Mayors, Police Chief Get Behind Wheel During Drinking-Driving Experiment

MOST PEOPLE FAIL, INCLUDING GIANTS PITCHER JESSE FOPPERT AND TENNIS STAR
BRAD GILBERT, AT HOLIDAY SOBRIETY CHALLENGE  

 

SONOMA, Calif. (IMMEDIATE RELEASE) -  Bay Area mayors, city council members
and one police chief were drinking and driving under wet conditions on
Friday at Infineon Raceway, all with the blessing of the California Highway
Patrol.

 

Twelve people participated in the 7th annual "Holiday Sobriety Challenge" at
Infineon Raceway, a controlled wine and beer tasting experiment that
graphically illustrates the dangers of drinking and driving, even at levels
well below the legal limit of .08-percent. The event was co-sponsored by Bay
Area law enforcement agencies and the Jim Russell Racing Drivers School.

 

Only three of 12 people who took the test passed, further illustrating the
dangers of drinking and driving. 

 

"The scary thing is that I was not even over the limit and I failed the
test," said Santa Rosa Mayor Sharon Wright, who registered a .053
blood-alcohol level before getting behind the wheel. "I was under the legal
limit but I should not have been behind the wheel of a car. I didn't know
what to expect before I came here today but now I know: don't drink and
drive."

 

The event helped kick off the Bay Area Regional Avoid effort for the holiday
season, with DUI checkpoints set up throughout the nine Bay Area counties,
as well as roving DUI enforcement. Bay Area Regional Avoid is comprised of
all 125 law enforcement agencies in the Bay Area, and the message is clear:
if you are planning to consume alcohol, be sure to have a designated driver.


 

Wright was joined by Mayors David Glass (Petaluma), Rob Schroder (Martinez)
and Vice-Mayor Harry Price (Fairfield), as well as San Ramon Police Chief
Kathy Samuels. San Francisco Giants pitcher Jesse Foppert and tennis star
Brad Gilbert, both residents of San Rafael, also participated in the
challenge. Ken Brown, Doug McKesson and Dick Ashford, members of Sonoma's
City Council, completed the field of testers. Sonoma Mayor Joe Costello
attended but did not drink.

 

Testers were given anywhere from one-to-three glasses of wine or beer upon
arrival, before submitting to a field of sobriety tests, including a
breathalyzer analysis administered by the CHP. Once it was determined
participants were at the appropriate level, they were asked to get behind
the wheel of an automobile and drive through a pre-determined course at the
raceway. All drivers were accompanied by an instructor from the Jim Russell
Racing Drivers School.

 

"What I learned today is that one drink is too many if you plan on driving a
car," said Glass, who registered a .057 blood-alcohol level and failed the
driving test. "I know myself personally and I knew after I had those three
glasses of wine that I couldn't drive. This test just reinforced that."

 

Both Gilbert (.062) and Foppert (.032) also failed the test. "It's a huge
risk to drive when you're a little buzzed," Gilbert said. "Driving is a
privilege, but when you're buzzed it's not a privilege. You need to stay off
the road."

 

CHP Captain Rich Garcia, Napa Area commander, was not surprised at the
results of the experiment. Alcohol was involved in 162 collision-related
fatalities in the nine Bay Area counties in 2002, and 5,278 persons were
injured in alcohol-involved collisions, also in 2002. Moreover, 171 children
between the ages of 4-12 were injured and four children (ages 4-12) were
killed in 2002 as a result of alcohol-involved collisions. Figures used were
supplied by the CHP.

 

"The whole philosophy behind an event like this is to ensure that you have a
designated driver," Garcia said. "We do not want to discourage drinking, we
just want to discourage drinking and then getting behind the wheel of a car.
I think this program demonstrated that."

 

Wine for the Holiday Sobriety Challenge was provided by Robert Mondavi
Winery, while the beer was donated by Napa Valley Brewing Company.