Patrick Hopkirk proves the equal of rally legend dad Paddy – and passes IAM RoadSmart advanced test again

Proving he is a chip off the old block, Patrick Hopkirk, son of rally legend Paddy Hopkirk, has followed in his father’s footsteps and recently passed his IAM RoadSmart advanced driving test more than once.

Patrick, 46, has passed his advanced driving test twice before – the first time age 19 in a Citroen 2CV, and again age 35. He decided he wanted to update his skills yet again some 11 years later. Paddy, winner of the 1964 Monte Carlo and 1967 Acropolis rallies, is also IAM RoadSmart mature driver ambassador.

Patrick said: “This is really a revision of what I had already learnt – it really is important to keep updating your driving skills. I rediscovered how important mirrors are, of reading the road ahead, assessing what I had and then acting on it.”

Patrick, who is a sales representative and drives more than 18,000 miles a year, added: “Really people should take the advanced test every five years.”

He was assessed by John Dowell from the South of London Advanced Motorists. John said: “Patrick has achieved a lot and is well up to the standard needed to be an advanced driver.”

Added Patrick: “John is a very professional teacher. He has helped me enjoy driving again.”

Paddy, who is a household name having taken part in races all over the world including the gruelling London-Sydney Marathon, Le Mans 24 Hours and Daytona races has taken the IAM RoadSmart advanced test twice, most recently in June 2016.

Just recently Paddy has been appointed President of the BRDC (British Racing Drivers’ Club) taking over from former Formula 1 driver Derek Warwick.

For more information about the advanced driver course, which costs £149, click here: https://www.iamroadsmart.com/courses/advanced-driver-course-

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IAM RoadSmart has a mission to make better drivers and riders in order to improve road safety, inspire confidence and make driving and riding enjoyable. It does this through a range of courses for all road users, from online assessments through to the advanced driving and riding tests. IAM RoadSmart is the trading name of all businesses operated by the UK’s largest road safety charity, the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) and was formed in April 2016 combining the IAM, IAM Drive & Survive, PDS and IAM Driver Retraining Academy. The organisation has 92,000 members and campaigns on road safety on their behalf. At any one time there are over 7,000 drivers and riders actively engaged with IAM RoadSmart’s courses, from members of the public to company drivers, while our Driver Retraining Academy has helped 2,500 drivers to shorten their bans through education and support programmes.

To find out more about IAM RoadSmart products and services visit the new website www.iamroadsmart.com                          

To find out more about IAM RoadSmart’s Driver Retraining Academy visit www.iamdra.org.uk                

To find out the name of your own local IAM RoadSmart group please visit: https://wwwiamroadsmart.com/local-groups

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