HA! I got to know that road really well. I was seeing someone in the Bay Area, and I lived in Lakeport. Eventually I was driving it like the locals. 50 mph in the fog. 
Yeah, Calistoga to Santa Rosa, and onto the 101 via Mark West Springs Road.
The next time I’m driving in Cali, I’ll think of you.
Only if you promise to pull the hell over when you’re holding up a line of traffic. 
Ugh. That road gives me nightmares. First time I ever drove it was in the rain. Because this is me we’re talking about, therefore the cards must be, by law, stacked up as high as humanly possible in any given situation. I was almost in tears by the time I got to SR, took a few hours for my fingers to completely unclench!
I avoid it like the plauge now. I’ll easily go a half hour out of my way just to avoid that damn road. I love driving on it because it’s a gorgeous drive, I just make sure I’m a passenger. 
Heh. I got married in a winery off of Mark West Springs Road. I refused to tell anyone how to get there and made everyone take a shuttle bus from downtown Calistoga. Ain’t no way I was gonna let wedding guests negotiate that one.
And my favorite “drive like a lunatic” road up there is the Oakville Grade. I’ve had many a fun little jaunt over that one in my old Saab Sonnett III.
You got married at Fetzer’s?? That is SO cool!
And, yes, absolutely agreed; driving Mark West Springs Road is always a challenge. Adding wine to that is a baaaaaaaad idea.
Hans Fahden, actually.
In the prep material for the UK written test for a licence, I vaguely remember a question along these lines…essentially the answer was pullover, because you’re not responsible for somebody else breaking the rules, but by allowing them past you’re removing the immediate danger of them tailgating you. Damned if I can find a cite, though 
Unless you have a different breed of cops there than I’m used to, you really aren’t in any danger of getting pulled over if you’re only going 5, maybe 10 MPH above the limit. It just isn’t worth the cop’s time. He knows how fast people drive in real life.
And don’t be too hard on yourself for being a teenage driver. Elderly drivers are every bit as dangerous as young drivers in terms of accidents per mile. When was the last time you heard of a teenager plowing through a farmer’s market?
How do you know they’re there if you don’t realize that they’re there? Color me confuzzled.