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Wednesday, August 01, 2012
State Farm Plans “Celebrate My Drive” Events For Teens In September
Compared with other western nations, the US has one of the
worst training programs for new teen drivers. As a result, car crashes are the
leading cause of death for teens in the US. While graduated driving laws in
some states have reduced the teen death rate over the past several years, it is
still too high; with an average of 13 deaths per day involving 15 to 20 year
old drivers.
The primary reason that the US driver training program is so
bad is that we depend on the teen’s parents to teach them how to drive and, in
a lot of cases; the teen’s parent is the last person you would want to have teaching driving safety. Most parents aren't trained or fully prepared to teach their teen to drive and, if the parents model unsafe driving habits themselves,
the wrong message is often passed on to the teen. Another part of the problem
is that the parent isn't objective. Teen driving lessons often lead to a lot of
yelling, crying, and frayed nerves; not the proper emotional atmosphere you
need when training a nervous young driver. Finally, teens aren't fully trained
in spotting and recognizing potential dangers on the road and are thus poorly
prepared to avoid those dangers once they are out on the road by themselves.
In order to promote safer driving and better
training for teen drivers, State Farm Insurance is planning a "Celebrate My Drive" event at shopping malls and participating State
Farm offices nationwide on September 15, 2012. According to their website:
"By turning out and getting others to attend,
teens can:
- Have fun and win prizes
- Learn about safe driving in a celebratory way
- Help their school compete for a $100,000 grant
- Join other teens online to share experiences, receive support and have fun on the Celebrate My Drive Facebook page "
Parents are also encouraged to attend to learn better training
practices and resources for teaching their teens to drive.
For some time now, State Farm has hosted a website for
parents called Road Trips
that provides guidance on training techniques, how to recognize road hazards,
and plans for a step-by-step introduction into the driving environment.
For teens, State Farm has Road Aware, an animated
virtual driving course that teaches teens how to recognize and prepare for
potential dangers on the road.
To find out where the nearest Celebrate My Drive will be
held, you can visit the State Farm website at: http://www.celebratemydrive.com/celebrate-my-drive
or visit their Facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/CelebrateMyDrive
Labels: Celebrate My Drive, driver safety, state farm, teen safety
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