Canada's Worst Driver | |
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The original Canada's Worst Driver title card used from seasons one through six and again in season eight. | |
Developed by | Proper Television |
Written by | Andrew Younghusband |
Presented by | Andrew Younghusband |
Country of origin | Canada |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 14 |
No. of episodes | 115 |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) | Andrew Younghusband Lesia Capone Blair Ricard |
Producer(s) | Guy O'Sullivan (2005-2016) Blair Ricard Jeff Cole |
Running time | 46 minutes |
Release | |
Original network | Discovery Channel |
Original release | October 3, 2005 – December 17, 2018 |
Chronology | |
Related shows | Britain's Worst Driver (2002-2003) Canada's Worst Handyman (2006-2011) Blood, Sweat & Tools (2015) Don't Drive Here (2013-2015) |
External links | |
Website |
Canada's Worst Driver (often abbreviated CWD) is a Canadiantelevision series that aired on Discovery Channel Canada from October 3, 2005 to December 17, 2018, with reruns of past seasons occasionally airing on CTV. Based on Britain's Worst Driver,Canada's Worst Driver was a part of the Worst Driver television franchise and was produced by Proper Television whose president, Guy O'Sullivan, was the director of the original Britain's Worst Driver series until its cancellation in 2003. O'Sullivan served as executive producer of Canada's Worst Driver until his death in April 2017, doubling as executive producer of sister series Canada's Worst Handyman until its cancellation in June 2011. As such, Canada's Worst Driver was considered to be the production company's flagship show and, with 14 seasons and 115 episodes aired, the longest-running of any Worst series to date. The series is also aired dubbed in French in Canada as Les Pires Chauffards Canadiens on the Z channel. Until June 2011, when Canada's Worst Handyman was cancelled and later replaced in 2015 with Blood, Sweat & Tools,Canada's Worst Driver and Canada's Worst Handyman were the two highest-rated programs on Discovery Channel Canada. On May 21, 2019, it was announced by Younghusband via his personal Facebook page that the previously-aired fourteenth season had been the show’s last season, and that the show would not be renewed for a fifteenth season, with no reason being given for the show's cancellation, although it's believed that O'Sullivan's April 2017 death may have been the reason.[1]
Format[edit]
In each season, a number of drivers (typically eight) and their nominators enroll at the 'Driver Rehabilitation Centre,' where they compete in challenges designed to improve their driving skills in an effort to not be named Canada's Worst Driver. In the first challenge, the contestants begin at a location about a 90-minute drive from the Driver Rehabilitation Centre. Following the directions that are given (in season fourteen, the contestants were given the directions through their GPS), each contestant must drive to the Driver Rehabilitation Centre where, upon arriving, the driver's license of each contestant is confiscated. For the first two seasons of the series, the drivers' car keys were confiscated instead. The first episode typically concludes with an obstacle course or assessment challenge, meant to evaluate the skills of each driver. The series is well known for its obstacle course challenges. Contestants must routinely maneuver their cars through tight spaces with less than an inch of clearance on either side of the vehicle. To show that the challenge can be done without hitting obstacles by an 'average' driver, Younghusband, himself an average driver (although he has since admitted that he was not that average when the series began), performs each challenge before any contestant attempts the same course. At the end of each episode, each contestant meets with Andrew and a panel of four experts for an evaluation of his or her performance. Since the eighth season, the panel consisted of Tim Danter, Shyamala Kiru, Philippe Létourneau and Cam Woolley. After all remaining contestants are interviewed, the experts and Andrew deliberate on which contestant and nominator pair have improved enough to graduate from the Driver Rehabilitation Centre. The driver who has graduated is eliminated from the competition and is sent home with his or her license returned to him or her. Typically, the contestants drive off with their nominators in the car that they used to arrive at the Driver Rehabilitation Centre. During the series, the experts also reserve the right to not graduate anyone during an episode or to take other courses of action as they see fit. Graduating multiple contestants at the same time has occurred twice, with Jodi Slobodesky and Sean McConnell both graduating in the penultimate episode of Canada's Worst Driver 2 and Alex Morrison and Tina Cook both graduating in the second episode of Canada's Worst Driver 11. The panel may choose to expel any contestant prematurely who does not show any incentive to learn or who they believe should not continue driving, which has also occurred twice, with Canada's Worst Driver 2 contestant Colin Sheppard having his car key cut in half in the fourth episode and Canada's Worst Driver 6 contestant Scott Schurink having his shared insurance policy cancelled by his nominator, Danny Bridgman (rendering Scott unable to drive himself, as his insurance cost was too expensive). The panel may also release a contestant who they judge to be unable to continue the rehabilitation program for medical or legal reasons. In extreme cases, the experts may contact the relevant Ministry of Transportation and request that a driver's license be put up for review, if they believe that a contestant is medically unfit to continue driving. The elimination process continues until only three contestants remain (the original intent was for two contestants to remain, but in the first season, an episode was aired in which no one graduated due to an overall poor performance in the Trailer Reversing and Canada's Worst Parking Lot challenges, leading to three finalists; every subsequent season had three finalists), although Andrew twice suggested having a four-person finale (Canada's Worst Driver 7 and Canada's Worst Driver 10), a suggestion none of the experts followed through on. In each finale, the remaining drivers are given their final challenge-- typically a three-in-a-car forward-backward slalom within a certain time limit-- followed by the 'Mega Challenge,' an obstacle course with elements of almost every previous challenge seen during the season (with the exception of the standard transmission balancing challenge, among others). The Mega Challenge is itself followed by a driving examination through the busy streets of a major urban centre near the Driver Rehabilitation Centre. In addition to Hamilton, Ontario, where the Road Test had been held since season seven, the Road Test was held in other major urban centres: Montreal, Quebec (season one), Toronto, Ontario (seasons two, four and five), Barrie, Ontario (season three) and Niagara Falls, Ontario (season six). Based on these challenges, the experts determine which person is Canada's Worst Driver. The contestant who fares the second-worst is deemed to not have graduated from the Driver Rehabilitation Centre, while the contestant who fared the third-worst is typically considered a successful graduate or the final graduate of the rehabilitation center. This was not always the case, as during season eleven, despite finishing third-worst, Sholom Hoffman failed to graduate due to his poor track record. Unlike other Worst series around the world, where being a graduate is rewarded with a new car while the Worst Driver has their car destroyed, Canada's Worst Driver only awards a trophy at the end of each season to emphasize education, the learning process of the contestants and the science of driving above entertainment value.
The on-and-off drunk driving trial of a Sudbury woman who won the title of Canada’s Worst Driver 2009 came to a screeching halt Tuesday. Angelina Marcantognini, 33, who was fighting a charge of having more than the legal allowable level of alcohol in her blood while driving had that plea struck. Canada's Worst Driver 14 was the fourteenth and final season of the Canadian reality TV show Canada's Worst Driver, which aired on the Discovery Channel.Seven people, nominated by their family or friends, enter the Driver Rehabilitation Centre to improve their driving skills.
Experts[edit]
Experts | Season | |||||||||||||
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1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | |
Cam Woolley | ||||||||||||||
Philippe Létourneau | ||||||||||||||
Shyamala Kiru | ||||||||||||||
Tim Danter | ||||||||||||||
Peter Mellor | ||||||||||||||
Dr. Lauren Kennedy-Smith | ||||||||||||||
Dr. Louisa Gembora | ||||||||||||||
Dan Bagyan | ||||||||||||||
Scott Marshall | ||||||||||||||
Marcus Agyeman | ||||||||||||||
Juliana Chiovitti | ||||||||||||||
Kelly Williams | ||||||||||||||
Jim Kenzie | ||||||||||||||
Dr. Uzma Rehman |
Challenges[edit]
With the exception of the first and last episodes, challenges are specifically tailored to each contestant and designed by Andrew and the driving school sponsoring the series (whose head instructor is one of the experts). Challenges typically range from traditional driving school lessons such as parallel parking, reversing and driving with a trailer to those not normally found in a beginner's driving course, such as driving a standard transmission vehicle and extreme driving manoeuvres (such as the Scandinavian flick). However, there are some challenges that are reused from year to year.
- The Shoulder Check Challenge is a challenge where contestants must drive in a straight line until they pass a sign on each side. The signs determine which of the two exits the contestants must take when the road forks ahead; however, the signs are posted in the reverse direction, so the contestants must briefly look behind them to read the signs. If neither exit is permitted, they are simply instructed to stop in front of the fork in the road. The lesson of this challenge is to only turn the head when performing a shoulder check.
- Distracted Driving is a challenge introduced in season two that was so unusually effective on one contestant (Matt Elkind) that it has been used in every subsequent season. In this challenge, drivers must drive around in a circle while having to do a series of tasks such as eating a sandwich, inserting a CD, texting and so on. Often, these tasks are tailored to each contestant's vices. The lesson is meant to teach individuals to not do these things while at the wheel, as it can cause potential accidents.
- Swerve and Avoid is a challenge where contestants must drive towards a wall at high speeds, only to turn away-- that is, swerve-- at the last moment to avoid hitting the wall. Typically, there are two exits to each side of the wall, which will either initially be blocked before one or both open at the last moment or initially be open before one or neither are blocked in the last moment. The lesson is to avoid touching the brake pedal, as putting the foot down on the brake would severely limit the car's steering ability.
- The Cornering Challenge is a challenge where contestants must drive towards a wall of foam blocks at high speed before braking hard, releasing the brake and then turning away from the wall. The lesson in this challenge is to release the brake so as to not lose steering input to the car when it is needed. In some years, a large wet tarp may also be laid out on the ground in front of the wall, to simulate icy or slippery conditions.
- The Three-Point Turn Challenge is a challenge where contestants must enter a small space and make a three-point turn, returning in the direction that they entered. The entrance may be off to one side of the area (as it is in earlier seasons) or to the centre of the area (as it is in later seasons). A key lesson in this challenge is to make use of the space available to the car in order to do the turn efficiently; in some years, obstacles may ring the outer perimeter of the area to give the contestants a better visual cue.
- The Eye of the Needle is a perennial challenge where contestants must navigate through a series of archways at a minimum speed. The intended lesson is to have the driver look where they want to go, in the middle of the archways rather than at the feet on one side of the archway.
- The Figure-Eight Challenge is a perennial challenge where drivers must reverse their car around a course in the shape of an 8. There are two versions of this challenge: one version, originally featured in the second season, had a pair of contestants perform the challenge simultaneously: both cars begin in one end of the course and contestants must reverse their cars to where the other contestant began, with the only passing spaces available at the centre and opposite end of the course. The second version, featured in the fourth season, has each contestant do one lap in reverse with the remaining contestants as passengers.
- The Parking Lot Challenge is a version of musical chairs where drivers must find spaces to park. The parking lot is filled with cars and may have blocker cars that attempt to frustrate the contestants and cars that may open up new parking spaces. Any driving violation-- such as parking in a no parking zone-- will typically send the contestant out of the parking lot in a lap penalty. The challenge ends when one contestant fails to park.
- Canada's Worst Gas Station is a variation on the Parking Lot Challenge with many of the same rules, where contestants try to park to get fuel at a simulated self-service gasoline station, avoiding the diesel pump, which their car can't use. Hitting anything or performing a moving violation requires the contestant to leave the station and come back to try again. Most of the pumps start with blocker cars in front of them, which will leave as the challenge goes on. The challenge ends when one contestant fails to get fuel.
- The Water Tank Challenge is a perennial favorite in which the contestants must navigate around a tight obstacle course in a car with a roof-mounted water tank; should the contestants stop too abruptly, the contents of the tank will spill over into the cab of the vehicle, soaking its occupants. In earlier seasons, this was done with a pipe system, though in later seasons, open-top cars or cars with a sunroof are used. Portions of the obstacle course will include a slow forward section, sudden stops due to last-minute reactions, such as a hidden stop sign or a pop-out car, a hump-- infamous for repeatedly soaking Andrew in his demonstration runs-- and optionally an acceleration portion. The intended lesson is on smooth threshold braking: should the contestants brake poorly or navigate too quickly, the water in the tank will spill, soaking both the contestant and nominator inside.
- The Handbrake Turn Challenge is a challenge that has contestants perform a handbrake turn around a foam figure while in a confined space. The intent of this challenge is for contestants to learn the distribution of weight in a car, as well as a lesson on how to properly control a car in a skid.
- The Reverse Flick is a challenge that has contestants perform the namesake technique in a confined space; it is in essence the handbrake turn in reverse, and without the use of the handbrake. The intent of this challenge is similar to the handbrake turn challenge, but also introduces elements of driving in reverse at speed.
- Drifting Doughnuts is a challenge introduced in season three where contestants must drive in a wide doughnut around a figure; the key to this challenge is counter-steering partway through in order to allow the car to continue drifting, eventually towards a designated exit point. The lesson behind this challenge is on extreme manoeuvres as well as avoiding target fixation.
- The Trough is a challenge used in later seasons where contestants must get their car to move across the namesake trough, a series of concrete Jersey barriers placed on their side, without the car leaving the rails and hitting the ground. The lesson behind this challenge is that the rear wheels will turn more sharply than the front wheels; the key to this challenge is to take wide turns and allow the car to hug the edges of the concrete rails.
- The Parallel Parking Challenge requires drivers to parallel park. Often, there is a moving obstacle, such an emergency vehicle, that the contestant must give way to.
- The Teeter-Totter is a challenge that has contestants balance a car atop a teeter-totter, such that both ends for the apparatus are off of the ground. The lesson of this challenge is on managing cars on slopes. The Gimbal is a variation of the teeter-totter challenge, where lateral motion is also introduced.
- The Slalom Challenge is a challenge where drivers 'swerve' around blue and pink foam mannequins. In season seven, they were changed into red and blue hockey players, in keeping with that season's 'Driving in Canada' theme. In season eight, they were changed into blue and pink shopping people, in keeping with that season's 'Big city driving' theme.
- The Lane Change Challenge is a challenge where the drivers are on a two-lane course. The goal is to pass Andrew twice as he drives around. Key to this challenge is learning the proper technique for lane changes (Check the side mirrors, activate the indicator, shoulder check, lane change). Each infraction committed or improperly-executed lane change requires the guilty driver to pass Andrew one extra time. The challenge concludes when only one contestant is left on the course.
Nomination[edit]
Like its sister series, the contestants are chosen by nominations submitted to Proper Television. Until 2011, when Canada's Worst Handyman was cancelled and later replaced in 2015 with Blood, Sweat & Tools,Canada's Worst Driver and Canada's Worst Handyman were filmed alternately, with each season of Driver followed by a season of Handyman (except for the first season, in which Handyman was filmed during the summer and Driver was filmed during the winter, Driver has been filmed during the summer and Handyman was filmed during the winter). Nominations for the next season of one are accepted shortly after the airing of another on Discovery Channel. Candidates may be nominated by multiple nominators, though only one nominator accompanies the contestant to the Driver Rehabilitation Centre.
Home Video/Internet Availability[edit]
Seasons 1-7 are currently available for download in Canada from the iTunes Store in widescreen standard definition (480p). Seasons 8-14 are available from iTunes in both standard definition and high definition (720p/1080p). Seasons 2-7 are available for streaming on CraveTV. Each season has also been posted on DiscoveryChannel.ca and YouTube for streaming. There has been no news on whether the series will be released on DVD/Blu-ray.
Seasons[edit]
Season | Original run | Location | Theme | Canada's Worst Driver | Reason | Notes |
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1 | October 3, 2005-November 21, 2005 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre took place at CFB Picton (currently operating as Picton Airport), a decommissioned military base near Picton, Ontario that closed down in 1969, with the final road test taking place in Old Montreal. | Winter driving | Chris Ferguson | Chris was the first person named Canada's Worst Driver due to his inexperience on the road. | This was the only season filmed in the winter; all subsequent seasons have been filmed during the summer. This is also the first and only time that the final road test took place in a Canadian city not in Ontario; all subsequent seasons have the final road test in an Ontario city. |
2 | October 16, 2006-December 4, 2006 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre took place within the grounds of CFB Borden, with the final road test taking place in Toronto. | Summer driving | Henrietta Gallant | Henrietta was the first woman named Canada's Worst Driver due to her vision issues and her insistence on not wearing glasses, along with being unable to complete the final road test. | This season saw the first-ever expulsion in any Worst Driver series when Colin Sheppard was expelled due to his unwillingness to learn. This season also saw the first time two contestants-- in this case, Sean McConnell and Jodi Slobodesky-- graduated in an episode. |
3 | October 29, 2007-December 17, 2007 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre took place at the Edgar Adult Occupation Centre in the ghost town of Edgar, Ontario, with the final road test taking place in Barrie, Ontario. | Extreme driving manoeuvres | Jason Zhang | Jason was named Canada's Worst Driver for his dangerous final road test performance, stopping in the middle of merging onto Ontario Highway 400. As a result, Jason immediately surrendered his license and gave up driving permanently, the first-ever contestant to do so, which made runner-up Shelby D'Souza technically the worst by default. | This season saw the first time a contestant-- in this case, Billie-Jean Leslie-- graduated in the fifth episode. |
4 | October 27, 2008-December 15, 2008 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre took place at the old Ontario Reformatory Prison, an abandoned correctional facility in Guelph, Ontario that closed down in 2002, with the final road test taking place in Toronto. | Legal consequences of bad driving | Ashley van Ham | Despite passing most of the challenges and being shortlisted four times, including three episodes in a row, Ashley was named Canada's Worst Driver for having never addressed her frustrations with her husband and nominator, Bryan. | This season saw the first-ever medical expulsion in any Worst Driver series due to the experts' belief that Donna Hicks should no longer be driving; Donna was eliminated in this manner in part due to angina. This season also saw the only instance of an all-female finale in the series' history. |
5 | October 26, 2009-December 14, 2009 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre took place within the grounds of CFB Borden (referred to on-air as 'an undisclosed military location'), with the final road test again taking place in Toronto. | Driver's boot camp | Angelina Marcantognini | Angelina was named Canada's Worst Driver due to her severe anxiety and lack of focus. Andrew further stated during the Canada's Worst Driver: U Asked! special his belief that Angelina is the worst of the 'worst drivers' to date, though he subsequently retracted this statement in Canada's Worst Driver Ever and said that her severe emotional problems were more to blame for her driving than a lack of technical ability. | This season saw the first time a contestant left due to a personal (and ironically, driving-related) tragedy-- Crystal Hubley Farao's brother-in-law, Tom Stagno, was killed in a motorcycle accident. This season was also the first to feature the three finalists driving a convertible on each of their final road tests during the final episode of every subsequent season. |
6 | October 25, 2010-December 13, 2010 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre took place at Dunnville Airport, a registered aerodrome near Dunnville, Ontario that has since ceased airport operations, with the final road test taking place in Niagara Falls, Ontario. | High-performance driving | Lance Morin | Lance was named Canada's Worst Driver for being inexperienced and denying that his anxiety had anything to do with his driving. | This season featured the first-ever instance of a driver effectively being removed not by the experts, but by their nominator after Scott Schurink's poor attitude caused his nominator, Danny Bridgman, to cancel their shared insurance policy, resulting in Scott's immediate expulsion, as he was unable to insure himself due to his insurance being too expensive. |
7 | October 24, 2011-December 13, 2011 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre was located at Dunnville Airport for the second year in a row, with the final road test taking place in Hamilton, Ontario. | Driving in Canada | Shirley Sampson | Despite performing well in most of the challenges this season, it was a disastrous road test that included stopping while on the Chedoke Expressway that caused Shirley to be named Canada's Worst Driver. | This season was the first to be broadcast in HD, owing to the launch of the high-definition simulcast of Discovery Channel. |
8 | October 29, 2012-December 17, 2012 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre was located at Dunnville Airport for the third year in a row, with the final road test again taking place in Hamilton, Ontario. | Big city driving | Flora Wang and Kevin Simmons | Both Flora and Kevin were named Canada's Worst Driver for being equally bad in different ways, with Flora's poor progress and Kevin's non-functioning right eye, respectively, being their main issues. | This was the only time that there was ever a tie for Canada's Worst Driver. |
Ever | October 28, 2013-December 16, 2013 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre was located at the Dunnville Airport for the fourth year in a row, with the final road test again taking place in Hamilton, Ontario. | An 'all-star' season, which saw nine previous winners and runners-up return to the show for a chance to either redeem themselves or be named the worst-ever. | Kevin Simmons | Kevin was named Canada's Worst Driver Ever after turning in an even worse final road test than the previous season. Afterwards, he burned his license under the promise he'd made to the panel and his friend and nominator, Lenny Stone, that he'd stop driving if he either didn't graduate or was named the worst. | This season saw the first time a contestant graduated in the first episode (as Chris Ferguson was the only returning driver to pass the assessment challenge), another contestant was disqualified and removed from the show due to the experts judging Henrietta Gallant ineligible to take part (Henrietta admitted she largely gave up driving after previously being named the worst) and another contestant's nominator was replaced (Yolanda Kozak served as Michael Telford's nominator after his original nominator, Eric, was unable to return for health reasons; he had since recovered to replace her in the fourth episode after she was proven to be too negative and detrimental). |
10 | October 27, 2014-December 15, 2014 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre was located at Dunnville Airport for the fifth year in a row, with the final road test again taking place in Hamilton, Ontario. | 10th Anniversary | Chanie Richard | Self-described 'Selfie Queen' Chanie was named Canada's Worst Driver for her lack of focus at the wheel and admission of driving without legally required medication. | None |
11 | October 26, 2015-December 14, 2015 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre was located at Dunnville Airport for the sixth year in a row, with the final road test again taking place in Hamilton, Ontario. | High-speed driving | Jillian Matthews | Despite passing some challenges and numerous practice driving sessions in public off-camera, Jillian was named Canada's Worst Driver due to her inability to completely overcome her anxiety when alone behind the wheel, deemed by the judges to be a real danger to other drivers on the road. | This season featured nine contestants instead of the usual eight, as for the first time ever, a pair of contestants also acted as nominators for each other, as Sholom and Shmuel Hoffman both nominated one another and were considered equally bad drivers. This season also saw two contestants-- in this case, Alexander Morrison and Tina Cook-- graduate in an episode (the second time in the series' entire run). |
12 | October 24, 2016-December 12, 2016 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre was located at Dunnville Airport for the seventh year in a row, with the final road test again taking place in Hamilton, Ontario. | Dangers of Speeding | Krystal McCann | Krystal was named Canada's Worst Driver due to her addiction to her cell phone, aggressive driving, mood swings, failing to improve her hostile attitude and not taking any of the lessons to heart (Krystal later attributed her behaviour to borderline personality disorder which she was diagnosed with after the show).[2] | This season featured the show's 100th episode, being the seventh episode of the season (specials included). This season also saw the first time the traditional trophy was not awarded to Canada's Worst Driver (it was instead repurposed as the Final Graduate trophy and awarded to Tyler Dupont) as the experts believed Krystal was not even worthy of it due to her hostile behavior in rehab. |
13 | October 23, 2017-December 11, 2017 | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre was located at Dunnville Airport for the eighth year in a row, with the final road test again taking place in Hamilton, Ontario. | Driving fears and the number 13 | Mélanie Lautard | Mélanie was named Canada's Worst Driver and the last woman to be named as such due to her inability to focus on, apply and sometimes remember the lessons she was taught in rehab and her negative attitude towards herself and the Rehabilitation Centre's instructors while driving on- and off-camera. | This season saw the first former contestant-- in this case, Canada's Worst Driver 11 'winner' Jillian Kieley (née Jillian Matthews)-- return as the nominator of a new contestant, Ashley Dunne. This season also made more extensive use of helicopter droneaerial video than previous seasons. |
14 | October 29, 2018-December 17, 2018[3] | The Driver Rehabilitation Centre was located at Dunnville Airport for the ninth year in a row, with the final road test again taking place in Hamilton, Ontario. | Evolution of driving | Brandon Wilkins | Brandon was the final person ever given the title of 'Canada's Worst Driver' due to his reckless driving, emotional instability and lack of basic understanding of road signs and rules. As a result, Brandon immediately cut up his license after promising he would quit driving if named the worst, which made 'runner-up' Alexis Pratola technically the worst by default. | This was the only season to feature seven contestants instead of the usual eight. This season also marks the first time that a new contestant-- Ryan Whittier-- graduated in the first episode, while another contestant-- Brandon Wilkins-- had to get a doctor's note after arriving at rehab to get permission to be able to drive since he broke his arm in a skateboarding accident a week before filming. |
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^https://www.facebook.com/857985552/posts/10161997285840553/
- ^Snowdon, Wallis (December 14, 2016). 'After mental health journey, 'Canada's worst driver' back on the road in Edmonton'. CBC Edmonton News. Retrieved December 16, 2016.
- ^'Canada's Worst Driver - Season 14 postcard'(PDF). Bell Media - Advertising Sales. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
External links[edit]
- Canada's Worst Driver on discovery.ca
- Canada's Worst Driver on IMDb
- Canada's Worst Driver at TV.com
Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Canada%27s_Worst_Driver&oldid=932059561'
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/YMMV/CanadasWorstDriver
Go To
- Accidental Innuendo: Azim won't stop playing with his gearshift
- Badass Decay:
- In Season 8, Flora seemed to be one of the better drivers initially, and both viewers and the show's judges alike predicted that as soon as her husband Frank stopped acting like a JerkassBackseat Driver, she'd massively improve and quickly graduate. Unfortunately, her performances actually got worse as the season progressed and seemed to show no real correlation as to how Frank behaved or whether he was even in the car, resulting in her being named the joint-worst for the season alongside Kevin.
- Sly went from a near perfect final drive in Season 7 and a promise not to drive distracted to a terrible performance in Ever. Ultimately Double Subverted when he had a great road test once again.
- Jillian from Season 11. She had the best technical skills out of all the nominees that season, and could have graduated early, but she stayed on. Unfortunately, her performances dropped in the second half, and she couldn't get the confidence to drive on the road test.
- Karlene from Season 14. Her confidence as a driver managed to grow up until Episode 6, where she was able to proudly drive onto and off a highway alone. But her attitude took a massive nosedive starting with the Water Tank Test, and even though she was easily that episode's graduate, she refused to take the one last lesson she'd asked for and returned to the nervous wreck she'd started the season as.
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- Base-Breaking Character:
- Sly from Season 7 and Ever. He's one of the worst-performing drivers the rehab center has seen, especially when it came to reversing. His broken distracted-driving promise to Aaron and avoiding the Worst Driver title over Shirley (both major Ensemble Darkhorses) didn't earn him much respect. However, some viewers feel the experts were too harsh on him, given that Sly managed a decent public drive in Season 7 and a perfect public drive in Ever, and unlike many of the other bad drivers was willing to admit to his faults. He was even willing to call himself the Worst Driver Ever, despite the aforementioned flawless final drive.
- Also, from Season 7, Janis, Shirley's nominator. It depends on whether one considers her...very vocal reactions to Shirley's bad driving to be reasonable or unhelpful. Even Cam Woolley called her a 'screech-owl' during the Mega-Challenge.
- Darris from Season 14. There's no mistaking his Dark and Troubled Past as a major cause for his attitudes towards driving, but viewers are split as to Darris genuinely did have a Heel–Face Turn or if he merely wanted to pretend he had, with some in the latter group even considering him sociopathic.
- Jillian from season 11 gained some fans for her driving skills and her struggle with anxiety, but others hate her for her verbal abuse of her fiancée. Her appearance as a nominator on Season 13 helped sway fans back
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- Elimination Houdini: An unusual example of this trope, since being eliminated from the show is a good thing:
- Billie-Jean from Season 3 was shortlisted three times in a row, yet there was Always Someone Better each time. On the fourth occasion of her being nominated she nearly failed to graduate again, as the experts thought that Shelby had done better in the episode, but Andrew persuaded them that it was time to let Billie-Jean go.
- Ashley from Season 4. She was shortlisted to graduate four times, and still was named Canada's Worst Driver. She was an unusual case overall, since it was obvious to everyone that she was a way more skilled driver than runner-up Emily, and in fact most of the drivers from her season; the real problem was her inability to get on with her husband while driving, something which neither made any real attempt to improve (frying the alternator on Andrew's own truck in the final road test didn't help much either).
- Father Giles and Jakob, the third-last and second-last graduates from Season 5 were each shortlisted three times before eventually leaving, which in both cases was further delayed by no-one graduating in the fourth episode, and then Crystal having to pull out during the following episode.
- Season 6
- Paul, despite being the best that season, didn't graduate until the fourth episode (the first case was Scott's expulsion, and the second case was that Cam barred him from graduating as he failed the Icy Corner Challenge).
- Brad was shortlisted two times, but his main problem was that his wife was more in control of the decisions than himself. He did manage to become the last graduate though.
- Season 7 saw a rare deliberate example of this trope, as Aaron could have potentially graduated by about the halfway point of the season. However, he was determined to stick around for the whole season, mainly because he wanted to take part in the final road test, which would prove once and for all that he could drive again.
- Shirley from Season 7 was also shortlisted twice, but held back because one episode, no one was good enough to graduate, and a second time because Tab had addressed her major issue more than Shirley had.
- Diane from Season 8 was shortlisted every second episode, but was ultimately the last person to graduate, in part due to her twice refusing to graduate, and due to the panel inexplicably deciding that Margherita should graduate over Diane in the penultimate episode.
- Michael from Ever, who managed to tie Ashley's record of 4 nominations without graduating... including being shortlisted three times in a row, much to his dismay. He would probably have graduated in the fourth or seventh episode, if not for Angelina being forced out due to her mental health issues in the former episode, and Dale being kicked out of rehab for attempting to quit and injuring herself in the latter. He was the final graduate of the season, however, after a nearly-flawless public drive (while Sly had a flawless public drive, he did so badly on the challenges throughout the rest of the season that Michael was given the final graduation instead).
- Michael qualifies as well in Season 2, as he was shortlisted three times, but Karen was chosen over him in Episode 2, and a double graduation in episode 7 put him in the final. The one time he arguably would have graduated, Andrew chose to expel Colin instead of graduating anyone.
- Siham from Season 10 was nominated several times as the season progressed but kept narrowly missing out and ended up in the final episode. In her case, it was mostly because while she was quite capable technically, she had major issues with confidence and kept relying on her husband to make all the decisions. In the end, she didn't graduate as such, but did get easily the most positive edit out of any runner-up... not that this stopped her from dropping a Cluster F-Bomb or ten on Facebook and Twitter, over the fact that Jason was graduated over her.
- Jillian from Season 11 wasn't actually nominated at any point prior to the final episode, but could probably have graduated at any time she wanted, as she passed the majority of challenges she took part in (including every challenge in the second episode), and was considered the season's best driver from day one. However, she kept passing up the opportunity to graduate on the grounds that she still needed to address her severe anxiety, eventually resolving to take part in the final road test. Sadly, her nerves proved too severe, which prevented her from taking the road test and caused her to be named the worst.
- Daniella from Season 12 generally did well in the challenges throughout the season, but consciously or otherwise kept talking herself out of graduating by admitting that she still felt very nervous about the idea of driving in public. It ultimately culminated in her completely losing it on the highway segment of her final drive and Andrew having to make every decision for her, with only Krystal's train wreck of a final drive preventing Daniella from being named (or even considered as) the worst.
- Season 13
- Adam. He is the best driver of the final 3, and was short-listed four times in a row (which also ties him with S4 Ashley and S9 Michael for the record), but his low confidence is the major problem, and his refusal to graduate kept him in rehab in the fifth episode.note He ended up in rehab until the last episode of the season, where a good road test saw him finally graduate.
- Shayne. He was the other strongest driver so far, and probably would have graduated in Episode 6 had he not admit to the panel that he had some road rage problems during the highway lessons with Tim. He did eventually graduate in the next episode.
- Darris from Season 14 was declined graduation twice. This wouldn't be too bad, but he was the only one on the short list both times and passed every challenge he took part in. This is because panel was more worried about his attitude towards driving over his skills. He still ended up being the second graduate.
- Ensemble Dark Horse:
- While Andrew is the star of the show, Cam is almost as popular thanks to his straight-talking nature and lack of any hesitance in calling out people who offer up any form of bullshit.
- Michael from Season 2 and Shelby from Season 3 (both of whom came back for Ever), for both being all-around nice guys who always take full responsibility for their mistakes. Michael's ability to drop pertinent comic and sci-fi references into any situation may also help.
- Season 5's Father Giles, for being the epitome of a Cool Old Guy, and even praying with Crystal immediately after she found out that her brother-in-law had been killed in a traffic accident.
- Paul from Season 6; despite being a stereotypical Badass Biker and tough guy, he proved calm, capable and a very adept learner.
- Season 7 had probably the show's two all-time most popular contestants: Aaron and Shirley. The former for his backstory, his desire to make sure his own accident counted for something in helping others (even if it meant being named the worst, which he ultimately wasn't), and his overall performance on the show. Shirley's popularity was thanks to her consistently positive attitude and passing more challenges than anyone in the show's entire history, something that wasn't at all diminished when she got named the worst thanks to a horrid road test. Her Darkhorse status was only further cemented when she came back for Ever and graduated second after a virtually flawless performance.
- From Season 8, we have Diane. She started off not caring about whether or not she would be named 'Canada's Worst Driver', but really improved a lot over the course of the season, and present what Andrew considered the best road test the show has ever had.
- Season 10 had a somewhat unusual example of this trope. While the season was airing, Siham was by far and away the most popular contestant with the fans, who viewed her as the Distaff Counterpart of Aaron, and it helped that she generally did well in the challenges. That all changed the day after the finale aired, when she went ballistic on social media, aiming some incredibly nasty insults at the people involved with making the show, and even some implied legal threats.note Instead, Santana is now generally regarded as the season's Ensemble Darkhorse; while an early graduate, she was also perhaps the best performer aside from George, and definitely had the best attitude toward learning.
- Season 12 had Mike, who had suffered a brain injury (like Aaron) turned Up to Eleven (which was he had to relearn everything that he had ever learned in his life) and his commitment to learning how to drive again, despite the numerous accidents since he gotten.
- Season 13 has both Adam and Shayne as fan favorites. Adam for his Adorkable nature and his story of becoming a man, and Shayne for his story on gaining more confidence and changing his whole outlook on life after an accident when he was 13.
- Season 14 has Descy, for being the sole voice of reason among possibly the most dysfunctional bunch of drivers in the show's history outside of Ever. It also helps that she's been one of the more consistent performers from early in the season.
- Even the nominators have gotten a few fans such as:
- Eric (Season 2 Michael's nominator) was well liked for being like Michael, and fans were happy to see him return for the second half of Ever.
- Baba G (Season 13 Breanna's nominator) for being a tough old woman, and her caring attitude to her granddaughter.
- Harsher in Hindsight:
- In Season 5, Crystal's final run of the 180 Handbrake Turn challenge ends with her 'killing' the foam figure with her nominator's face, which Crystal laughs off. Shortly afterwards, before the course can be reset for the next driver, Crystal receives a phone call informing her that her brother-in-law had been killed in a traffic accident.
- In Episode 2 of Season 14, Andrew encourages Karlene by telling her that she might not overcome her fear and anxiety then, but she'll overcome it in time. Karlene does manage to, in Episode 6...only to relapse after being graduated and crash straight back down into the same nervous wreck she entered the show as.
- Hilarious in Hindsight: In a Facebook exclusive promo for Season 7, Ben sings about each contestant and their nominator and includes the line 'Shirley is sure that she'll go first and Janis is sure that she's the worst'. By the time of CWD Ever, both are nearly proven right, with Shirley being the worst in Season 7, and graduating in Episode 2 of Ever, which is typically the first episode someone graduates.
- Jerkass Woobie:
- Angelina. She may be ignorant at times, and show a lack of improvement but her depression, anxiety and overall mental health problems are almost enough to make her a straight example of The Woobie. Her boot episode in Ever shows just how damaged the poor woman is.
- Yolanda, Michael's nominator for the first half of Ever, had suffered permanent physical injuries due to being in car crashes. That she took out this fear on one of the show's most amicable drivers didn't earn her much sympathy.
- Darris from Season 14. He drove like a total Jerkass, even verbally attacking other drivers, and his outbursts frighten even his mother. But Andrew quickly realized Darris' Survivor Guilt over surviving a traffic accident that killed his cousin, to the point where Andrew outright called Darris' fatalist mindset a 'death wish.'
- Milestone Celebration:
- They pushed the 10th season anniversary a lot with a lot of their obstacle’s birthday related.
- Counting the specials, the 100th episode was the penultimate episode of season 12. Andrew's monochrome lamenting of this fact is interrupted by a full-color marching band celebration.
- Rescued from the Scrappy Heap:
- Arun from Season 5. He was not liked by most viewers at first, especially during the fifth episode when he displayed blatantly sexist behavior toward his wife and nearly caused a half-dozen accidents in the lane changing rally. However, the news that fellow contestant Crystal's brother-in-law had been killed in a motoring accident later in that episode really seemed to shake him up, and after that, he took rehab a lot more seriously, started behaving more reasonably toward his wife, and became the season's final graduate.
- By extension, Crystal herself. Prior to her brother in law dying, she was probably the most ignorant driver in rehab, but the news gave her a rude awakening.
- Two examples in Season 8 — Klyne started out looking like another young driver who didn't give a crap about improving, in the same mold as Colin or Scott, but he took the rehab process seriously and ended up being the third person to graduate. In fact, he could have been the first person to graduate, but turned the opportunity down, feeling that he still had a lot more to learn. Also from that season, Margherita was probably the worst driver (other than Kevin) in the first half of the season, and initially didn't seem to care much about improving (largely due to her nominator constantly telling her that the experts were dumb and to disregard their advice), but she eventually took the lessons on-board and improved significantly over the course of the season, eventually becoming the penultimate graduate.
- Angelina in Ever was received with much more sympathy and concern after she left the show for mental health issues.
- Mariah from Season 10 was an early favorite to end up as the season's worst driver, due to her lackadaisical attitude and unrepentant admission of drink-driving. Over the course of the season, she made a genuine effort to improve and fully redeemed herself by getting a 'no drinking and driving' tattoo on her arm when she graduated.
- Jordan from Season 11 was hated for his self-centered attitude, and lack of interest in the rehab center early on. However, he managed to fix his main problems (eyesight, driving distracted), and developed a better attitude for learning, earning his graduation by Episode 6.
- Tyler from Season 12 would have been easily the most-disliked driver in any previous season (Krystal easily outshone him in that regard this year), due to his generally oblivious attitude and admission of habitually drinking and driving. However, he made a real effort to improve over the course of the season, was treated more sympathetically by fans after it was revealed that he had sustained a brain injury several years prior, and finally redeemed himself by doing well in the last two episodes, becoming the season's final graduate. Even the Krystal’s nominator, Steven, said that watching Tyler's journey had made the season worthwhile despite Krystal's own refusal to learn.
- Travis from Season 13 was not liked in the beginning due to his lack of skills and his initial Never My Fault attitude. But he did improve a lot in terms of skills and dropped his initial attitude which earned his graduation by Episode 6.
- Jillian's treatment of her fiancé made her one of the more hated drivers on Season 11, but coming back for Season 13 as a nominator for Ashley helped redeem her
- Britney from Season 14 wasn't as disliked as Alexis and probably not even as much as Brandon, but her casual attitude towards accidents really rubbed some viewers up the wrong way. She turned it around big-time in the last few episodes, leading the experts to dub her arguably the most improved driver in the show's entire history.
- The Scrappy: There have been several.
- Colin (season 2) and Scott (season 6) are both In-Universe for their arrogance and not taking the show seriously. After Scott was expelled, Paul said: 'Maybe this will wake him the @##! up'.
- Donna from Season 4, as a result of her unrepentant attitude toward drink-driving and continuing to believe that she should drive despite numerous health problems. Even the loss of her license she remained as defiant as ever in the e-mail she sent to the show.
- Dale, especially after her antics in Ever, which ultimately resulted in her being expelled in the penultimate episode and made many viewers think she should have still received the title despite being expelled (and she almost did). If she wasn't hated for that, she's more likely hated for trying to run over Andrew and pass it off as a 'joke'.
- Kevin in season 8 and Ever was greatly disliked by viewers because blamed everything else on his bad driving from the weather to his blind eye, and even swore at Andrew and snapped at him after Andrew stopped the drive when it was becoming too dangerous to continue. Kevin also snapped at some fans on the Show's Facebook page.
- Sly with some fans in Ever, for breaking his distracted driving promise to Aaron from Season 7, and also to fans of Season 7's Shirley, who felt he should have still been named the worst despite his better final drive.
- Sholom in Season 11 is this for most fans. His total oblivious was just painful to watch and failed all but one challenge. Fans of Jillian were angrier when he was passed over as the worst that season in favor of Jillian.
- Melanie from Season 13. While she wasn't too bad in the first half of the season, her poor attitude soon rubbed people the wrong way when it came to learning the lessons especially since she's in rehab for her kids as two of them have special needs.
- Alexis from Season 14. Despite being a young mother who was in multiple accidents at the age of 21, she irritated fans with her non caring attitude, dismissal of the lessons, and calling the whole experience 'stupid'.
- In terms of most hated nominators; we have Wil (Melissa's nominator) from Season 5 based on his constant yelling that goes into Domestic Abuse territory, and Yolanda (Michael's nominator) from Ever as she refused to go into the vehicle with him, and even reprimands him if he passes a challenge. Nobody missed Yolanda when her husband (and Michael's original nominator from Season 2) took her place in the second half.
Krystal
- Krystal in Season 12 is quite possibly the most hated nominee on the show that it required a folder for organization.
- She was already hated by fans before the first episode even finished. Her driving in both the drive to rehab and her audition tape is scary to the point of putting her nominator (and brother) in harm's way, and she argues that she isn't the worst because she hasn't killed anyone yet. At the time, fans on the Facebook page of the show stated that she will either be named the worst this year or expelled like Colin and Scott.
- Her attitude, once she was in rehab, was not better, in fact it might have been worse. She looks more focused on her phone than the challenges, and even put down Tim's and Phillipe's driving lessons and techniques during the panel section, stating that she 'doesn't need to use them' even though those techniques help her to be safe. She also instantly developed a visible resentment and strong dislike of Andrew for calling her out on her horrendous driving.
- It doesn't stop there, the supposed pinnacle of her Scrappiness is in Episode 4 where she disregards the 'Distracted Driving Challenge' for showing how her texting can be dangerous, and somehow claims to the experts that she can text and drive because everyone else is doing it. When Andrew and Cam call her out on it, she cusses and flips the bird at Andrew and leaves the room. And yet, despite her horrendous disrespect to the panel of judges, she isn't expelled because of it, although many fans speculated at the time that the show did not expel Krystal is that the production staff did not want to give her the satisfaction of being kicked out of the show. It is later confirmed that at the time Andrew and the CWD panel thought that they still could help her and did not want to seem like they were giving up.
- Her driving skills and behavior only went From Bad to Worse as Season 12 progressed, and it didn't look pretty. By the time Episode 5 & 6 aired, she is now constantly arguing with her nominator (and brother) Steven, starts refusing to do challenges because she believes that Andrew and Steven are the problem, throwing angry temper outbursts and tantrums and keeps blaming other people for making her feel bad. By Episode 7, her fights with Steven turned physical and she is now being openly hostile to the panel of experts and Andrew himself. Even Andrew asks about the open hostility and finds out that Krystal thinks that he is the problem.
- Also, in a terrible record first that could be predicted as early as Episode 1, Krystal managed to upset, anger and piss off the entire CWD panel of experts with her wild and dangerous behaviors, in the order listed below:
- Andrew, where Krystal constantly attacked him for pointing out (correctly) that her driving is putting others at danger, leading Andrew to state on camera that her drama is tiring him out. His breaking point was when he, visibly frustrated at that point, had to state that Krystal's texting and driving habit was endangering the crew and showing that she did not commit to her promises of not texting and driving while moving in Episode 7. The true point however is in the final episode where her many in fractures on the road laws, combined with her road rage text dependent usage, and constant yelling at Andrew caused him to finally have enough, call off the road test and leave her to drive back to the rehab center herself, with him hitching a ride in the camera car.
- Cam, when Krystal breaks so many road rules and laws that he knows are there to keep people safe and she doesn't admit that she is dangerous at all. His breaking point was when she was texting and driving while moving, while the CWD props crew was setting up the slalom challenge in Episode 7.
- Phillipe and Tim, where Krystal defiantly states that she gets bored driving safe, drives dangerously for fun and laughs, ignoring their driving lessons on purpose because 'they are too high a level for me' and brazenly states that she shouldn't need them to help her drive. Tim's breaking point was when he saw Krystal go off road during the trailer challenge in Episode 6, and Phillipe’s was when she blew off his driving lessons in Episode 3.
- And lastly, Shyamala when Krystal blames everyone else for making her 'feel bad' and showing incredible anger to the entire panel. Her breaking point came when Krystal stated that she would never understand millennials in Episode 6, despite Shyamala being a licensed and practicing psychologist!.
- The last episode was possibly the worst of her. She laughed when Daniella was having a hard time on the three in a car challenge, causing everyone to lash out on her behavior, and ending with her leaving the car in frustrated denial. This caused her brother to refuse to look at her anymore and disappeared for the rest of the episode, although the show probably let him walk off the set for his own mental and physical wellbeing (he did film a final interview expressing his concern on his sister’s behavior). Then her public road test was considered the worst out of the three, and her constant ignorance, infractions, and yelling at Andrew were too much for him to handle, causing Andrew to end the road test abruptly after she deliberately turn a corner sharp and fast, and him walking off and making his own way back to the rehab center in the camera car. With no needed discussion, the panel named her the worst this year (without the trophy because she didn't earn it), and she ends her tenure as the most hated contestant on the show.
- Some Anvils Need to Be Dropped:
- The show's premise is to try and make bad drivers better, but sometimes there are drivers that show they are unable to drive at all whether due to medical reasons, mental/emotional problems, or just being unable to drive at all. By the fourteen seasons so far, at least 5 nominees have given up driving (three gave up willingly, one was willing to in the beginning only to be forced when he tried to weasel out of the deal, and one was forced to give up driving due to failing a medical driving review).
- With some of the nominees on the show, they prove that they just refuse how to learn how to take in the lessons from the experts (Season 2 Colin and Season 12 Krystal are prime examples).
- The show has an entire course dedicated to dropping an anvil about distracted driving, which by the time of Season 14 is the cause of nearly a quarter of all Canadian auto accidents—even more than drunk driving. Andrew takes it Up to Eleven at the start of that season's fourth episode, bluntly and humorlessly calling anyone who obsesses over their cellphone while driving—even after having accidents caused by being distracted by their cellphones—a 'sociopath'.
- Shocking Elimination: Sometimes, viewers, nominees, and nominators will be surprised over the decision the experts make on who to graduate.
- Bob from Season 1 is the earliest example. He was a road rager who didn't initially take rehab seriously in the beginning, but after talking with Andrew, he managed to control his temper and became the first graduate. Andrew even notes that he thought Bob would be in rehab longer.
- Season 2:
- Sean. He managed to admit that driving fast wasn't safe and graduated right after Jodi in the same episode (which never happened before then).
- Early on, Colin's expulsion was this to both the candidates, and viewers. With his poor attitude to learning, and deliberately failing the challenges, a lot of people expected him to be named Canada's Worst Driver that year. However, Andrew had enough, and destroyed Colin's keys, effectively expelling him from rehab.
- Season 4:
- Donna's medical expulsion. Before the Water Tank Challenge, she was easily the worst driver of the eight, and everyone predicted she would be the recipient of the title. However, she suffered an angina attack during the water tank challenge (a condition she failed to mention to the crew beforehand), which caused the show to remove her from the show out of fear of any worse medical problems.
- Teagan, at least to the contestant perspective. While Ashley was the better technical driver of the final four and was up on the shortlist for the fourth time, Teagan was the best out of them in two of the three challenges and improved a lot more of his own problems than Ashely. The three females (Ashley, Amy, and Emily) were not happy about the decision though Andrew did admit that the decision, regardless of the outcome, would not have produced a good reaction.
- Emily. If she was in any other season, she would have been named Canada's Worst Driver based on her lack of skillset. However, she barely managed to leave rehab without the title because Ashley's anger management problems were more of an impending problem on the road. Admittedly, Emily did get glasses to address her eyesight problems while Ashley never made any attempt to control her road rage problem (especially toward her husband).
- Season 6:
- Scott's expulsion, especially since it was so quick. After failing the shoulder check challenge, and laughing it off, his nominator Danny had enough and cancelled his insurance effectively tomorrow. Since the rules state that all drivers must have insurance in order to drive the shows vehicles on the courses, Scott was effectively expelled from rehab in the second episode, though based on his poor attitude towards learning, he would have been expelled eventually. According to Andrew's narration, the other driver's expected Scott to graduate in Episode two, and had he not failed on the Shoulder Check, he actually could have.
- Jamie from the same season can be this as well. Compared to her, Brad was the better technical driver, but she showed more confidence in the wheel, while Brad still had not fully gotten his wife to cooperate with him yet.
- Season 7:
- Jon. He graduated from rehab early since he promised to better his attitude after talking with Aaron. The only other person on the shortlist for that episode was Lauri, who despite doing better in the challenges, wanted to stay in rehab for a bit longer.
- Sly is this, though not in a good way. Compared to Shirley's challenge record, he failed more than he passed, and looked to be the 'winner' of that season. However, he had a flawless road test while Shirley had the worst out of the three, barely saving him from the title.
- Margherita from Season 8. Despite Diane having a better success rate, the experts graduated Margherita on the fact she was able to manage her emotions, fix her pedal control, and being less self-centered. Andrew admitted he didn't agree with the decision, but did congratulate her nevertheless.
- Ever Season:
- Henrietta was disqualified from rehab after admitting she wasn't driving as much anymore, causing the experts to let her go in the first episode.
- Chris managed to graduate from Episode 1, which is normally the episode where no one graduates. However, he was the best driver of the nine, so they didn't need to keep him around any longer.
- Dale is another case. Everyone thought she was bound for the final 3 (and possibly 'worst ever'), but she left rehab after the slalom challenge, went back home, and broke her hand when trying to break into her own home. With the fact she wouldn't drive soon from that injury, and her complete lack of memory, the experts and Andrew expelled her from rehab. Almost subverted when she was brought back for the running but was passed over for Kevin as his public drive was horrific.
- Season 10:
- Ian didn't pass any challenges but was allowed to graduate early since the experts believe he was the most aware of the personal problems he was making (that and promising to quit as a taxi driver helped his case as well). Even he was surprised at the decision. In most circumstances it would probably have been George who graduated that week, but he had a son who was just learning to drive, and the panel seemed determined not to let him graduate until they knew he wouldn't pass on any bad habits.
- Tyler is another case. He didn't pass any challenges in his graduation episode (in fact there was only 'one' challenge pass that episode), but his performance wasn't as bad as the other three, and he showed more confidence and awareness out of them.
- Season 11:
- Tina and Alex both had rage issues on the road, but both managed to pass the 'Shoulder Check' Challenge, which lead to both of them on the shortlist. When the panel couldn't agree on who to graduate out of the two, Andrew decided to graduate both of them that episode (though it could have also been that the show had nine contestants instead of the normal eight, so they needed to slim the numbers faster).
- Jordan. He had a better attitude compared to his It's All About Me attitude in the beginning, but Renee had a better attitude overall, and was technically better than Jordan. However, when Renee mentioned that she wouldn't drive her son on the highway just yet, the show felt to keep her around for one more week and graduated Jordan instead.
- Both Sholom and Polly are a similar case with Sly above. Near the end of the season, the consensus was that Jillian would be the final graduate, and Sholom/Polly would be the 'winner' and 'runner-up' respectively. However, while both made mistakes on their road test, Jill didn't complete the road test, and the two of them were allowed to leave (they didn't graduate though; Sholom's poor challenge record had him 'fail' rehab, while Polly was named the runner-up).
- Travis from Season 13. He improved a lot over the course of his run, but he was up against Shayne and Adam who were shortlisted more than once (In fact this was Adam's third time in a row being shortlisted). Travis got to graduate however since Shayne admitted that he had some road rage problems during a lesson with Tim, and Adam only passed one challenge that episode.
- Season 14:
- Ryan. Normally, nobody is allowed to graduate in the first episode, but Ryan proved that he was an excellent driver without his phone that the panel decided to make an exception.
- Karlene. Managing to overcome her fear of driving, being able to drive alone on the highway, made her a clear standout to graduate. But her confidence plummeted afterwards, with her believing she still needed more lessons. Even though they offered another lesson when she was graduated, she refused—and completely broke down. She even wrote an email to the show claiming it had been the worst experience of her life.
- What an Idiot!: Two contestants in two separate seasons (same guys under Redemption Rejection) have stated low opinions of police officers, as well as having boasted about very illegal acts (Scott drove under someone else's name while under house arrest). Look at the former occupation of The Big Guy. He still carries a badge. He has an obligation to report such confessions to the police where these things happen. Yes, he will fulfill that obligation. Oh, and yes, the judges will question the intelligence of anyone who boasts about such things on national television.
- Then-Sergeant Cam Woolley also called Colin from Season Two an idiot, due to his driving.
- At one point, after deliberately failing a challenge and shattering the car's window in the process, Colin bragged about his actions to a friend. By cell phone. Where at least three other contestants heard him very clearly. Sgt. Woolley was not the only one on that show who considered Colin an idiot.
- To further about Colin, he went to college for police studies - i.e. to become a police officer - when he was nominated and said on camera that he would flash his student ID at any officer that pulled him over and claim he was on his way to an exam. Then, he said he 'didn't think cops were the smartest people out there'. Cam Woolley took a number of very helpful photos of Colin's car, his license plate number, and the video clip of him saying he thinks police are stupid and emailed it to all the officers in Colin's town. Apparently, he had to sell his car because of all the police attention.
- Furthermore, both Colin and Scott could have graduated in the same episode they were expelled in, had they just tried. Scott had actually done well in the episode's challenges, the fellow contestants expected him to be the episode's graduate, and had he done a slower run on the shoulder check challenge, he likely would have gotten the nod from the judges, as well as not losing his insurance courtesy of Danny. As for Colin, the other driver's performances on the skid challenge was so poor, he was outright told prior to it, 'Pass all three segments, you're graduating'. Instead, he steered with one hand on the first segment, steered towards the obstacles in the second, and crashed intentionally in the third.
- Many of the contestants have Game Show-grade dim bulb moments when asked to identify road signs. For instance, Dale thought that a sign indicating an information centre (a brown sign with a white question mark) meant that the road to the information centre was shaped like a question mark.
- Angelina from Season 5 is also bad to the point where she tries a reversing challenge while drinking a coffee without a lid. When she is forced to drop it, she wouldn't shut up about how upset she was. Also, her driving is horrendously bad to the point that her nominee admitted that she tended to crash all the time and Angelina was convinced that she did well on some challenges where she nearly destroyed them. No wonder she 'won'. Andrew even called her the worst driver of all time.
- And if you were scheduled to take part in a show called Canada's Worst Driver Ever, what should you not do the night before you make an hour-long drive to the rehab center? Get drunk. Angelina showed up at the starting line with a hangover and had to hitch a ride with Chris.
- Then-Sergeant Cam Woolley also called Colin from Season Two an idiot, due to his driving.
- The Woobie:
- Aaron, considering what he'd gone through. For extra lovability: his positive attitude and insistence on serving as a reminder about the real point of the show.
'Aaron, buddy? Everybody loves you.'Andrew Younghusband, during a 'You Asked' preseason episode.- To a lesser extent, Melissa from Season 5. The Rolls Royce was also one.
- Season 12's Mike is one, considering his tragic backstory. Just think of Aaron, but Up to Eleven.
- Angelina in Ever. Seeing her slowly descend into a sobbing Broken Bird is heartbreaking, you just want to hug her and let her know that the world is not all out against her.