TEENS LEARN ROAD RULES NEW DRIVERS FACE DANGER IN 'TRAFFIC'.

Byline: Amy Raisin Staff Writer

ROSAMOND - Ah, the invincibility that cloaks teens once they pass their driver's test and find themselves behind the wheel, often accompanied by a ringing cell phone and a boisterous crowd of friends in the back seat.

It's enough to send parents scurrying for reasons to withhold the car keys from their active teens.

But reality - and the incessant protests of teens who have won their legal right to drive - usually triumphs. That's when the instructors at Danny McKeever's Fast Lane Teenage Defensive Driving School work their magic.

``Both of my girls are out here today, but it's my oldest that I'm really concerned about,'' said Rhonda Greenstein of Agoura Hills, who made the trip to Willow Springs International Raceway in the small desert town of Rosamond on Saturday to try to keep her kids safe.

``My oldest is 17, and she's had a few fender benders already, little stuff,'' Greenstein said. ``But a few months back she got in a pretty bad accident. It really scared her, and us. I heard about the teen driving course and signed up.''

A branch of Danny McKeever's Fast Lane, an elite racing school for adults as well as for celebrities preparing for Pro/Am races like the Long Beach Grand Prix, the one-day teen course has humbled the cockiest of hot shots and the most timid young drivers.

Based at the Willow Springs track, organizers of the teen defensive driving school expect to move the operation to the Santa Clarita area in the near future, a more convenient location for a client base that comes from as far as San Diego.

``Even with adult drivers, you pretty much have to take your driver's test and show that you can parallel park,'' said Allison Altzman, vice president of sales and marketing for Danny McKeever's Fast Lane. ``But we teach about real-life stuff, like car control, knowledge of vehicle dynamics, skid control.

``These things are really coming into the forefront of people's minds as a very important part of driver's training. When you take your driver's test, you're really never put into aggressive exercises like how to deal with a car that's out of control.''

Whitney Greenstein, along with eight other teens, were behind the wheel of cars Saturday that instructors - veteran race car drivers, stunt drivers and product and development experts from the auto industry - deliberately forced out of control.

Using their own cars, the teens were taken to the skid pad - a massive slab of flat concrete where they learned about over- and understeering, weight transfer and the loud reality of antilock brakes.

``I was really scared after that last accident,'' said Greenstein, a 17- year-old student at Agoura High. ``This class is really good for me. The most important thing I've learned is about braking and knowing which way to swerve out of the way. If I'd have known this before, my last accident could have been avoided.''

After some slalom courses and an accident-avoidance exercise that one teen described as ``way freaky'' - accelerating toward an instructor standing in the road, who at the last second pointed which way the driver should turn to avoid hitting him - the students headed to the site of the ``wet skid'' training.

Jason Seiroty, 17, of Palmdale signed up for the course to ease his parents' fears about his excessive speed on the roads. Clearly the most determined of the group, he let loose on the swath of concrete that had been watered down by a special truck moments before.

``Maybe I do drive too fast, I admit that,'' said the Highland High senior. ``I've had my license for a few months, and I just love to drive. I'm the one who heard about the class, and my parents were all for it. I know I have some things to learn, but I'm also out here to safely push my car to the limit.''

The undisputed highlight, however, came at the end of the day, when the instructors hauled out the Toyota racing cars and took students - and their parents - for a spin on the winding track known as The Streets of Willow.

``This is where the instructors really get to show off,'' said veteran racer Tom Hunter. ``It's a fun way to end the day, but the work we do in the course is serious. A lot of times we have to tear kids down to build them up again.

``I've had kids come in here supercocky, but when we get out there and put them into a skid and they have to control their car, that's a wake-up call. Driving is a mental experience, and it's an exercise in focus. These skills save lives. No question.''

For information about the teen defensive driving course, call [phone] or log on to www.fastlaneteenacademy.com.

Amy Raisin, [phone]

amy.raisin(at)dailynews.com

CAPTION(S):

3 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color in SAC edition only) Karli Greenstein, 16, of Agoura Hills fastens her helmet at Danny McKeever's Fast Lane driving school in Rosamond.

(2 -- color in SAC edition only) Chief instructor Tom Hunter gives teens driving students last-minute pointers before their next lesson.

(3 -- color -- ran in SAC edition only) Instructor Paul Goduti stands before a student and a car, offering instructions before a slalom test.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer