Big TOne wrote:
Now it may have been that because he was with me and we were talking, (and I was listening intently to him at this point), that he caught me out. He suddenly said “for instance what was the very last sign you just went past?”
I didn’t know and couldn’t tell him (I was thinking a warning triangle or blue Hosp sign or something). He said it was the bollard in the centre of the road telling you to keep left
Just because you didn't register it in your memory, doesn't mean you didn't observe it, you just didn't register it as it wasn't of significant importance to you. Had it been toppling into the road at the time you would have registered it.
Had you asked the same guy what colour top the little boy on the pavement was wearing, he probably wouldn't have been able to tell you, even though he probably saw him but because he wasn't about to run into the road, his brain didn't keep the information.
A lot of this observational one up manship is rubbish to my mind, I'm sure the human brain and eyes take in millions of small bits of information every second but only stores or reacts to either something that triggers a danger signal or if you specifically want to register it. The guy registered the bollard because he wanted to but may have missed something on the pavement or opposite carriageway that you stored in your mind.
to me the most important thing about driving is the zone of vision to focus on, which is obviously a range of distances ever changing. I see far too many people who seem to focus on a fixed point about 10-20 feet in front of their bumper and never roam beyond that point. A classic example is the number of times I will indicate and pull over to stop behind a line of parked cars only for people behind me to stop also, assuming in in a queue of standing vehicle, even though my indicators going.
i've even had it happen when my clutch burnt out and was stopped on the side of the road with hazard lights flashing. the number of people who almost stopped behind me, even though the road ahead was clear and straight was unbelievable.