Super Bowl fans don't let their friends drive drunk

Emma Colomeda

Safe Kids Safe Communities

Lake County Health Department

Toss your keys to a designated driver before you toss one back.

Super Bowl Sunday is one of America's biggest and most entertaining national sporting events as friends and families gather to socialize and watch the big game. Yet, it is also one of the nation's most dangerous days on the roadways due to impaired driving.

If you are hosting a Super Bowl party:

? Remember, you can be held liable and prosecuted if someone you served ends up in an impaired driving crash.

? Make sure all of your guests designate their sober drivers in advance, or help arrange ride-sharing with other sober drivers.

? Serve lots of food-and include lots of non-alcoholic beverages at the party.

? Stop serving alcohol at the end of the third quarter of the game and begin serving coffee and dessert.

? Keep the numbers for local cab companies handy, and take the keys away from anyone who is thinking of driving while impaired. This year, the Lake County DUI Task Force and the South Lake Taxi Service are teaming up to provide Sober Rides Home. Call 883-9220 for a ride.

According to NHTSA, 130 people, representing 39 percent of all traffic fatalities, died during the 2006 Super Bowl weekend in crashes involving impaired drivers with blood alcohol concentration (BAC) levels of .08 or higher.

That is why the Lake County DUI Task Force, the Safe Kids Safe Communities Coalition, and the Montana Department of Transportation are joining forces with the National Football League (NFL), the Techniques for Effective Alcohol Management Coalition (TEAM), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and other state and local highway safety and law enforcement officials to remind everyone to act responsibly by designating a sober driver if they plan on using alcohol this Super Bowl weekend.

This effort is part of the NFL-TEAM's season-long "Responsibility Has Its Rewards" national designated driver program. During the 2007/08 NFL season, more than 100,000 football fans pledged to be a sober designated driver. For 2008, TEAM projects that number will continue to increase as more fans plan ahead and make the responsible, winning play.

The Super Bowl effort is part of the NFL-TEAM's season-long "Responsibility Has Its Rewards" designated driver program at every NFL stadium nationwide, including Denver. Fans who pledged to be designated drivers at NFL games were eligible to enter a drawing to be selected as the team's designated driver for the season. The selected designated drivers for each of the two teams that compete in the Super Bowl received two tickets, airfare and hotel accommodations to attend the big game.

In addition, one designated driver from an NFL team that does not play in the Super Bowl will be chosen at random to attend the 2006 NFL Pro Bowl in Honolulu.

The TEAM Coalition-an alliance of professional and collegiate sports, entertainment facilities, concessionaries, the beer industry, broadcasters, traffic safety experts and others-works to promote responsible drinking and positive fan behavior at all sports and entertainment facilities.

For more information, please visit www.StopImpairedDriving.org or www.TeamCoalition.org