Eldon and Becky Humphrey say their occupation often is the brunt of jokes and is a favorite Hollywood stereotype, but they fail to see the humor. They take their jobs very seriously.


No, the Humphreys arent attorneys or members of some other profession that the comics kick around; theyre drivers education teachers and co-owners of B & B Driving School here.


Becky Humphrey says that Hollywood oftentimes portrays drivers training instructors as inattentive teachers who sit back in the car reading the paper and eating doughnuts while students drive on sidewalks and through bushes.


Its nothing like that. I dont believe theres another class that these teen-agers are going to take that could make such a difference in their lives, she contends.


The school, which was started here in about 1963 by Eldon Humphreys parents, Bob and Bennetta Humphrey, conducts drivers training classes for the Mead and Riverside school districts and also offers private lessons to adults. The Humphreys estimate that more than 30,000 students have gone through the school during its 37-year history.


Its pretty tough to go anywhere and not be recognized, says Becky Humphrey. Whenever we go to the movies or out to dinner, we almost always have a former student come up to us and tell us that they dont have any tickets yet or that they havent been in any accidents.


B & B Driving School currently operates teaching locations at 2166 N. Hamilton, which can accommodate classes of up to 28 people, and 624 W. Hastings, which can accommodate classes of up to 14 people.


The couple currently has no plans to open additional school locations, but Eldon Humphrey says that its always a possibility.


About 90 percent of B & B Driving Schools pupils are teen-agers, who can enroll in drivers training courses as early as age 15, but must wait until 16 to apply for their drivers licenses. The remaining students are adults who typically take private one-on-one driving lessons. Becky Humphrey says the school has taught adults ranging in age from 18 to their late 80s. She says that many of the older adult drivers are women who have never learned to drive, but have been widowed or are nursing an ill husband.


Some of them also are just tired of being home and want freedom. Thats what were able to give them, Humphrey says. Thats what driving isfreedom.


The cost for that freedom is $295 for the five-week course geared toward teen-age students. The adult private lessons cost $50 an hour.


In the beginning


B & B Driving School, which was named after its original owners, Bob and Bennetta Humphrey, was started at the urging of one of Bob Humphreys relatives, who said that driving schools were going to be the business of the future.


A career as a driving instructor seemed to be the perfect fit for Humphrey because he always was driving something, Eldon Humphrey says of his father. He explains that as a child, his father drove equipment at a sawmill that his own father had started in the early 1900s. Later, Bob Humphrey became a truck driver.


In the early years of the business, Humphrey would travel to towns throughout Eastern Washington to offer summer driving programs. The schools equipment, such as vehicle simulators, would be hauled to towns such as Colville and Tonasket.


He gave his heart and soul to the kids, Becky Humphrey says. She says that after some of the teen-agers had passed the drivers training course, Bob Humphrey even would drive to the students houses to pick them up and take them to their drivers test.


The business really meant a lot to them and so did the kids, she says.


That care for the students has been passed on to the schools current owners, who say one of their favorite parts of the job is interacting with teens.


This is an exciting time in that teen-agers life and we get to experience it with them, Becky Humphrey says.


Because of their personal involvement with their students, it hurts when they read of students who have been injured or killed in driving accidents.


It makes me cry whenever I read about an accident in the paper, Becky Humphrey says. Thats why we take our job so seriously. I really hope that were making a difference and that our students are learning the importance of buckling up and using good driving habits.


Eldon Humphrey says that the main lesson the schools instructors try to teach is that students need to make wise choices in life. The students can choose to develop good driving habits or bad driving habits. If they expect to pass the course, though, they had better choose to demonstrate solid driving skills, he says.


To prepare students for driving on the road, B & Bs classrooms are equipped with driving simulators, which face a screen in the front of the classroom. The simulators are equipped with an ignition, a brake and an accelerator, a steering wheel, turn signals, typical gauges, side mirrors, and an adjustable seat.


Once in the simulator, a student sees a particular road environment on the screen. For instance, he or she is given the opportunity to practice approaching a four-way stop and making a left-hand turn, and to be ready for an emergency, such as a tire blowout.


Sometimes, we get teen-agers in here that think theyre ace drivers, but then they get in the simulators and realize that theres more to driving then they originally thought, Becky Humphrey says.


On the other hand, the simulators help those weaker students who arent able to practice at home to develop a little bit more confidence before driving on the roads. It can quicken their learning curve, she says.


The simulators also help the instructors form an idea of how each pupil might perform on the road. Each action a student makeswhether its braking, steering, signaling, or acceleratingcan be seen by the instructor on a console.


Eldon Humphrey politely deflected requests to recall any unsettling moments the couple have experienced while riding in cars with their students. We try to pick driving environments with minimal risks. We teach them to deal with space control and to always turn their head and check their mirrors for obstacles. Thats the best way to avoid getting trapped in an uncomfortable situation, he says.


The state requires drivers education students to enroll in classes that last a minimum of five weeks and that include at least 30 hours of classroom instruction and at least four hours of on-the-road practice.


For the in-the-car practice, B & B owns a fleet of five cars that include Pontiac Grand Ams and Plymouth Acclaims. Those cars are bought, maintained, and continually replaced by B & B, Humphrey says. He says that all of the cars B & B buys are retrofitted with special signage that indicates theres a student driver behind the wheel, instructors mirrors on the passenger side that allow the instructor to help view blind spots, and dual-control brakes that allow the instructor to apply brakes from the passengers seat.


A need for instructors


One of the challenges that faces the driving school is the difficulty of finding qualified driving instructors. B & B currently employs 10 instructors, including the Humphreys.


Becky Humphrey says that instructors must be certified by the state of Washington and have a traffic safety endorsement. She says that Central Washington University, in Ellensburg, is the only state university that offers driving-instructor certification.


If an instructor doesnt receive his or her certification from CWU, the Humphreys must train the potential instructor and he or she must be evaluated by the state, Humphrey says. She says it typically takes between three months and six months to get an instructor certified and licensed.


Another issue that is becoming more of a challenge is the lack of parent participation in the students education.


The Humphreys say that they want their teen-age students to practice in the car with their parents. They say it helps parents to be more aware of their childs driving ability and to know what their childs attitude is behind the wheel.