Allstate Insurance's "Action Against Distraction" Program for safe driving
The sound of tires hitting traffic cones echoed throughout the parking lot at Spanish Springs High School.
This course is part of Allstate Insurance's "Action Against Distraction" Program. About two dozen students from various local high schools participated in the training to get a real life understanding of how everyday distractions can take away from safe driving.
18 year old Mitchell Payne from Reed High School had to maneuver his truck through the course under several challenges.The first: read a text from his friend while driving.
“Looks like ah Jerry wants to see what's going on tonight.”
“I use to text and talk every now and then when I was driving and this is just really showing me how distractive it can be,” says Mitchell.
Each trip around the course became more and more complicated as different scenarios came his way. The next trip involved a backseat driving who kept demanding he read a piece of paper while driving his car through the course.
"Read it, read it louder, you've hit some cones, read it," demanded the back seat driver.
Allstate can't reach all teens here in Northern Nevada. It’s hoped these 2 dozen teens will take the message back to their peers.
“That they will drive a little bit more carefully, Put both hands on the wheel, pay attention to what they are doing, and also that they'll speak up and talk to their friends about it as well,” says Shelley Beeler with Allstate.
Music, a guy in the back seat, or driving with the opposite hand, here it’s just a cone that gets crushed. Organizers hope with training, that's where the damage stops.
This training couldn't have come at a better time. According to Allstate, teen drivers are most likely to get into an accident between Memorial Day and Labor Day, with July 4th the most dangerous day for teen drivers.
Allstate says parents should talk to their teens about the heavy responsibility driving entails. The insurance company suggests a parent-teen driving contract. You can look at one of those contracts by going to our webchannel and clicking on Hot Topics.
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