A set of identical triplets have passed their driving test first time on the same day in Lochgilphead, writes Rita Campbell
The 17-year-old lads – Sam, Dan and Joe Anderson – each passed with only two minor faults.
They sat their tests in quick succession at 9am, 10am and 11am on Wednesday December 13.
And the only thing separating them was the colours red, green and blue on their Lochgilphead High School leavers’ sweatshirts.
The dedicated boys only turned 17 three months ago on September 13. They began taking lessons with Alister’s Driver Training on September 19.
Their delighted mum, Lesley Boyle, said: “They are generally quite competitive as a rule.
“It would have been awful for one of them to re-sit if the other two passed. This is a huge relief.
“We would just like to thank Alister for all the hard work he has put in.”
And now a familiar headache for parents of young drivers begins, threefold.
Speaking on Thursday after the passes, Lesley added: “We got them a Polo to learn to drive in. At the moment, we are trying to get insurance for it, but it is very expensive.”
Each of her sons joked that he would have priority, while his two brothers can fight over the second go of the car.
But Lesley said that in truth, they have got quite used to sharing over the years.
The family live at Dunadd, near Lochgilphead. Their dad Ewan Anderson has also been giving them lessons.
Lesley said: “The pressure was on because I passed my test first time, their dad passed his first time and so did their sister Amy, who is 19 on December 29.”
Alister Milloy of Alister’s Driver Training, which is based in Inveraray and covers Lochgilphead and Inveraray, was also delighted.
“I have never heard of triplets passing their test on the same day before,” he said.
“The boys worked so hard. They were totally dedicated and committed. Mum and dad were a great encouragement. Dad had them out often and that’s the way it should be.
“I also taught their sister Amy. She was the fastest pass, start to finish in 21 hours.
“They are a very committed family. They had great support from mum and dad.”
Alister added: “I had Sam out last week and I thought it was Joe. The three of them are all very similar, especially Joe and Sam.
“It wasn’t hard teaching them, they were great to teach, but I found it hard to identify them.
“The boys were a pleasure to teach. They always wanted to do the best they could.
“We can struggle to get test dates here, but everything worked out great, we got all three in the one day.
“The examiner had the three boys one after the other, he said it was like he had the same candidate.
“That’s the parents trusted me with four of their kids and they all passed first time.”
Alister been a driving instructor for six years. Prior to that, he was a mobile mechanical welder.