NewsUpper SchoolStudent LifeFaculty/StaffServiceResidential Life
Save A Life Tour: An educational life saving experience
Sep 3, 2004 8:00 AM
By Tannika King - Faculty
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, traffic crashes are the greatest single cause of death for every age from six through 33. In 1999, there were nearly two alcohol-related traffic deaths per hour, 43 per day and 303 per week.
Thanks to the Parents Association, for the first time in Darlington history the Save A Life Tour will visit the campus to demonstrate to students the devastating effects of driving under the influence of alcohol. The tour features a state-of-the-art Drunk Driving Simulator, which will be set up in the Huffman Center’s Van Es Arena Thursday, Sept. 23, from 8 a.m. to 3:20 p.m.
All participants begin the experience sober as “witnesses” of other drivers’ bad judgment and deteriorating driving skills due to alcohol consumption. Two large screen displays reveal what each driver sees, the face of the driver, a helicopter view of the driver’s vehicle in traffic and an indicator level of the driver’s impairment as it gradually worsens.
New drivers are chosen from the witnessing audience, and are first given an orientation in the virtual environment by driving a high-fidelity desktop simulator with a single display. With a foot on the brake, turn of the ignition, shift into gear and mild acceleration, the driver is in motion. Audio and visual cues soon begin informing each driver and witnesses that the driver is under the influence. At each cue, a level of impairment is indicated, and the vehicle’s handling changes correspondingly. True to real life, the drive usually ends in a serious accident.
Each driver then graduates to the full immersion simulator with five high-resolution displays and a different driving environment. Every driver is served with a simulated citation as a record of their Driving Under the Influence. The program takes about four minutes to complete, and each drive is unique and never repeated.
“After a drunk-driving accident or fatality, it’s not unusual to hear that the driver thought he or she was able to drive, or that he or she had not consumed enough alcohol to be legally drunk, much less impaired,” said Jill Pate, director of personal counseling. “The Drunk Driving Simulator will give our students an opportunity to see and feel what it is like to drive under the influence and how quickly just a small amount of alcohol can result in impaired driving. If we are able to influence just one student to rethink underage drinking and/or drinking and driving, then the program will have been a success.”
Students will come to the gym with their teachers during science classes, and they are also welcome to come back and observe during free periods. For more information on the Save A Life Tour, visit www.savealifetour.net or call 888-655-7263.
Thanks to the Parents Association, for the first time in Darlington history the Save A Life Tour will visit the campus to demonstrate to students the devastating effects of driving under the influence of alcohol. The tour features a state-of-the-art Drunk Driving Simulator, which will be set up in the Huffman Center’s Van Es Arena Thursday, Sept. 23, from 8 a.m. to 3:20 p.m.
All participants begin the experience sober as “witnesses” of other drivers’ bad judgment and deteriorating driving skills due to alcohol consumption. Two large screen displays reveal what each driver sees, the face of the driver, a helicopter view of the driver’s vehicle in traffic and an indicator level of the driver’s impairment as it gradually worsens.
New drivers are chosen from the witnessing audience, and are first given an orientation in the virtual environment by driving a high-fidelity desktop simulator with a single display. With a foot on the brake, turn of the ignition, shift into gear and mild acceleration, the driver is in motion. Audio and visual cues soon begin informing each driver and witnesses that the driver is under the influence. At each cue, a level of impairment is indicated, and the vehicle’s handling changes correspondingly. True to real life, the drive usually ends in a serious accident.
Each driver then graduates to the full immersion simulator with five high-resolution displays and a different driving environment. Every driver is served with a simulated citation as a record of their Driving Under the Influence. The program takes about four minutes to complete, and each drive is unique and never repeated.
“After a drunk-driving accident or fatality, it’s not unusual to hear that the driver thought he or she was able to drive, or that he or she had not consumed enough alcohol to be legally drunk, much less impaired,” said Jill Pate, director of personal counseling. “The Drunk Driving Simulator will give our students an opportunity to see and feel what it is like to drive under the influence and how quickly just a small amount of alcohol can result in impaired driving. If we are able to influence just one student to rethink underage drinking and/or drinking and driving, then the program will have been a success.”
Students will come to the gym with their teachers during science classes, and they are also welcome to come back and observe during free periods. For more information on the Save A Life Tour, visit www.savealifetour.net or call 888-655-7263.
