questions were!  Let me give you a quick quiz.  I can remember a few of the hard ones, so here we go:

1) A horseback rider on the side of a rural road has their arm raised.  What does this mean?
a. Proceed with caution, there are more riders up the road
b. Rider does not have horse under control
c. Horse is under control, proceed
d. Another answer I can't remember

2) In a typical car driving at night, at what speed are you essentially "driving blind?"
a. 45
b. 50
c. 55
d. 60

3) At what blood alcohol level is your ability to drive impaired?
a. 0.05
b. 0.08
c. 0.1
d. any

Even now I don't know/remember the answer to the horse question, but I think it's b.  I over-thought question 2, but I was stunned that they had the nerve to put the answers so close together!  Is driving 55 really any different than driving 60?  No, it's not.  Which should have told me 60 is the answer, but I put 55 because that's the top limit of most state highways.  Wrong!  It's 60.  Question 3 is a little easier but I was surprised that they seem to be actively trying to trick people.  The wording of the question almost suggests "legally impaired," but it doesn't say legally.  I had to think for a minute or two what they even wanted.  The answer is either "any" or the legal limit of 0.08.  In the end I chose "any" and got it right but was a little irked that they do seem to be actively trying to trick people.

What was worse was the motorcycle test.  I haven't ridden in a few years and it's been longer since I actually studied up on that stuff so it's no surprise that I failed the test.  The quiz was 25 questions and you could miss 5.  I made it to question 21, only missing 2 so I thought I was golden, then I proceeded to miss 4 of the last 5.  I don't remember most of the questions, but the ones I got wrong were about lane positioning, and a few ridiculous questions about what the biggest dangers to motorcycles are, which are totally subjective.  You just have to read the booklet to find out what Oregon thinks the answers are.

I passed the M endorsement test the next day only missing 1, and now have my temporary OR license.  Now I can go ahead and get my in state fishing license/tag, which is a couple weeks overdue!  By the time I get back in town I'll be ready to go chase some steelhead around.  And hopefully by then the rivers will be back to normal status, as they are massively flooded right now.