MasterDrive experience gives the visually impaired a chance to drive

MasterDrive of Colorado Springs and local high schools for the visually impaired conducted an experiential driving clinic for young people with visual impairments.

This gave them a once in a life time opportunity to learn how to drive.

It’s a milestone for Kevin Brousard who thought driving was something he’d never be able to do.

“This is my first time ever driving in my life. I got a big smile on my face. I love it,” said Brousard.

Watching him drive, you wouldn’t be able to tell he’s doing it while legally blind.

“It was a little bit harder than I expected. The wheel is not as forgiving as I thought it’d be,” said Brousard.

Since the drivers can’t see, they have to rely on a different type of sense.

“These drivers are all either completely blind or at least legally visually impaired. It’s all about the connection of the car, feeling what they’re doing,” said Spencer Pace, coach at MasterDrive.

Instructors with MasterDrive navigate the teens through verbal directions.

“The hardest thing for us is to not use our hands or point out visual cues. It’s actually pretty difficult for the coach in the car,” said Pace.

Brousard is also a Paralympic athlete who trains at the Unites States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. He says this is a training course he won’t forget.

“It was really exhilarating to get behind the wheel. I got a great instructor here and the need for speed. I love it,” said Brousard.

MasterDrive teamed up with the Colorado School for the Deaf and Blind and local schools to make the driver training possible.

It started in 2001, when the Colorado Center for the Blind contacted MasterDrive about this idea. Since then, hundreds of blind and visually impaired people have participated in the experience.

This was meant as an opportunity for the visually impaired. The participants drove on closed courses, not public roads.